Jasper School District No. 1 of Newton County v. Cooper

2014 Ark. 390, 441 S.W.3d 11, 39 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 191, 2014 Ark. LEXIS 499
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedSeptember 25, 2014
DocketCV-13-962
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 2014 Ark. 390 (Jasper School District No. 1 of Newton County v. Cooper) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jasper School District No. 1 of Newton County v. Cooper, 2014 Ark. 390, 441 S.W.3d 11, 39 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 191, 2014 Ark. LEXIS 499 (Ark. 2014).

Opinion

JOSEPHINE LINKER HART, Justice.

I,Prior to being fired, Anita Cooper had been employed as principal of the Oark, Arkansas schools. Cooper brought suit against appellants Jasper School District No. 1 of Newton County (District) and Kerry Saylors, individually, and in his capacity as a superintendent of the District. In her complaint, Cooper asserted in part that appellants had failed to comply with the Teacher Fair Dismissal Act (TFDA) and had failed to provide her with due process. The circuit court reinstated Cooper to her job as principal, awarded her $64,998 in damages, and found Saylors was individually liable. On appeal, the District and Saylors raise three issues. Appellants first argue that the circuit court erred in finding that there was not substantial compliance with the TFDA. Second, appellants argue that the circuit court Uerred in finding Cooper had a property right in her position as principal of the Oark schools. Third, appellants argue that the circuit court’s award to Cooper was excessive and amounted to an award of “double retirement.” We affirm.

Cooper was a twenty-nine-year employee in the Oark schools. The Oark schools were annexed by the District in 2004. In 2009, Cooper became the principal of all Oark schools. On February 28, 2011, Cooper signed a “Teacher’s Contract” with the District for the period of July 1, 2011, to June 30, 2012, in which she agreed to “perform services” as “K-12 Principal, Oark.” Under the contract provision labeled “OTHER CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT,” the contract further provided, “This contract is contingent upon the teacher having a valid teaching license. Other duties as assigned by the administration.”

On August 26, 2011, Cooper submitted a grievance claiming she was denied the right to create a master schedule for classes to be offered at Oark and that she was “written up” by the assistant superintendent, Wanda Mann. On August 29, 2011, Saylors wrote Cooper a letter that noted he had met with her on August 22, 2011, to address matters that included, among other concerns, “irregularities in the Oark master schedule.” Saylors wrote, “I expect to see improvement in your leadership of the Oark campus. Failure to do so may result in further disciplinary actions which could be reassignment of duties or termination of your contract with the Jasper School District.”

Following a meeting of the District’s Board of Directors (Board), on September 9, 2011, Cooper was removed from her duties as principal of Oark schools and assigned to a school campus in Kingston, Arkansas, where she was to serve as the principal of in-school | (¡suspensions. On September 27, 2011, Saylors responded in writing to Cooper’s grievance, stating that it was not valid. Saylors also notified Cooper in writing that she was suspended with pay and that he would recommend to the Board that her employment contract be terminated. In his notice, Saylors listed nine reasons as bases for the termination:

1. The Oark master schedule failed to reflect all 38 units required by standards and assurances in that the following units were not present: (a) civics/American government, (b) transitions math;
2. Oark high school failed to have a minimum of one student enrolled in the following classes: (a) performing arts, (b) transitions math, and (c) dc3 and dc4;
3. Six of seven Oark seniors were not enrolled in the required classes to fulfill their curriculum requirements for smart core curriculum or to be eligible for graduation;
4. Two students were enrolled as juniors and only had credits for sophomore standing;
5. Students were not correctly entered in APSCN to reflect signed smart core waivers;
6. Six students had received high school credit while in the 8th grade for classes other than algebra I without issuance of a state waiver;
7. You gave the seniors inaccurate information when you told them not to worry, that you would have their parents sign the common core form;
8. Your lack of professional knowledge regarding ADE standards and graduation requirements; and
9. Oark elementary schedule failed to have the required minutes for physical education and the required minutes of daily instructions.

Following a hearing on November 30, 2011, the Board terminated Cooper’s employment.

Cooper appealed the Board’s decision to the circuit court. In her complaint, Cooper alleged that she was a teacher for the purposes of the TFDA and that the District failed to |4comply with the TFDA. Cooper alleged in part that she did not receive mandated annual performance reviews, that she was not notified in writing of problems that could lead to the termination or nonrenewal of her contract, and that there was no documentation of efforts that had been undertaken to assist her to correct the causes for potential termination or nonrenewal of her contract. Cooper also alleged that by terminating her employment, the District had breached the employment contract and had violated the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment by depriving her of constitutionally protected property and liberty interests without due process. She sought reinstatement, damages, punitive damages, and costs and attorney’s fees.

Following trial, the court reversed the Board’s decision. Specifically, the court found that Cooper was a “teacher” for the purposes of the TFDA, that assigning Cooper to the Kingston campus constituted a nonrenewal of her contract, and that she was not given notice of the nonrenewal as required by the TFDA. The court further found that the District failed to substantially comply with the TFDA by failing to conduct annual performance reviews, failing to bring to her attention the problems identified as the nine reasons for termination found in Saylors’s letter, and failing to document the efforts undertaken to assist her to correct the causes for termination. The court also found that the District had breached her contract of employment. The court further found that the evidence demonstrated that Saylors violated Cooper’s protected property right in her continued employment when he removed her as the Oark principal and transferred her to Kingston, and therefore, Saylors was not entitled to qualified immunity. The court awarded $64,998 in damages and reinstated Cooper to her | ¿position. The court also found that Cooper was not deprived of a liberty interest and was not entitled to punitive damages. The court also dismissed a claim Cooper made regarding a violation of the Freedom of Information Act and dismissed her claims against Mann. The District and Saylors appealed.

In the first point on appeal, appellants assert that the circuit court erred in finding that Cooper’s transfer to the Kingston campus constituted a nonrenewal of her contract. In the same point, appellants also argue that the District was not required to provide annual performance reviews.

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2014 Ark. 390, 441 S.W.3d 11, 39 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 191, 2014 Ark. LEXIS 499, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jasper-school-district-no-1-of-newton-county-v-cooper-ark-2014.