2014 -- H 7026

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LC003253

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2014

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- TEACHERS' TENURE

     Introduced By: Representatives Ruggiero, McNamara, Hearn, Abney, and Finn

     Date Introduced: January 08, 2014

     Referred To: House Labor

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Sections 16-13-2, 16-13-3, 16-13-4, 16-13-6 and 16-13-8 of the General

Laws in Chapter 16-13 entitled "Teachers' Tenure" are hereby amended to read as follows:

     16-13-2. Annual contract basis -- Automatic continuation. -- (a) Teaching service

shall be on the basis of an annual contract, except as hereinafter provided, and the contract shall

be deemed to be continuous unless the governing body of the schools shall notify the teacher, in

writing, on or before March 1, that the contract for the ensuing year will not be renewed.;

provided If the dismissal or nonrenewal is based on fiscal exigency or program reorganization,

the governing body shall notify the teacher on or before June 1 of the school year immediately

preceding the school year in which the dismissal or nonrenewal is to become effective. Provided,

however, that a teacher, upon request, shall be furnished a statement of cause for dismissal or

nonrenewal of his or her contract by the school committee; provided further, that whenever any

contract is not renewed, or the teacher is dismissed, the teacher shall be entitled to a hearing and

appeal pursuant to the procedure set forth in section §16-13-4.

      (b) Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to prohibit, or at any time to have

prohibited, a school committee from agreeing, in a collective bargaining agreement, to the

arbitration of disputes arising out of a dismissal or nonrenewal of a nontenured teacher pursuant

to subsection (a) of this section.

     16-13-3. Probationary period -- Tenure after probation. -- (a) Three (3) annual

contracts within five (5) successive school years shall be considered evidence of satisfactory

teaching and shall constitute a probationary period. Teachers who complete the probationary

period shall be considered in continuous service and shall not be subject to annual renewal or

nonrenewal of their contracts. No tenured teacher in continuous service shall be dismissed except

for good and just cause. Whenever a tenured teacher in continuous service is to be dismissed, the

notice of the dismissal shall be given to the teacher, in writing, on or before March 1st of the

school year immediately preceding the school year in which the dismissal is to become effective.

If the dismissal is based on fiscal exigency or program reorganization, the notice of dismissal

shall be given to the teacher, in writing, on or before June 1 of the school year immediately

preceding the school year in which the dismissal is to become effective. The teacher shall be

furnished with a complete statement of the cause(s) for the dismissal by the governing body of the

school and shall be entitled to a hearing and appeal pursuant to the procedure set forth in section

§16-13-4.

      (b) Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to prohibit, or at any time to have

prohibited, a school committee from agreeing, in a collective bargaining agreement, to the

arbitration of disputes arising out of the dismissal of a tenured teacher pursuant to subsection (a)

of this section.

      (c) Any teacher employed by a local or regional school committee who has attained

tenure in a Rhode Island public school system,; who is appointed to an administrative position of

principal, assistant principal, vice principal, superintendent, assistant superintendent, director, or

other central office personnel in any Rhode Island public school system, including the original

school district of employment,; or who is hired for an administrative position as a fellow,

education specialist, or director by the Rhode Island department of education, shall be granted an

unpaid leave of absence, not to exceed three (3) years, in order to be employed in an

administrative position of principal, assistant principal, vice principal, superintendent, assistant

superintendent, director, or other central office personnel in any Rhode Island school system or

the Rhode Island department of education. Said teachers shall, upon completion of their

administrative position employment contract, or termination or resignation of the administrative

position, be allowed to return to his or her former status as a tenured teacher within the system

from which the leave of absence was taken. Such leaves of absence shall not be deemed to be an

interruption of service for the purposes of seniority and teacher retirement.

     16-13-4. Statement of cause for dismissal -- Hearing -- Appeals -- Arbitration. -- (a)

The statement of cause for dismissal shall be given to the teacher, in writing, by the governing

body of the schools. at least one month prior to the close of the school year. The teacher may,

within fifteen (15) days of the notification, request, in writing, a hearing before the full board.

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The hearing shall be public or private, in the discretion of the teacher. Both teacher and school

board shall be entitled to be represented by counsel and to present witnesses. The board shall

keep a complete record of the hearing and shall furnish the teacher with a copy. Any teacher

aggrieved by the decision of the school board shall have the right of appeal to the department of

elementary and secondary education and shall have the right of further appeal to the superior

court.

      (b) Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to prohibit, or at any time to have

prohibited, a school committee in a municipality or regional school district with an elected school

committee, or the chief executive officer in a municipality with an appointed school committee

from agreeing, in a collective bargaining agreement, to the arbitration of disputes arising out of

the nonrenewal, dismissal, and/or suspension of a teacher pursuant to sections §§16-13-2, 16-13-

3, and/or 16-13-5.

     16-13-6. Suspension because of decrease in school population -- Seniority --

Reinstatement. -- (a) A school board may, by reason of a substantial decrease of pupil

population within its school system, suspend teachers in numbers necessitated by the decrease in

pupil population; provided, however, that suspension of teachers shall be in the inverse order of

their employment unless it is necessary to retain certain teachers of technical subjects whose

places cannot be filled by teachers of earlier appointment; and, provided, further, that teachers

that who are suspended shall be reinstated in the inverse order of their suspension. No new

appointments shall be made while there are available teachers so suspended.

      (b) Notice of suspension under this section and section §16-13-5 shall be given, in

writing, by the governing body of schools on or before March 1 June 1 notifying the teacher that

his or her employment for the ensuing year shall be suspended, provided however, notice by that

date need not be provided in the instance of an emergency performance related cause.

     16-13-8. Continuity of tenure upon transfer. -- Any teacher in continuing service who

voluntarily resigns and transfers to another community in Rhode Island without interrupting his

or her professional career, shall be considered to remain under tenure unless the teacher is

notified to the contrary, in writing, prior to March 1 of the second school year in which the

teacher transfers. If the dismissal or nonrenewal is based on fiscal exigency or program

reorganization, the teacher shall be notified, in writing, prior to June 1 of the second school year

in which the teacher transfers.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- TEACHERS' TENURE

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     This act would amend the notification requirements regarding the dismissal, suspension

or lay-off of teachers in the event of a fiscal exigency or program reorganization.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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LC003253

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