Labor & Employment Law

Essentials of Education Law Section 3020-a ? Disciplinary procedures

Essentials of Education Law Section 3020-a ? Disciplinary procedures

Source: Office of Teaching Incentives, NYS Department of Education

Section 3020-a of the Education Law, as amended by Chapter 691 of the Laws of 1994, provides that a tenured school district educator who has been charged with incompetence or misconduct may elect to have a hearing officer review the charges and make findings of fact and recommendations as to penalty or punishment, if warranted.

The board of education must implement these recommendations within fifteen days.*

In cases that involve charges of pedagogical misconduct or issues of pedagogical judgment, the educator may elect to have a three-member panel perform this function.

This section of the Education Law also requires the school district clerk or the secretary of the board of education to perform certain procedural steps to implement its provisions.

For information on this process, and to download Section 3020-a forms, click on the Teacher Tenure Hearing links listed below.

Time Table

Role of District Clerk

Rights of Tenured Employees

Fingerprinting and Teacher Tenure Forms

Law and Regulations

Teacher Tenure Hearing (3020a) Frequently Asked Questions

* N.B. The Statute of Limitations for filing a Section 3020-a appeal is 10 days. Subdivision 5 of Section 3020-a provides, in pertinent part, as follows: ?Not later than ten days after receipt of the hearing officer's decision, the employee or the employing board may make an application to the New York state supreme court to vacate or modify the decision of the hearing officer pursuant to section seven thousand five hundred eleven of the civil practice law and rules.? Note that such an appeal must be processed pursuant to CPLR Article 75 rather than CPLR Article 78.

Those involved in handling disciplinary matters involving public employees in general and New York State in particular may wish to consider purchasing The Discipline Book [565 pages, published as an ?e-book?]. For additional information go to: http://booklocker.com/books/3449.html

The Education Department?s Office of Teaching Incentives Internet site is at: http://ohe33.nysed.gov/tcert//resteachers/employeremployee.htm

Full post as published by New York Public Personnel Law on February 23, 2009 (boomark / email).