Barr v. CLARENDON CO. SCH. BD. DIST. 2

462 S.E.2d 316
CourtCourt of Appeals of South Carolina
DecidedAugust 7, 1995
Docket2384
StatusPublished

This text of 462 S.E.2d 316 (Barr v. CLARENDON CO. SCH. BD. DIST. 2) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of South Carolina primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Barr v. CLARENDON CO. SCH. BD. DIST. 2, 462 S.E.2d 316 (S.C. Ct. App. 1995).

Opinion

462 S.E.2d 316 (1995)

Felicia B. BARR, Respondent,
v.
The BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF CLARENDON COUNTY SCHOOL DITRICT NO. 2, Appellant.

No. 2384.

Court of Appeals of South Carolina.

Heard June 7, 1995.
Decided August 7, 1995.
Rehearing Denied September 21, 1995.

*317 Kenneth L. Childs and David E. Dubberly, both of Childs & Duff, Columbia; William H. Johnson, of Coffey, Cooper, Chandler & Du-Rant, Manning, for appellant.

Jay Bender, of Baker, Barwick, Ravenel & Bender, Columbia, for respondent.

PER CURIAM:

Dr. Felicia C. Barr (Barr) sought judicial review of a decision of the Clarendon County School Board (the Board) terminating her employment with the Clarendon County School District (the District). The circuit court reversed the decision of the Board. The Board appeals. We reverse.

Facts

In April of 1993, Barr entered into a contract of employment with the Board which named her assistant superintendent of instruction for the 1993-94 school year. Barr had been employed by the Board in this capacity for the previous five years. On August 23, 1993, Dr. Sylvia H. Weinberg, the District Superintendent, notified Barr in writing she was being laterally transferred to the position of principal of Manning Primary School, effective September 20, 1993. Manning Primary School is the District's largest primary school with a student enrollment of over 900. In her letter notifying Barr of the transfer, Weinberg expressly stated Barr's salary for the 1993-94 school year would not be affected by the transfer. The letter further stated:

This assignment promotes the best interests of the instructional program in this district, places you in a position I believe you are best qualified to serve, and complements your professional development.

On or about August 23, 1993, Barr filed a sexual harassment complaint against a fellow administrator. The complaint was not resolved by the superintendent to her satisfaction. Thereafter, Barr filed a grievance under the District's Grievance Procedures. In her grievance complaint, Barr complained of: (1) dissatisfaction with the resolution of the harassment complaint; (2) poor communications and a hostile work environment in the district office; and (3) the job transfer to principal which she termed a demotion.

On September 7, 1993, Weinberg informed Barr in writing she was accelerating the effective date of the transfer to the next day, September 8, 1993. Weinberg also advised Barr that the transfer was "being made in lieu of recommending your termination" and any future disruptive behavior would be considered grounds for dismissal. On the same day, at the request of Weinberg and after Weinberg refused to excuse her, Barr attended a Manning Primary School faculty meeting but refused Weinberg's request that *318 she address the faculty. Also on the same day, Barr's attorney notified Weinberg that Barr refused to accept the transfer because such a transfer was allegedly in breach of her contract with the District. After Barr did not report to Manning Primary School on September 8, 1993, Weinberg wrote to her requesting immediate notification of her intentions regarding the position as principal. Nevertheless, Barr failed to report to Manning Primary School and assume her new duties as principal. She wrote to Weinberg on September 10, 1993 stating that she had been advised by counsel not to report for duty as principal, and that all future correspondence should be to her attorney. On September 14, 1993, Weinberg wrote to Barr informing her that her employment with the District had been suspended because of Barr's refusal to accept her new duties or even to report to work, and advising her that she would recommend Barr's termination by the Board.

Thereafter, Barr requested and was granted a full evidentiary hearing before the Board pursuant to the Teachers Employment and Dismissal Act, S.C.Code Ann. § 59-25-410 et seq. (1990). In its order dated February 25, 1994, the Board unanimously concluded, among other things, (1) Barr's contract with the District did not preclude an involuntary transfer by the superintendent; (2) the involuntary transfer was justified; and (3) Barr's actions in failing to report to Manning Primary School and in failing to notify the proper authorities of her intent to remain absent constituted a material disruption of the educational process justifying the Board's acceptance of Weinberg's recommendation that her employment with the district be terminated. Barr appealed to the circuit court for judicial review of the Board's decision. The trial court reversed the Board's decision and ordered Barr's reinstatement. This appeal ensued.

Discussion

On appeal, the Board argues the trial court erred in finding no substantial evidence to support the Board's ultimate decision to terminate Barr. We agree.

I. Breach of Contract

S.C.Code Ann. § 59-19-90(2)(1990) vests in school district boards of trustees authority to "[e]mploy teachers ... and discharge them when good and sufficient reasons for doing so present themselves, subject to the supervision of the county board of education." In line with this broad legislative grant of authority to school boards, the authority of the judiciary to review district board decisions in matters brought pursuant to the Teachers Employment and Dismissal Act is limited to determining whether the decision to terminate employment is supported by substantial evidence. Kizer v. Dorchester County Vocational Educ. Bd. of Trustees, 287 S.C. 545, 340 S.E.2d 144 (1986). Substantial evidence is that which, viewing the record as a whole, would allow reasonable minds to reach the conclusion the board reached or must have reached in order to justify its actions. Id. 340 S.E.2d at 146. The reviewing court cannot substitute its own judgment for that of the school board. Id. This court, of course, may correct errors of law. Lexington County School District One v. Bost, 282 S.C. 32, 316 S.E.2d 677 (1984).

In the instant case, the trial court found the Board committed an error of law in determining Barr's contract allowed her to be involuntarily transferred to another position within the district. Based on this finding, the trial court concluded that inasmuch as the District breached its contract with Barr, she had no obligation to continue performing under the contract and, therefore, the Board's ultimate decision to terminate her employment for failure to report to Manning Primary was without evidentiary support. We hold this was error.

Barr sought and was granted a hearing before the Board pursuant to S.C.Code Ann. § 59-25-470 (1990) which affords teachers the right to a hearing before the school board upon written request following suspension or dismissal. Although Barr's position was titled Assistant Superintendent of Instruction, she is statutorily defined as a "teacher" for purposes of the Teachers Employment and Dismissal Act and is thus protected by the Act. See S.C.Code Ann. § 59-1-130 (1990) *319 ("Teacher" means "any person who is employed... either to teach or to supervise teaching"); see also Johnson v. Spartanburg County School Dist. No. 7, ___ S.C.

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Related

Kizer v. Dorchester County Vocational Educational Board of Trustees
340 S.E.2d 144 (Supreme Court of South Carolina, 1986)
Adams v. Clarendon County School District No. 2
241 S.E.2d 897 (Supreme Court of South Carolina, 1978)
Lexington County School District One Board of Trustees v. Bost
316 S.E.2d 677 (Supreme Court of South Carolina, 1984)
Snipes v. McAndrew
313 S.E.2d 294 (Supreme Court of South Carolina, 1984)
Johnson v. Spartanburg County School District No. 7
444 S.E.2d 501 (Supreme Court of South Carolina, 1994)
Barr v. Board of Trustees of Clarendon County School District No. 2
462 S.E.2d 316 (Court of Appeals of South Carolina, 1995)

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462 S.E.2d 316, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/barr-v-clarendon-co-sch-bd-dist-2-scctapp-1995.