Adkins v. Hazelwood School District

743 S.W.2d 869, 1987 Mo. App. LEXIS 5102, 1987 WL 3248
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedDecember 22, 1987
DocketNo. 52924
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 743 S.W.2d 869 (Adkins v. Hazelwood School District) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Adkins v. Hazelwood School District, 743 S.W.2d 869, 1987 Mo. App. LEXIS 5102, 1987 WL 3248 (Mo. Ct. App. 1987).

Opinion

PUDLOWSKI, Judge.

Norman Adkins appeals a judgment of the circuit court affirming the decision of the Board of Education of the Hazelwood School District (Board) to terminate his indefinite contract of employment as a permanent teacher as defined in Section 168.-104(4) RSMo Cum. Supp. 1984.

We adopt the findings of fact made by the circuit court to wit: Norman Adkins was employed as a teacher in the Hazel-wood School District for sixteen years. From 1979 through 1984 Adkins taught at Walker Elementary School. As a result of staff reductions he was transferred to the Charbonier School for the 1984-85 school year where he taught the fifth grade. The following school year he taught the sixth grade at the same school. During the 1985-86 school year, Junette Gist, principal at the Charbonier School made ten formal observations of Adkins’ classroom. On February 25, 1986 Gist prepared a final evaluation based on her formal and informal observations of Adkins’ classroom performance. All such evaluations were written in accordance with Hazelwood Board Policy 533.6 which provided for both the evaluation method and the form of the evaluation document. In that evaluation Gist recommended to the superintendent of the District, Dr. Thomas Lawson, that Adkins’ contract be terminated on the grounds of incompetency and inefficiency.

On March 14, 1986, Dr. Lawson, after receiving Adkins’ evaluations, sent Adkins a letter with numerous references to a nineteen page attachment. That document purported to serve as written warning of the causes which, if not removed, could result in charges including Adkins’ insubordination in the line of duty. Shortly thereafter, Dr. Charles Woods, principal of Cold-water School and designated representative of Superintendent Lawson, met with Adkins and reviewed the evaluation document establishing the areas to be observed and offered suggestions for improvement. Following each of five classroom observations Woods conferred with Adkins regarding potential problems and offered suggestions. At the end of the meet and confer period, which lasted from March 18,1986 to April 29, 1986, Woods informed Lawson that Adkins had not cured the deficiencies noted in the Gist evaluation of February 25, 1986.

On May 12, 1986, based on the information received by Woods, Lawson sent Adkins written notice of the charges of incompetency, inefficiency and insubordination in the line of duty. In that letter he informed Adkins that the charges would be submitted to the Board along with his recommendation that Adkins be discharged.

Adkins requested and received a hearing before the Board which commenced on June 10, 1986. Based on the evidence the Board found Adkins to be incompetent, inefficient and insubordinate in the line of duty and terminated his contract. Adkins appealed to the Circuit Court of St. Louis County pursuant to Section 168.120.1. On March 12, 1987, the Circuit Court per Arthur Litz, J., issued Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law and affirmed the decision of the Board. Adkins appealed the decision to this court pursuant to Section 168.120.3 RSMo 1986 and contends that the Board failed to comply with the procedural mandates of Section 168.116.

We view the question of whether the Board complied with Section 168.116 as a question of law and accordingly, our review of the issue is guided by the standards set forth in Murphy v. Carron, 536 S.W.2d 30 (Mo. banc 1976).

Section 168.102 through 168.130 are collectively referred to as the Teacher Tenure Act. The purpose of the act is to provide substantive and procedural safeguards with respect to the removal of tenured teachers. Lindbergh School District v. Syrewicz, 516 S.W.2d 507, 512 (Mo.App.1974). The statute at issue, Section 168.-116, has been the subject of a significant [871]*871amount of litigation and as a result the requirements of that statute are well established.

The procedure for the removal of a tenured teacher on the grounds of inefficiency, incompetence or insubordination in the line of duty is a three step process. This process was aptly outlined by this court in Iven v. Hazelwood School District, 710 S.W.2d 462, 464 (Mo.App.1986):

The first step is a written warning stating specifically causes which, if not removed, may result in charges. The second step is a requirement that the superintendent, or a designated representative, “meet and confer with the teacher in an effort to resolve the matter.” If necessary, the third step is the service of written charges specifying with particularity the grounds alleged to exist for termination together with a notice of a hearing on the charges.

On appeal Adkins contends that Section 168.116 was violated in two ways. First, the warning letter of March 14, 1986, was violative of Section 168.116.2 in that it failed to state with specificity the causes which “if not removed may result in charges.” Second, the written notice of charges, dated May 12, 1986, was violative of Section 168.116.1 in that it failed to specify with particularity the grounds upon which the Board sought to terminate Adkins’ contract.

First we turn our attention to the warning letter. On March 14, 1986,1 Adkins received the following letter:

Dear Mr. Adkins:
The evaluation by your principal, Mrs. Junette Gist, dated February 25, 1986, has been referred to me by Mrs. Gist and Dr. Spencer Hedrick, Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education, for the purpose of having your effectiveness as a teacher in the Hazelwood School District evaluated under the provisions of RSMo 168.
After reviewing your evaluation, I have concluded that there is a question about your ability to structure a satisfactory learning environment for your classes. The area of deficiencies and recommendations are set forth in the evaluation signed on February 25, 1986 and I am attaching a copy of these 1985-86 evaluations and recommendations in their entirety.
I have also reviewed with concern that area of your evaluation styled “Work Habits.” The problems outlined by Mrs. Gist indicate that a teacher with your years of service with the Hazelwood School District has refused to comply with Mrs. Gist’s direct request and that is, in plain words, insubordination, and will not be tolerated in the District. Since Mrs. Gist has listed this as an area of “Needs Improvement,” I will expect that it will not be continued.
Therefore, in accordance with Board policies and RSMo 168.116, I have designated Mr. Charles Woods, principal, Cold Water School, to hold a conference with you and schedule classroom observations and follow-up conferences concerning the deficiencies outlined in the attached copy, which, if not removed, may be cause for your termination as a teacher in the Ha-zelwood School District to be recommended to the Board of Education. Your evaluation also contains specific recommendations for improvement which, if adopted by you in your teaching, will satisfy the deficiencies noted. The attached copy, in its entirety, will serve to inform you as to the deficiencies which will be evaluated by Mr. Woods. Following the conference with Mr.

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743 S.W.2d 869, 1987 Mo. App. LEXIS 5102, 1987 WL 3248, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/adkins-v-hazelwood-school-district-moctapp-1987.