2023 Illinois Compiled Statutes › Chapter 105 - SCHOOLS › 105 ILCS 5/ - School Code. › Article 24 - Employment of Teachers--Tenure--Duties of Teachers

(105 ILCS 5/Art. 24 heading)
ARTICLE 24.  
		EMPLOYMENT OF TEACHERS--TENURE--DUTIES OF TEACHERS
(105 ILCS 5/24-1) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-1)
Sec. 24-1. 
		
		Appointment-Salaries-Payment-School month-School term.)
School boards shall appoint all teachers, determine qualifications of
employment
and fix the amount of their
salaries subject to limitation set forth in this Act.  They shall pay
the wages of teachers monthly, subject, however, to the provisions of
Section 24-21.  The school month shall be the same as the calendar month
but by resolution the school board may adopt for its use a month of 20
days, including holidays.  The school term shall consist of at least the
minimum number of pupil attendance days required by Section 10-19, any
additional legal school holidays, days of teachers' institutes, or
equivalent professional educational experiences, and one or two days at
the beginning of the school term when used as a teachers' workshop.
(Source: P.A. 80-249.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-1.1) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-1.1)
Sec. 24-1.1. 
		Employment of public school employees by nonpublic schools. 
		
Employees of public schools may be employed on a part-time or temporary
basis by private or parochial schools, providing that such employment is
in no way connected with or subsidized by their public school employment,
and provided further that such private or parochial employment does not
conflict or interfere with an employee's public school duties.
(Source: P.A. 80-287.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-1.5)
Sec. 24-1.5.  New or vacant teaching positions.   A school district's selection of a candidate for a new or vacant teaching position not otherwise required to be filled pursuant to Section 24-12 of this Code must be based upon the consideration of factors that include without limitation certifications, qualifications, merit and ability (including performance evaluations, if available), and relevant experience, provided that the length of continuing service with the school district must not be considered as a factor, unless all other factors are determined by the school district to be equal.  A school district's decision to select a particular candidate to fill a new or vacant position is not subject to review under grievance resolution procedures adopted pursuant to subsection (c) of Section 10 of the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act, provided that, in making such a decision, the district does not fail to adhere to procedural requirements in a collective bargaining agreement relating to the filling of new or vacant teaching positions.  Provisions regarding the filling of new and vacant positions in a collective bargaining agreement between a school district and the exclusive bargaining representative of its teachers in existence on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly shall remain in full force and effect for the term of the agreement, unless terminated by mutual agreement.
Nothing in this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly (i) limits or otherwise impacts school districts' management right to hire new employees, (ii) affects what currently is or may be a mandatory subject of bargaining under the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act, or (iii) creates a statutory cause of action for a candidate or a candidate's representative to challenge a school district's selection decision based on the school district's failure to adhere to the requirements of this Section.
(Source: P.A. 97-8, eff. 6-13-11.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-2) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-2)
(Text of Section from P.A. 103-15)
Sec. 24-2. Holidays.
(a) Teachers shall not be required
to teach on Saturdays, nor, except as provided in subsection (b) of this Section, shall teachers or other school
employees, other than noncertificated school employees whose presence is
necessary because of an emergency or for the continued operation and
maintenance of school facilities or property, be
required to work on legal school
holidays, which are January 1, New Year's Day; the third Monday in
January, the Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; February 12, the
Birthday of President Abraham Lincoln; the
first Monday in March (to be known as Casimir Pulaski's birthday); Good
Friday; the day designated as Memorial Day by federal law; June 19, Juneteenth National Freedom Day; July 4,
Independence Day; the first Monday in September, Labor Day; the second Monday
in October, Columbus Day; November 11, Veterans' Day; the Thursday in
November commonly called Thanksgiving Day; and December 25, Christmas Day.
School boards may grant special holidays whenever in their judgment such
action is advisable. No deduction shall
be made from the time or
compensation of a school employee on account of any legal
or special holiday.
(b) A school board or other entity eligible to apply for waivers and modifications under Section 2-3.25g of this Code is authorized to hold school or schedule teachers' institutes, parent-teacher conferences, or staff development on the third Monday in January (the Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.); February 12 (the Birthday of President Abraham Lincoln); the first Monday in March (known as Casimir Pulaski's birthday); the second Monday in October (Columbus Day); and November 11 (Veterans' Day), provided that:
(1) the person or persons honored by the holiday are     recognized through instructional activities conducted on that day or, if the day is not used for student attendance, on the first school day preceding or following that day; and
(2) the entity that chooses to exercise this     authority first holds a public hearing about the proposal.  The entity shall provide notice preceding the public hearing to both educators and parents.  The notice shall set forth the time, date, and place of the hearing, describe the proposal, and indicate that the entity will take testimony from educators and parents about the proposal.
(c) Commemorative holidays, which recognize specified patriotic, civic,
cultural or historical persons, activities, or events, are regular school
days. Commemorative
holidays are: January 17 (the birthday of Muhammad Ali), January 28 (to be known as Christa McAuliffe Day and
observed as a commemoration of space exploration), February 15 (the
birthday of Susan B. Anthony), March 29 (Viet Nam War Veterans' Day),
September 11 (September 11th Day of Remembrance), September 17 (Constitution Day), the school day
immediately preceding Veterans' Day (Korean War Veterans'
Day), October 1 (Recycling Day), October 7 (Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Remembrance Day), December 7 (Pearl Harbor Veterans' Day), and
any day so appointed by the President or
Governor.  School boards may establish commemorative holidays whenever in
their judgment such action is advisable.
School boards shall include instruction relative to commemorated persons,
activities, or
events on the commemorative holiday or at any other time during the school
year and at any point in the curriculum when such instruction may be deemed
appropriate. The State Board of Education shall prepare and make available
to school boards instructional materials relative to commemorated persons,
activities,
or events which may be used by school boards in conjunction with any
instruction provided pursuant to this paragraph.
(d) City of Chicago School District 299 shall observe March 4 of each year as
a commemorative holiday.  This holiday shall be known as Mayors' Day which
shall be a day to commemorate and be reminded of the past Chief Executive
Officers of the City of Chicago, and in particular the late Mayor Richard
J. Daley and the late Mayor Harold Washington.  If March 4 falls on a
Saturday or Sunday, Mayors' Day shall be observed on the following Monday.
(e)  Notwithstanding any other provision of State law to the contrary, November 3, 2020 shall be a State holiday known as 2020 General Election Day and shall be observed throughout the State pursuant to this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly. All government offices, with the exception of election authorities, shall be closed unless authorized to be used as a location for election day services or as a polling place.
Notwithstanding any other provision of State law to the contrary, November 8, 2022 shall be a State holiday known as 2022 General Election Day and shall be observed throughout the State under Public Act 102-15.
(Source: P.A. 102-14, eff. 1-1-22; 102-15, eff. 6-17-21; 102-334, eff. 8-9-21; 102-411, eff. 1-1-22; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 103-15, eff. 7-1-23.)
(Text of Section from P.A. 103-395)
Sec. 24-2. Holidays.
(a) Teachers shall not be required
to teach on Saturdays, nor, except as provided in subsection (b) of this Section, shall teachers, educational support personnel employees, or other school
employees, other than noncertificated school employees whose presence is
necessary because of an emergency or for the continued operation and
maintenance of school facilities or property, be
required to work on legal school
holidays, which are January 1, New Year's Day; the third Monday in
January, the Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; February 12, the
Birthday of President Abraham Lincoln; the
first Monday in March (to be known as Casimir Pulaski's birthday); Good
Friday; the day designated as Memorial Day by federal law; June 19, Juneteenth National Freedom Day; July 4,
Independence Day; the first Monday in September, Labor Day; the second Monday
in October, Columbus Day; November 11, Veterans' Day; the Thursday in
November commonly called Thanksgiving Day; and December 25, Christmas Day.
School boards may grant special holidays whenever in their judgment such
action is advisable. No deduction shall
be made from the time or
compensation of a school employee, including an educational support personnel employee, on account of any legal
or special holiday in which that employee would have otherwise been scheduled to work but for the legal or special holiday.
(b) A school board or other entity eligible to apply for waivers and modifications under Section 2-3.25g of this Code is authorized to hold school or schedule teachers' institutes, parent-teacher conferences, or staff development on the third Monday in January (the Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.); February 12 (the Birthday of President Abraham Lincoln); the first Monday in March (known as Casimir Pulaski's birthday); the second Monday in October (Columbus Day); and November 11 (Veterans' Day), provided that:
(1) the person or persons honored by the holiday are     recognized through instructional activities conducted on that day or, if the day is not used for student attendance, on the first school day preceding or following that day; and
(2) the entity that chooses to exercise this     authority first holds a public hearing about the proposal.  The entity shall provide notice preceding the public hearing to both educators and parents.  The notice shall set forth the time, date, and place of the hearing, describe the proposal, and indicate that the entity will take testimony from educators and parents about the proposal.
(c) Commemorative holidays, which recognize specified patriotic, civic,
cultural or historical persons, activities, or events, are regular school
days. Commemorative
holidays are: January 17 (the birthday of Muhammad Ali), January 28 (to be known as Christa McAuliffe Day and
observed as a commemoration of space exploration), February 15 (the
birthday of Susan B. Anthony), March 29 (Viet Nam War Veterans' Day),
September 11 (September 11th Day of Remembrance), the school day
immediately preceding Veterans' Day (Korean War Veterans'
Day), October 1 (Recycling Day), October 7 (Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Remembrance Day), December 7 (Pearl Harbor Veterans' Day), and
any day so appointed by the President or
Governor.  School boards may establish commemorative holidays whenever in
their judgment such action is advisable.
School boards shall include instruction relative to commemorated persons,
activities, or
events on the commemorative holiday or at any other time during the school
year and at any point in the curriculum when such instruction may be deemed
appropriate. The State Board of Education shall prepare and make available
to school boards instructional materials relative to commemorated persons,
activities,
or events which may be used by school boards in conjunction with any
instruction provided pursuant to this paragraph.
(d) City of Chicago School District 299 shall observe March 4 of each year as
a commemorative holiday.  This holiday shall be known as Mayors' Day which
shall be a day to commemorate and be reminded of the past Chief Executive
Officers of the City of Chicago, and in particular the late Mayor Richard
J. Daley and the late Mayor Harold Washington.  If March 4 falls on a
Saturday or Sunday, Mayors' Day shall be observed on the following Monday.
(e)  Notwithstanding any other provision of State law to the contrary, November 3, 2020 shall be a State holiday known as 2020 General Election Day and shall be observed throughout the State pursuant to this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly. All government offices, with the exception of election authorities, shall be closed unless authorized to be used as a location for election day services or as a polling place.
Notwithstanding any other provision of State law to the contrary, November 8, 2022 shall be a State holiday known as 2022 General Election Day and shall be observed throughout the State under Public Act 102-15.
(Source: P.A. 102-14, eff. 1-1-22; 102-15, eff. 6-17-21; 102-334, eff. 8-9-21; 102-411, eff. 1-1-22; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 103-395, eff. 1-1-24.)
(Text of Section from P.A. 103-467)
Sec. 24-2. Holidays.
(a) Teachers shall not be required
to teach on Saturdays, nor, except as provided in subsection (b) of this Section, shall teachers or other school
employees, other than noncertificated school employees whose presence is
necessary because of an emergency or for the continued operation and
maintenance of school facilities or property, be
required to work on legal school
holidays, which are January 1, New Year's Day; the third Monday in
January, the Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; February 12, the
Birthday of President Abraham Lincoln; the
first Monday in March (to be known as Casimir Pulaski's birthday); Good
Friday; the day designated as Memorial Day by federal law; June 19, Juneteenth National Freedom Day; July 4,
Independence Day; the first Monday in September, Labor Day; the second Monday
in October, Columbus Day; November 11, Veterans' Day; the Thursday in
November commonly called Thanksgiving Day; and December 25, Christmas Day.
School boards may grant special holidays whenever in their judgment such
action is advisable. No deduction shall
be made from the time or
compensation of a school employee on account of any legal
or special holiday.
(b) A school board or other entity eligible to apply for waivers and modifications under Section 2-3.25g of this Code is authorized to hold school or schedule teachers' institutes, parent-teacher conferences, or staff development on the third Monday in January (the Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.); February 12 (the Birthday of President Abraham Lincoln); the first Monday in March (known as Casimir Pulaski's birthday); the second Monday in October (Columbus Day); and November 11 (Veterans' Day), provided that:
(1) the person or persons honored by the holiday are     recognized through instructional activities conducted on that day or, if the day is not used for student attendance, on the first school day preceding or following that day; and
(2) the entity that chooses to exercise this     authority first holds a public hearing about the proposal.  The entity shall provide notice preceding the public hearing to both educators and parents.  The notice shall set forth the time, date, and place of the hearing, describe the proposal, and indicate that the entity will take testimony from educators and parents about the proposal.
(c) Commemorative holidays, which recognize specified patriotic, civic,
cultural or historical persons, activities, or events, are regular school
days. Commemorative
holidays are: January 17 (the birthday of Muhammad Ali), January 28 (to be known as Christa McAuliffe Day and
observed as a commemoration of space exploration), February 15 (the
birthday of Susan B. Anthony), March 29 (Viet Nam War Veterans' Day),
September 11 (September 11th Day of Remembrance), the school day
immediately preceding Veterans' Day (Korean War Veterans'
Day), October 1 (Recycling Day), October 7 (Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Remembrance Day), December 7 (Pearl Harbor Veterans' Day), and
any day so appointed by the President or
Governor.  School boards may establish commemorative holidays whenever in
their judgment such action is advisable.
School boards shall include instruction relative to commemorated persons,
activities, or
events on the commemorative holiday or at any other time during the school
year and at any point in the curriculum when such instruction may be deemed
appropriate. The State Board of Education shall prepare and make available
to school boards instructional materials relative to commemorated persons,
activities,
or events which may be used by school boards in conjunction with any
instruction provided pursuant to this paragraph.
(d) City of Chicago School District 299 shall observe March 4 of each year as
a commemorative holiday.  This holiday shall be known as Mayors' Day which
shall be a day to commemorate and be reminded of the past Chief Executive
Officers of the City of Chicago, and in particular the late Mayor Richard
J. Daley and the late Mayor Harold Washington.  If March 4 falls on a
Saturday or Sunday, Mayors' Day shall be observed on the following Monday.
(e)  Notwithstanding any other provision of State law to the contrary, November 3, 2020 shall be a State holiday known as 2020 General Election Day and shall be observed throughout the State pursuant to this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly. All government offices, with the exception of election authorities, shall be closed unless authorized to be used as a location for election day services or as a polling place.
Notwithstanding any other provision of State law to the contrary, November 8, 2022 shall be a State holiday known as 2022 General Election Day and shall be observed throughout the State under Public Act 102-15.
Notwithstanding any other provision of State law to the contrary, November 5, 2024 shall be a State holiday known as
2024 General Election Day and shall be observed throughout this
State pursuant to this amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly.
(Source: P.A. 102-14, eff. 1-1-22; 102-15, eff. 6-17-21; 102-334, eff. 8-9-21; 102-411, eff. 1-1-22; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 103-467, eff. 8-4-23.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-3) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-3)
Sec. 24-3. Attendance at teachers' institute. The days in any school year spent by a teacher or educational support personnel during the term time
spent in attendance upon a teachers' institute or equivalent professional
educational experiences held under the direction of the county
superintendent of schools shall be considered time expended in the service
of the district and no deduction of wages shall be made for such
attendance. The board may make a pro-rata deduction from the salary of
any teacher or educational support personnel who fail or refuse to attend such institute, unless, in the case of educational support personnel, they are exempt from attending.
The boards shall close the schools for county institute.
(Source: P.A. 97-525, eff. 1-1-12.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-3.5)
Sec. 24-3.5. Attendance for federal advocacy work. Any teacher who is a member of a statewide association representing teachers and who is elected by the association's membership to represent the association in federal advocacy work may spend up to 10 days during a school term representing the association in federal advocacy work. No deduction of wages may be made for such absence, and the statewide association shall reimburse the employing school district for the cost of the need for a substitute teacher as the result of the teacher's absence.
(Source: P.A. 103-308, eff. 1-1-24.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-4) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-4)
Sec. 24-4. 
		
		The color, race, sex, nationality, religion or religious affiliation
of any applicant seeking employment either as a superintendent, principal,
teacher or otherwise in the public elementary or high schools, shall not
be considered either a qualification or disqualification for any such employment.
Nor shall color, race, sex, nationality, religion or religious affiliation
be considered in assigning any person to an office or position or to any
school in the school system.  If any member of a school board, superintendent,
principal or other school officer violates the foregoing provision or directly
or indirectly requires, asks or seeks information concerning the color,
race, sex, nationality, religion or religious affiliation of any person
in connection with his employment or assignment, or if any person, agency,
bureau, corporation or association employed or maintained to obtain or aid
in obtaining employment of the kind described, directly or indirectly requires,
asks, seeks, indicates or transmits orally or in writing information concerning
the color, race, sex, nationality, religion or religious affiliation of
an applicant for such employment, with the intent to influence such appointment,
he shall be liable to a penalty of not less than $100 nor more than $500,
to be recovered by the person aggrieved thereby in any court of competent
jurisdiction, and he shall be guilty of a Class B misdemeanor.
(Source: P.A. 81-1509.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-4.1) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-4.1)
Sec. 24-4.1. 
		
		Residence requirements.) Residency within any school district
shall not be considered in determining the employment or the compensation
of a teacher or whether to retain, promote, assign or transfer that teacher.
(Source: P.A. 82-381.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-5) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-5)
Sec. 24-5. Physical fitness and professional growth.
(a)  In this Section, "employee" means any employee of a school district, a student teacher, an employee of a contractor that provides services to students or in schools, or any other individual subject to the requirements of Section 10-21.9 or 34-18.5 of this Code.
(b) This subsection (b) does not apply to substitute teacher employees. School boards shall require of new employees evidence of physical
fitness to perform duties assigned and freedom from communicable disease. Such evidence shall consist of a physical
examination
by a physician licensed in Illinois or any other state to practice medicine
and surgery in all its branches, a licensed advanced practice registered nurse, or a licensed physician assistant not more than 90 days preceding time of
presentation to the board, and the cost of such examination shall rest with the
employee. A new or existing employee may be subject to additional health examinations, including screening for tuberculosis, as required by rules adopted by the Department of Public Health or by order of a local public health official. The board may from time to time require an examination of any
employee by a physician licensed in Illinois to practice medicine and
surgery in all its branches, a licensed advanced practice registered nurse, or a licensed physician assistant and shall pay the expenses thereof from school
funds.
(b-5) School boards may require of new substitute teacher employees evidence of physical fitness to perform duties assigned and shall require of new substitute teacher employees evidence of freedom from communicable disease. Evidence may consist of a physical examination by a physician licensed in Illinois or any other state to practice medicine and surgery in all its branches, a licensed advanced practice registered nurse, or a licensed physician assistant not more than 90 days preceding time of
presentation to the board, and the cost of such examination shall rest with the substitute teacher employee. A new or existing substitute teacher employee may be subject to additional health examinations, including screening for tuberculosis, as required by rules adopted by the Department of Public Health or by order of a local public health official. The board may from time to time require an examination of any substitute teacher employee by a physician licensed in Illinois to practice medicine and surgery in all its branches, a licensed advanced practice registered nurse, or a licensed physician assistant and shall pay the expenses thereof from school
funds.
(c) School boards may require teachers in their employ to furnish from
time to time evidence of continued professional growth.
(Source: P.A. 100-513, eff. 1-1-18; 100-855, eff. 8-14-18; 101-81, eff. 7-12-19.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-6)
Sec. 24-6. Sick leave. The school boards of all school districts, including special charter
districts, but not including school districts in municipalities of 500,000
or more, shall grant their full-time teachers, and also shall grant
such of their other employees as are eligible to participate in the
Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund under the "600-Hour Standard"
established, or under such other eligibility participation standard as may
from time to time be established, by rules and regulations now or hereafter
promulgated by the Board of that Fund under Section 7-198 of the Illinois
Pension Code, as now or hereafter amended, sick leave
provisions not less in amount than 10 days at full pay in each school year.
If any such teacher or employee does not use the full amount of annual leave
thus allowed, the unused amount shall be allowed to accumulate to a minimum
available leave of 180 days at full pay, including the leave of the current
year. Sick leave shall be interpreted to mean personal illness, mental or behavioral health complications, quarantine
at home, or serious illness or death in the immediate family or household.
The school board may require a certificate from a physician licensed in Illinois to practice medicine and surgery in all its branches, a mental health professional licensed in Illinois providing ongoing care or treatment to the teacher or employee, a chiropractic physician licensed under the Medical Practice Act of 1987, a licensed advanced practice registered nurse, a licensed physician assistant, or, if the treatment
is by prayer or spiritual means, a spiritual adviser or
practitioner of the teacher's or employee's faith as a basis for pay during leave after
an absence of 3 days for personal illness or as the school board may deem necessary in
other cases.  If the school board does require a
certificate
 as a basis for pay during leave of
less than 3 days for personal illness, the school board shall pay, from school funds, the
expenses incurred by the teachers or other employees in obtaining the certificate.
Sick leave shall also be interpreted to mean birth, adoption, placement for adoption, and the acceptance of a child in need of foster care. Teachers and other employees to which this Section applies are entitled to use up to 30 days of paid sick leave because of the birth of a child that is not dependent on the need to recover from childbirth. Paid sick leave because of the birth of a child may be used absent medical certification for up to 30 working school days, which days may be used at any time within the 12-month period following the birth of the child. The use of up to 30 working school days of paid sick leave because of the  birth of a child may not be diminished as a result of any intervening period of nonworking days or school not being in session, such as for summer, winter, or spring break or holidays, that may occur during the use of the  paid sick leave. For paid sick leave for adoption, placement for adoption,  or the acceptance of a child in need of foster care, the school board may require that the teacher or other employee to which this Section applies provide evidence that the formal adoption process or the formal foster care process is underway, and such sick leave is limited to 30 days unless a longer leave has been negotiated with the exclusive bargaining representative. Paid sick leave for adoption, placement for adoption, or the acceptance of a child in need of foster care  need not be used consecutively once the formal adoption process or the formal foster care process is underway, and such sick leave may be used for reasons related to the formal adoption process or the formal foster care process prior to  taking custody of the child or accepting the child in need of foster care, in addition to using such sick leave upon taking custody of the child or accepting the child in need of foster care.
If, by reason of any change in the boundaries of school districts, or by
reason of the creation of a new school district, the employment of a
teacher is transferred to a new or different board, the accumulated sick
leave of such teacher is not thereby lost, but is transferred to such new
or different district.
Any sick leave used by a teacher or employee during the 2021-2022 school year shall be returned to a teacher or employee who receives all doses required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, as defined in Section 10-20.83 of this Code, if:
(1) the sick leave was taken because the teacher or     employee was restricted from being on school district property because the teacher or employee:
(A) had a confirmed positive COVID-19 diagnosis         via a  molecular amplification diagnostic test, such as a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test for COVID-19;
(B) had a probable COVID-19 diagnosis via an         antigen diagnostic test;
(C) was in close contact with a person who had a         confirmed case of COVID-19 and was required to be excluded from school; or
(D) was required by the school or school district         policy to be excluded from school district property due to COVID-19 symptoms; or
(2) the sick leave was taken to care for a child of     the teacher or employee who was unable to attend elementary or secondary school because the child:
(A) had a confirmed positive COVID-19 diagnosis         via a  molecular amplification diagnostic test, such as a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test for COVID-19;
(B) had a probable COVID-19 diagnosis via an         antigen diagnostic test;
(C) was in close contact with a person who had a         confirmed case of COVID-19 and was required to be excluded from school; or
(D) was required by the school or school district         policy to be excluded from school district property due to COVID-19 symptoms.
For purposes of return of sick leave used in the 2021-2022 school year pursuant this Section, an "employee" is a teacher or employee employed by the school district on or after April 5, 2022 (the effective date of Public Act 102-697).
Leave shall be returned to a teacher or employee pursuant to this Section provided that the teacher or employee has received all required doses to meet the definition of "fully vaccinated against COVID-19" under Section 10-20.83 of this Code no later than 5 weeks after April 5, 2022 (the effective date of Public Act 102-697).
No school may rescind any sick leave returned to a teacher or employee on the basis of a revision to the definition of "fully vaccinated against COVID-19" by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States Department of Health and Human Services or the Department of Public Health, provided that the teacher or employee received all doses required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, as defined in Section  10-20.83 of this Code, at the time the sick leave was returned to the teacher or employee.
For purposes of this Section, "immediate family" shall include parents,
spouse, brothers, sisters, children, grandparents, grandchildren,
parents-in-law, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, and legal guardians.
(Source: P.A. 102-275, eff. 8-6-21; 102-697, eff. 4-5-22; 102-866, eff. 5-13-22; 103-154, eff. 6-30-23.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-6.1) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-6.1)
Sec. 24-6.1. 
		Sabbatical leave. 
		Every school board may grant a sabbatical leave of absence to a teacher,
principal or superintendent performing contractual continued service, for a
period of at least 4 school months but not in excess of one school term,
for resident study, research, travel or other purposes designed to improve
the school system. The grant of a sabbatical leave by a school board shall
constitute a finding that the leave is deemed to benefit the school system
by improving the quality and level of experience of the teaching force.
This leave may be granted after completion of at least 6 years of
satisfactory service as a full time teacher, principal or superintendent
and may again be granted after completion of a subsequent period of 6 years
of such service. However, 2 sabbatical leaves, each consisting of at least
4 months but totaling no more than the equivalent of one school year, may
be granted within a 6 year period.  A leave granted for a period of one
school year or less
shall bar a further sabbatical leave until completion of 6 years additional
satisfactory service, except that 2 leaves which total no more than the
equivalent of one school year shall bar a further sabbatical leave only
until the completion of 6 years additional satisfactory service following
the completion of the first such leave.  The leave shall be conditional
upon a plan for
resident study, research, travel or other activities proposed by the
applicant and deemed by the board to benefit the school system, which plan
shall be approved by the board and not thereafter modified without the
approval of the board.
Before a leave is granted pursuant to this Section, the applicant shall
agree in writing that if at the expiration of such leave he does not return
to and perform contractual continued service in the district for at least
one school year after his return, all sums of money received from the board
during his sabbatical leave will be refunded to the board unless such
return and performance is prevented by illness or incapacity.
During absence pursuant to such leave, such teacher, principal or
superintendent shall receive the same basic salary as if in actual service,
except that there may be deducted therefrom an amount equivalent to the
amount payable for substitute service. However, such salary after deduction
for substitute service shall in no case be less than the minimum provided
by Section 24-8 of this Act or 1/2 of the basic salary, whichever is
greater. The person on leave shall not engage in any activity for which
salary or compensation is paid unless the activity is directly related to
the purpose for which the leave is granted and is approved by the board. A
sabbatical leave may be granted to enable the applicant, if otherwise
eligible, to accept scholarships for study or research. Unless justified by
illness or incapacity, failure of any person granted a leave under this
Section to devote the entire period to the purposes for which the leave was
granted shall constitute a cause for removal from teaching service.
Upon expiration of a leave granted pursuant to this Section, and upon
presentation of evidence satisfactory to the board showing compliance with
the conditions of the leave, the teacher, principal or superintendent shall
be returned to a position equivalent to that formerly occupied. The
contractual continued service status of the person on sabbatical leave
shall not be affected.
Absence during a leave granted pursuant to this Section shall not be
construed as a discontinuance of service for any purpose, including
progression on the salary schedule if one is in effect in the district. The
board shall pay the contribution to the Teachers' Retirement System
required of the person on leave computed on the annual full-time salary
rate under which the member last received earnings immediately prior to the
leave or a proportionate part of such rate for a partial year of sabbatical
leave credit.
This Section in no way limits the power of the board to grant leaves for
other purposes.
(Source: P.A. 83-186.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-6.2) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-6.2)
Sec. 24-6.2. 
		Association president leave. 
		Each school board shall grant
paid leaves of absence to the local association president of a state teacher
association that is an exclusive bargaining agent in the district, or his
or her teacher designee, for the purpose of attending meetings, workshops
or seminars designated by the State Board of Education, the regional superintendent
of schools, the general superintendent of schools in a school district subject
to the provisions of Article 34, or the superintendent of schools in any
school district having a population of less than 500,000 inhabitants to
deal with issues arising
from the education reform legislation of the 84th General Assembly.
(Source: P.A. 84-1401.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-6.3) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-6.3)
Sec. 24-6.3. Retirement trustee leave.
(a) Each school board
employing a teacher who is an elected trustee of the Teachers' Retirement
System of the State of Illinois shall make available to the elected trustee
at least 20 days of paid leave of absence per year for the purpose of
attending meetings of the System's Board of Trustees, committee meetings of
such Board, and seminars regarding issues for which such Board is
responsible. The Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois shall
reimburse affected school districts for the actual cost of hiring a
substitute teacher during such leaves of absence.
(b) Each school board employing an employee who is an elected trustee of the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund shall make available to the elected trustee at least 20 days of paid leave of absence per year for the purpose of attending meetings of the Fund's Board of Trustees, committee meetings of the Board of Trustees, and seminars regarding issues for which the Board of Trustees is responsible. The Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund may reimburse affected school districts for the actual cost of hiring a substitute employee during such leaves of absence.
(c) The school board established under Article 34 and employers under Article 17 of the Illinois Pension Code shall make available to each active teacher who is an elected trustee of the Board of Trustees of the Public School Teachers' Pension and Retirement Fund of Chicago established under Article 17 of the Illinois Pension Code up to 22 days of paid leave of absence per year for the purpose of attending meetings of the Board of Trustees, committee meetings of the Board of Trustees, and seminars regarding issues for which the Board of Trustees is responsible. The allocation of the days of paid leave shall be at the discretion of the Board of Trustees of the Public School Teachers' Pension and Retirement Fund of Chicago.
(Source: P.A. 103-552, eff. 8-11-23.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-6.4)
Sec. 24-6.4. Family and medical leave coverage. A school district employee who has been employed by the school district for at least 12 months and who has worked at least 1,000 hours in the previous 12-month period shall be eligible for family and medical leave under the same terms and conditions as leave provided to eligible employees under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993.
(Source: P.A. 102-335, eff. 1-1-22.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-7) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-7)
Sec. 24-7. 
		Discrimination on account of sex.
In fixing salaries of certificated employees school boards shall make no
discrimination on account of sex.
(Source: Laws 1961, p. 31.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-8) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-8)
Sec. 24-8. Minimum salary. In fixing the salaries of teachers, school boards shall pay those who
serve on a full-time basis not less than a rate for the school year that
is based upon training completed in a recognized institution of higher
learning, as follows: for the school year beginning July 1, 1980 and
until the 2020-2021 school year, less than a bachelor's degree, $9,000; 120 semester hours or
more and a bachelor's degree, $10,000; 150 semester hours or more and a
master's degree, $11,000. In fixing the salaries of teachers, a school board shall pay those who serve on a full-time basis a rate not less than (i) $32,076 for the 2020-2021 school year, (ii) $34,576 for the 2021-2022 school year, (iii) $37,076 for the 2022-2023 school year, and (iv) $40,000 for the 2023-2024 school year. The minimum salary rate for each school year thereafter shall equal the minimum salary rate for the previous school year increased by a percentage equal to the annualized percentage increase, if any, in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers for all items published by the United States Department of Labor for the 12-month period ending on June 30 of the school year that ended 12 months prior to the school year in which the adjusted salary is to be in effect.
In accordance with this Section, the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability shall certify and publish the minimum salary rate to be used for the 2024-2025 school year no later than September 30, 2023. By no later than July 20, 2024 and annually on or before each July 20 thereafter, the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability shall certify and publish the minimum salary rate to be used for each school year after the 2024-2025 school year in accordance with this Section.
Based upon previous public school
experience in this State or any other state, territory, dependency or
possession of the United States, or in schools operated by or under the
auspices of the United States, teachers who serve on a full-time basis
shall have their salaries increased to at least the following amounts
above the starting salary for a teacher in such district in the same
classification: with less than a bachelor's degree, $750 after 5 years;
with 120 semester hours or more and a bachelor's degree, $1,000 after 5
years and $1,600 after 8 years; with 150 semester hours or more and a master's
degree, $1,250 after 5 years, $2,000 after 8 years and $2,750 after 13 years.
For the purpose of this Section a teacher's salary shall include any amount
paid by the school district on behalf of the teacher, as teacher contributions,
to the Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois.
If a school board establishes a schedule for teachers' salaries based
on education and experience, not inconsistent with this Section, all certificated
nurses employed by that board shall be paid in accordance with the provisions
of such schedule.
For purposes of this Section, a teacher who submits a certificate of
completion to the school office prior to the first day of the school
term shall be considered to have the degree stated in such certificate.
(Source: P.A. 103-515, eff. 8-11-23.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-8.5)
Sec. 24-8.5. Student teacher; salary. Each school district may provide a salary to a student teacher employed by the district. A school district may fix the amount of salary to pay a student teacher under this Section.
(Source: P.A. 101-220, eff. 8-7-19.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-9) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-9)
Sec. 24-9. 
		Teachers duty free lunch period.
Every teacher in any school house where 2 or more teachers are employed
whose duties require attendance at the school for 4 or more clock hours in
any school day shall be entitled to and be allowed a duty free lunch period
equal to the regular local school lunch period but not less than 30 minutes
in each school day.
(Source: Laws 1961, p. 31.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-11) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-11)
Sec. 24-11. Boards of Education - Boards of School Inspectors -
Contractual continued service.
(a) As used in this and the succeeding
Sections of this Article:
"Teacher" means any or all school district employees regularly required to be licensed
 under laws relating to the licensure of teachers.
"Board" means board of directors, board of education, or board of school
inspectors, as the case may be.
"School term" means that portion of the school year, July 1 to the following
June 30, when school is in actual session.
"Program" means a program of a special education joint agreement.
"Program of a special education joint agreement" means instructional, consultative, supervisory, administrative, diagnostic, and related services that are managed by a special educational joint agreement designed to service 2 or more school districts that are members of the joint agreement.
"PERA implementation date" means the implementation date of an evaluation system for teachers as specified by Section 24A-2.5 of this Code for all schools within a school district or all programs of a special education joint agreement.
(b) This Section and Sections 24-12 through 24-16 of this Article apply only to
school districts having less than 500,000 inhabitants.
(c) Any teacher who is first employed as a full-time teacher in a school district or program prior to the PERA implementation date and who is employed in that district or program for
a probationary period of 4 consecutive school terms shall enter upon
contractual continued service in the district or in all of the programs that the teacher is legally qualified to hold, unless the teacher is given written notice of dismissal by certified mail, return receipt requested, by
the employing board at least 45 days before the end of any school term within such
period.
(d)  For any teacher who is first employed as a full-time teacher in a school district or program on or after the PERA implementation date but before July 1, 2023, the probationary period shall be one of the following periods, based upon the teacher's school terms of service and performance, before the teacher shall enter upon contractual continued service in the district or in all of the programs that the teacher is legally qualified to hold, unless the teacher is given written notice of dismissal by certified mail, return receipt requested, by the employing board on or before April 15:
(1)  4 consecutive school terms of service in which     the teacher holds a Professional Educator License and receives overall annual evaluation ratings of at least "Proficient" in the last school term and at least "Proficient" in either the second or third school terms;
(2)  3 consecutive school terms of service in which     the teacher holds a Professional Educator License and receives 2 overall annual evaluations of "Excellent"; or
(3)  2 consecutive school terms of service in which     the teacher holds a Professional Educator License and receives 2 overall annual evaluations of "Excellent" service, but only if the teacher (i) previously attained contractual continued service in a different school district or program in this State, (ii) voluntarily departed or was honorably dismissed from that school district or program in the school term immediately prior to the teacher's first school term of service applicable to the attainment of contractual continued service under this subdivision (3), and (iii) received, in his or her 2 most recent overall annual or biennial evaluations from the prior school district or program, ratings of at least "Proficient", with both such ratings occurring after the school district's or program's PERA implementation date. For a teacher to attain contractual continued service under this subdivision (3), the teacher shall provide official copies of his or her 2 most recent overall annual or biennial evaluations from the prior school district or program to the new school district or program within 60 days from the teacher's first day of service with the new school district or program. The prior school district or program must provide the teacher with official copies of his or her 2 most recent overall annual or biennial evaluations within 14 days after the teacher's request. If a teacher has requested such official copies prior to 45 days after the teacher's first day of service with the new school district or program and the teacher's prior school district or program fails to provide the teacher with the official copies required under this subdivision (3), then the time period for the teacher to submit the official copies to his or her new school district or program must be extended until 14 days after receipt of such copies from the prior school district or program. If the prior school district or program fails to provide the teacher with the official copies required under this subdivision (3) within 90 days from the teacher's first day of service with the new school district or program, then the new school district or program shall rely upon the teacher's own copies of his or her evaluations for purposes of this subdivision (3).
If the teacher does not receive overall annual evaluations of "Excellent" in the school terms necessary for eligibility to achieve accelerated contractual continued service in subdivisions (2) and (3) of this subsection (d), the teacher shall be eligible for contractual continued service pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection (d).  If, at the conclusion of 4 consecutive school terms of service that count toward attainment of contractual continued service, the teacher's performance does not qualify the teacher for contractual continued service under subdivision (1) of this subsection (d), then the teacher shall not enter upon contractual continued service and shall be dismissed.  If a performance evaluation is not conducted for any school term when such evaluation is required to be conducted under Section 24A-5 of this Code, then the teacher's performance evaluation rating for such school term for purposes of determining the attainment of contractual continued service shall be deemed "Proficient", except that, during any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, this default to "Proficient" does not apply to any teacher who has entered into contractual continued service and who was deemed "Excellent" on his or her most recent evaluation. During any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act and unless the school board and any exclusive bargaining representative have completed the performance rating for teachers or mutually agreed to an alternate performance rating, any teacher who has entered into contractual continued service, whose most recent evaluation was deemed "Excellent", and whose performance evaluation is not conducted when the evaluation is required to be conducted shall receive a teacher's performance rating deemed "Excellent".  A school board and any exclusive bargaining representative may mutually agree to an alternate performance rating for teachers not in contractual continued service during any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, as long as the agreement is in writing.
(d-5) For any teacher who is first employed as a full-time teacher in a school district or program on or after July 1, 2023, the probationary period shall be one of the following periods, based upon the teacher's school terms of service and performance, before the teacher shall enter upon contractual continued service in the district or in all of the programs that the teacher is legally qualified to hold, unless the teacher is given written notice of dismissal by certified mail, return receipt requested, by the employing board on or before April 15:
(1) 3 consecutive school terms of service in which     the teacher holds a Professional Educator License and receives overall annual evaluation ratings of at least "Proficient" in the second and third school terms;
(2) 2 consecutive school terms of service in which     the teacher holds a Professional Educator License and receives 2 overall annual evaluations of "Excellent"; or
(3)  2 consecutive school terms of service in which     the teacher holds a Professional Educator License and receives 2 overall annual evaluations of "Excellent" service, but only if the teacher (i) previously attained contractual continued service in a different school district or program in this State, (ii) voluntarily departed or was honorably dismissed from that school district or program in the school term immediately prior to the teacher's first school term of service applicable to the attainment of contractual continued service under this subdivision (3), and (iii) received, in his or her 2 most recent overall annual or biennial evaluations from the prior school district or program, ratings of at least "Proficient", with both such ratings occurring after the school district's or program's PERA implementation date. For a teacher to attain contractual continued service under this subdivision (3), the teacher shall provide official copies of his or her 2 most recent overall annual or biennial evaluations from the prior school district or program to the new school district or program within 60 days from the teacher's first day of service with the new school district or program. The prior school district or program must provide the teacher with official copies of his or her 2 most recent overall annual or biennial evaluations within 14 days after the teacher's request. If a teacher has requested such official copies prior to 45 days after the teacher's first day of service with the new school district or program and the teacher's prior school district or program fails to provide the teacher with the official copies required under this subdivision (3), then the time period for the teacher to submit the official copies to his or her new school district or program must be extended until 14 days after receipt of such copies from the prior school district or program. If the prior school district or program fails to provide the teacher with the official copies required under this subdivision (3) within 90 days from the teacher's first day of service with the new school district or program, then the new school district or program shall rely upon the teacher's own copies of his or her evaluations for purposes of this subdivision (3).
If the teacher does not receive overall annual evaluations of "Excellent" in the school terms necessary for eligibility to achieve accelerated contractual continued service in subdivisions (2) and (3) of this subsection (d), the teacher shall be eligible for contractual continued service pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection (d).  If, at the conclusion of 3 consecutive school terms of service that count toward attainment of contractual continued service, the teacher's performance does not qualify the teacher for contractual continued service under subdivision (1) of this subsection (d), then the teacher shall not enter upon contractual continued service and shall be dismissed.  If a performance evaluation is not conducted for any school term when such evaluation is required to be conducted under Section 24A-5 of this Code, then the teacher's performance evaluation rating for such school term for purposes of determining the attainment of contractual continued service shall be deemed "Proficient", except that, during any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, this default to "Proficient" does not apply to any teacher who has entered into contractual continued service and who was deemed "Excellent" on his or her most recent evaluation. During any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act and unless the school board and any exclusive bargaining representative have completed the performance rating for teachers or mutually agreed to an alternate performance rating, any teacher who has entered into contractual continued service, whose most recent evaluation was deemed "Excellent", and whose performance evaluation is not conducted when the evaluation is required to be conducted shall receive a teacher's performance rating deemed "Excellent".  A school board and any exclusive bargaining representative may mutually agree to an alternate performance rating for teachers not in contractual continued service during any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, as long as the agreement is in writing.
(e)  For the purposes of determining contractual continued service, a school term shall be counted only toward attainment of contractual continued service if the teacher actually teaches or is otherwise present and participating in the district's or program's educational program for 120 days or more, provided that the days of leave under the federal Family Medical Leave Act that the teacher is required to take until the end of the school term shall be considered days of teaching or participation in the district's or program's educational program.  A school term that is not counted toward attainment of contractual continued service shall not be considered a break in service for purposes of determining whether a teacher has been employed for consecutive school terms, provided that the teacher actually teaches or is otherwise present and participating in the district's or program's educational program in the following school term.
(f)  If the employing board determines to dismiss the teacher in the last year of the probationary period as provided in subsection (c) of this Section or subdivision (1) or (2) of subsection (d) of this Section or subdivision (1) or (2) of subsection (d-5) of this Section, but not subdivision (3) of subsection (d) of this Section or subdivision (3) of subsection (d-5) of this Section, the written notice of dismissal provided by the employing board must contain specific reasons for dismissal.   Any full-time teacher who does not receive written notice from the employing board on or before April 15 as provided in this Section and whose performance does not require dismissal after the fourth probationary year pursuant to subsection (d) of this Section or the third probationary year pursuant to subsection (d-5) of this Section shall be re-employed for the following school term.
(g) Contractual continued service shall continue in effect the terms and
provisions of the contract with the teacher during the last school term
of the probationary period, subject to this Act and the lawful
regulations of the employing board. This Section and succeeding Sections
do not modify any existing power of the board except with respect to the
procedure of the discharge of a teacher and reductions in salary as
hereinafter provided. Contractual continued service status shall not
restrict the power of the board to transfer a teacher to a position
which the teacher is qualified to fill or to make such salary
adjustments as it deems desirable, but unless reductions in salary are
uniform or based upon some reasonable classification, any teacher whose
salary is reduced shall be entitled to a notice and a hearing as
hereinafter provided in the case of certain dismissals or removals.
(h)  If, by reason of any change in the boundaries of school districts, by reason of a special education cooperative reorganization or dissolution in accordance with Section 10-22.31 of this Code, or by reason of the creation of a new school district, the position held by any teacher having a contractual continued service status is transferred from one board to the control of a new or different board, then the contractual continued service status of the teacher is not thereby lost, and such new or different board is subject to this Code with respect to the teacher in the same manner as if the teacher were its employee and had been its employee during the time the teacher was actually employed by the board from whose control the position was transferred.
(i) The employment of any teacher in a program of a special education joint
agreement established under Section 3-15.14, 10-22.31 or 10-22.31a shall be governed by
 this and succeeding Sections of this Article.  For purposes of
attaining and maintaining contractual continued service and computing
length of continuing service as referred to in this Section and Section
24-12, employment in a special educational joint program shall be deemed a
continuation of all previous licensed employment of such teacher for
such joint agreement whether the employer of the teacher was the joint
agreement, the regional superintendent, or one of the participating
districts in the joint agreement.
(j)  For any teacher employed after July 1, 1987 as a full-time teacher in a program of a special education joint agreement, whether the program is operated by the joint agreement or a member district on behalf of the joint agreement, in the event of a reduction in the number of programs or positions in the joint agreement in which the notice of dismissal is provided on or before the end of the 2010-2011 school term, the teacher in contractual continued service is eligible for employment in the joint agreement programs for which the teacher is legally qualified in order of greater length of continuing service in the joint agreement, unless an alternative method of determining the sequence of dismissal is established in a collective bargaining agreement.  For any teacher employed after July 1, 1987 as a full-time teacher in a program of a special education joint agreement, whether the program is operated by the joint agreement or a member district on behalf of the joint agreement, in the event of a reduction in the number of programs or positions in the joint agreement in which the notice of dismissal is provided during the 2011-2012 school term or a subsequent school term, the teacher shall be included on the honorable dismissal lists of all joint agreement programs for positions for which the teacher is qualified and is eligible for employment in such programs in accordance with subsections (b) and (c) of Section 24-12 of this Code and the applicable honorable dismissal policies of the joint agreement.
(k)  For any teacher employed after July 1, 1987 as a full-time teacher in a program of a special education joint agreement, whether the program is operated by the joint agreement or a member district on behalf of the joint agreement, in the event of the dissolution of a joint agreement, in which the notice to teachers of the dissolution is provided during the 2010-2011 school term, the teacher in contractual continued service who is legally qualified shall be assigned to any comparable position in a member district currently held by a teacher who has not entered upon contractual continued service or held by a teacher who has entered upon contractual continued service with a shorter length of contractual continued service.  Any teacher employed after July 1, 1987 as a full-time teacher in a program of a special education joint agreement, whether the program is operated by the joint agreement or a member district on behalf of the joint agreement, in the event of the dissolution of a joint agreement in which the notice to teachers of the dissolution is provided during the 2011-2012 school term or a subsequent school term, the teacher who is qualified shall be included on the order of honorable dismissal lists of each member district and shall be assigned to any comparable position in any such district in accordance with subsections (b) and (c) of Section 24-12 of this Code and the applicable honorable dismissal policies of each member district.
(l) The governing board of the joint agreement, or the administrative
district, if so authorized by the articles of agreement of the joint
agreement, rather than the board of education of a school district, may
carry out employment and termination actions including dismissals under
this Section and Section 24-12.
(m) The employment of any teacher in a special education program
authorized by Section 14-1.01 through 14-14.01, or a joint educational
program established under Section 10-22.31a, shall be under this and the
succeeding Sections of this Article, and such employment shall be deemed
a continuation of the previous employment of such teacher in any of the
participating districts, regardless of the participation of other
districts in the program.
(n) Any teacher employed as a full-time teacher in
a special education program prior to September 23, 1987 in which 2 or
more school districts
participate for a probationary period of 2 consecutive years shall enter
upon contractual continued service in each of the participating
districts, subject to this and the succeeding Sections of this Article,
and, notwithstanding Section 24-1.5 of this Code, in the event of the termination of the program shall be eligible for
any vacant position in any of such districts for which such teacher is
qualified.
(Source: P.A. 102-552, eff. 1-1-22; 102-854, eff. 5-13-22; 103-500, eff. 8-4-23.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-12) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-12)
(Text of Section from P.A. 103-354)
Sec. 24-12. Removal or dismissal of teachers in contractual
continued service.
(a) This subsection (a) applies only to honorable dismissals and recalls in which the notice of dismissal is provided on or before the end of the 2010-2011 school term. If a teacher in contractual continued service is
removed or dismissed as a result of a decision of the board to decrease
the number of teachers employed by the board or to discontinue some
particular type of teaching service, written notice shall be mailed to the
teacher and also given the
teacher either by certified mail, return receipt requested or
personal delivery with receipt at least 60
days before
the end of the school term, together with a statement of honorable
dismissal and the reason therefor, and in all such cases the board shall
first remove or dismiss all teachers who have not entered upon contractual
continued service before removing or dismissing any teacher who has entered
upon contractual continued service and who is legally qualified to hold a
position currently held by a teacher who has not entered upon contractual
continued service.
As between teachers who have entered upon contractual
continued service, the teacher or teachers with the shorter length of
continuing service with the district shall be dismissed first
unless an alternative method of determining the sequence of dismissal is
established in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the
board and a professional faculty members' organization and except that
this provision shall not impair the operation of any affirmative action
program in the district, regardless of whether it exists by operation of
law or is conducted on a voluntary basis by the board. Any teacher
dismissed as a result of such decrease or discontinuance shall be paid
all earned compensation on or before the third business day following
the last day of pupil attendance in the regular school term.
If the
board has any vacancies for the following school term or within one
calendar year from the beginning of the following school term, the
positions thereby becoming available shall be tendered to the teachers
so removed or dismissed so far as they are legally qualified to hold
such positions; provided, however, that if the number of honorable
dismissal notices based on economic necessity exceeds 15% of the number of full-time
 equivalent positions filled by certified employees (excluding
principals and administrative personnel) during the preceding school year,
then if the board has any vacancies for the following school term or within
2 calendar years from the beginning of the following
school term, the positions so becoming available shall be tendered to the
teachers who were so notified and removed or dismissed whenever they are
legally qualified to hold such positions. Each board shall, in consultation
with any exclusive employee representatives, each year establish a list,
categorized by positions, showing the length of continuing service of each
teacher who is qualified to hold any such positions, unless an alternative
method of determining a sequence of dismissal is established as provided
for in this Section, in which case a list shall be made in accordance with
the alternative method.  Copies of the list shall be distributed to the
exclusive employee representative on or before February 1 of each year.
Whenever the number of honorable dismissal notices based upon economic
necessity exceeds 5, or 150% of the average number of teachers honorably
dismissed in the preceding 3 years, whichever is more, then the board also
shall hold a public hearing on the question of the dismissals.  Following
the hearing and board review, the action to approve any such reduction shall
require a majority vote of the board members.
(b)  This subsection (b) applies only to honorable dismissals and recalls in which the notice of dismissal is provided during the 2011-2012 school term or a subsequent school term.   If any teacher, whether or not in contractual continued service, is removed or dismissed as a result of a decision of a school board to decrease the number of teachers employed by the board, a decision of a school board to discontinue some particular type of teaching service, or a reduction in the number of programs or positions in a special education joint agreement, then written notice must be mailed to the teacher and also given to the teacher either by electronic mail, certified mail, return receipt requested, or personal delivery with receipt at least 45 days before the end of the school term, together with a statement of honorable dismissal and the reason therefor, and in all such cases the sequence of dismissal shall occur in accordance with this subsection (b); except that this subsection (b) shall not impair the operation of any affirmative action program in the school district, regardless of whether it exists by operation of law or is conducted on a voluntary basis by the board.
Each teacher must be categorized into one or more positions for which the teacher is qualified to hold, based upon legal qualifications and any other qualifications established in a district or joint agreement job description, on or before the May 10 prior to the school year during which the sequence of dismissal is determined.  Within each position and subject to agreements made by the joint committee on honorable dismissals that are authorized by subsection (c) of this Section, the school district or joint agreement must establish 4 groupings of teachers qualified to hold the position as follows:
(1) Grouping one shall consist of each teacher who is     not in contractual continued service and who (i) has not received a performance evaluation rating, (ii) is employed for one school term or less to replace a teacher on leave, or (iii) is employed on a part-time basis. "Part-time basis" for the purposes of this subsection (b) means a teacher who is employed to teach less than a full-day, teacher workload or less than 5 days of the normal student attendance week, unless otherwise provided for in a collective bargaining agreement between the district and the exclusive representative of the district's teachers. For the purposes of this Section, a teacher (A) who is employed as a full-time teacher but who actually teaches or is otherwise present and participating in the district's educational program for less than a school term or (B) who, in the immediately previous school term, was employed on a full-time basis and actually taught or was otherwise present and participated in the district's educational program for 120 days or more is not considered employed on a part-time basis.
(2)  Grouping 2 shall consist of each teacher with a     Needs Improvement or Unsatisfactory performance evaluation rating on either of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings.
(3)  Grouping 3 shall consist of each teacher with a     performance evaluation rating of at least Satisfactory or Proficient on both of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings, if 2 ratings are available, or on the teacher's last performance evaluation rating, if only one rating is available, unless the teacher qualifies for placement into grouping 4.
(4)  Grouping 4 shall consist of each teacher whose     last 2  performance evaluation ratings are Excellent and each teacher with 2 Excellent performance evaluation ratings out of the teacher's last 3 performance evaluation ratings with a third rating of Satisfactory or Proficient.
Among teachers qualified to hold a position, teachers must be dismissed in the order of their groupings, with teachers in grouping one dismissed first and teachers in grouping 4 dismissed last.
Within grouping one, the sequence of dismissal must be at the discretion of the school district or joint agreement.  Within grouping 2, the sequence of dismissal must be based upon average performance evaluation ratings, with the teacher or teachers with the lowest average performance evaluation rating dismissed first.  A teacher's average performance evaluation rating must be calculated using the average of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings, if 2 ratings are available, or the teacher's last performance evaluation rating, if only one rating is available, using the following numerical values:  4 for Excellent; 3 for Proficient or Satisfactory; 2 for Needs Improvement; and 1 for Unsatisfactory.  As between or among teachers in grouping 2 with the same average performance evaluation rating and within each of groupings 3 and 4, the teacher or teachers with the shorter length of continuing service with the school district or joint agreement must be dismissed first unless an alternative method of determining the sequence of dismissal is established in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the board and a professional faculty members' organization.
Each board, including the governing board of a joint agreement, shall, in consultation with any exclusive employee representatives, each year establish a sequence of honorable dismissal list categorized by positions and the groupings defined in this subsection (b).  Copies of the list showing each teacher by name and categorized by positions and the groupings defined in this subsection (b) must be distributed to the exclusive bargaining representative at least 75 days before the end of the school term, provided that the school district or joint agreement may, with notice to any exclusive employee representatives, move teachers from grouping one into another grouping during the period of time from 75 days until 45 days before the end of the school term. Each year, each board shall also establish, in consultation with any exclusive employee representatives, a list showing the length of continuing service of each teacher who is qualified to hold any such positions, unless an alternative method of determining a sequence of dismissal is established as provided for in this Section, in which case a list must be made in accordance with the alternative method. Copies of the list must be distributed to the exclusive employee representative at least 75 days before the end of the school term.
Any teacher dismissed as a result of such decrease or discontinuance must be paid all earned compensation on or before the third business day following the last day of pupil attendance in the regular school term.
If the board or joint agreement has any vacancies for the following school term or within one calendar year from the beginning of the following school term, the positions thereby becoming available must be tendered to the teachers so removed or dismissed who were in grouping 3 or 4 of the sequence of dismissal and are qualified to hold the positions, based upon legal qualifications and any other qualifications established in a district or joint agreement job description, on or before the May 10 prior to the date of the positions becoming available, provided that if the number of honorable dismissal notices based on economic necessity exceeds 15% of the number of full-time equivalent positions filled by certified employees (excluding principals and administrative personnel) during the preceding school year, then the recall period is for the following school term or within 2 calendar years from the beginning of the following school term. If the board or joint agreement has any vacancies within the period from the beginning of the following school term through February 1 of the following school term (unless a date later than February 1, but no later than 6 months from the beginning of the following school term, is established in a collective bargaining agreement), the positions thereby becoming available must be tendered to the teachers so removed or dismissed who were in grouping 2 of the sequence of dismissal due to one "needs improvement" rating on either of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings, provided that, if 2 ratings are available, the other performance evaluation rating used for grouping purposes is "satisfactory", "proficient", or "excellent", and are qualified to hold the positions, based upon legal qualifications and any other qualifications established in a district or joint agreement job description, on or before the May 10 prior to the date of the positions becoming available. On and after July 1, 2014 (the effective date of Public Act 98-648), the preceding sentence shall apply to teachers removed or dismissed by honorable dismissal, even if notice of honorable dismissal occurred during the 2013-2014 school year.  Among teachers eligible for recall pursuant to the preceding sentence, the order of recall must be in inverse order of dismissal, unless an alternative order of recall is established in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the board and a professional faculty members' organization.  Whenever the number of honorable dismissal notices based upon economic necessity exceeds 5 notices or 150% of the average number of teachers honorably dismissed in the preceding 3 years, whichever is more, then the school board or governing board of a joint agreement, as applicable, shall also hold a public hearing on the question of the dismissals. Following the hearing and board review, the action to approve any such reduction shall require a majority vote of the board members.
For purposes of this subsection (b), subject to agreement on an alternative definition reached by the joint committee described in subsection (c) of this Section, a teacher's performance evaluation rating means the overall performance evaluation rating resulting from an annual or biennial performance evaluation conducted pursuant to Article 24A of this Code by the school district or joint agreement determining the sequence of dismissal, not including any performance evaluation conducted during or at the end of a remediation period. No more than one evaluation rating each school term shall be one of the evaluation ratings used for the purpose of determining the sequence of dismissal. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection for any performance evaluations conducted during or at the end of a remediation period, if multiple performance evaluations are conducted in a school term, only the rating from the last evaluation conducted prior to establishing the sequence of honorable dismissal list in such school term shall be the one evaluation rating from that school term used for the purpose of determining the sequence of dismissal. Averaging ratings from multiple evaluations is not permitted unless otherwise agreed to in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the board and a professional faculty members' organization. The preceding 3 sentences are not a legislative declaration that existing law does or does not already require that only one performance evaluation each school term shall be used for the purpose of determining the sequence of dismissal.  For performance evaluation ratings determined prior to September 1, 2012, any school district or joint agreement with a performance evaluation rating system that does not use either of the rating category systems specified in subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code for all teachers must establish a basis for assigning each teacher a rating that complies with subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code for all of the performance evaluation ratings that are to be used to determine the sequence of dismissal.  A teacher's grouping and ranking on a sequence of honorable dismissal shall be deemed a part of the teacher's performance evaluation, and that information shall be disclosed to the exclusive bargaining representative as part of a sequence of honorable dismissal list, notwithstanding any laws prohibiting disclosure of such information.  A performance evaluation rating may be used to determine the sequence of dismissal, notwithstanding the pendency of any grievance resolution or arbitration procedures relating to the performance evaluation.  If a teacher has received at least one performance evaluation rating conducted by the school district or joint agreement determining the sequence of dismissal and a subsequent performance evaluation is not conducted in any school year in which such evaluation is required to be conducted under Section 24A-5 of this Code, the teacher's performance evaluation rating for that school year for purposes of determining the sequence of dismissal is deemed Proficient, except that, during any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, this default to Proficient does not apply to any teacher who has entered into contractual continued service and who was deemed Excellent on his or her most recent evaluation.  During any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act and unless the school board and any exclusive bargaining representative have completed the performance rating for teachers or have mutually agreed to an alternate performance rating, any teacher who has entered into contractual continued service, whose most recent evaluation was deemed Excellent, and whose performance evaluation is not conducted when the  evaluation is required to be conducted shall receive a teacher's performance rating deemed Excellent. A school board and any exclusive bargaining representative may mutually agree to an alternate performance rating for teachers not in contractual continued service during any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, as long as the agreement is in writing. If a performance evaluation rating is nullified as the result of an arbitration, administrative agency, or court determination, then the school district or joint agreement is deemed to have conducted a performance evaluation for that school year, but the performance evaluation rating may not be used in determining the sequence of dismissal.
Nothing in this subsection (b) shall be construed as limiting the right of a school board or governing board of a joint agreement to dismiss a teacher not in contractual continued service in accordance with Section 24-11 of this Code.
Any provisions regarding the sequence of honorable dismissals and recall of honorably dismissed teachers in a collective bargaining agreement entered into on or before January 1, 2011 and in effect on June 13, 2011 (the effective date of Public Act 97-8) that may conflict with Public Act 97-8 shall remain in effect through the expiration of such agreement or June 30, 2013, whichever is earlier.
(c)  Each school district and special education joint agreement must use a joint committee composed of equal representation selected by the school board and its teachers or, if applicable, the exclusive bargaining representative of its teachers, to address the matters described in paragraphs (1) through (5) of this subsection (c) pertaining to honorable dismissals under subsection (b) of this Section.
(1)  The joint committee must consider and may agree     to criteria for excluding from grouping 2 and placing into grouping 3 a teacher whose last 2 performance evaluations include a Needs Improvement and either a Proficient or Excellent.
(2)  The joint committee must consider and may agree     to an alternative definition for grouping 4, which definition must take into account prior performance evaluation ratings and may take into account other factors that relate to the school district's or program's educational objectives.  An alternative definition for grouping 4 may not permit the inclusion of a teacher in the grouping with a Needs Improvement or Unsatisfactory performance evaluation rating on either of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings.
(3) The joint committee may agree to including within     the definition of a performance evaluation rating a performance evaluation rating administered by a school district or joint agreement other than the school district or joint agreement determining the sequence of dismissal.
(4) For each school district or joint agreement that     administers performance evaluation ratings that are inconsistent with either of the rating category systems specified in subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code, the school district or joint agreement must consult with the joint committee on the basis for assigning a rating that complies with subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code to each performance evaluation rating that will be used in a sequence of dismissal.
(5)  Upon request by a joint committee member     submitted to the employing board by no later than 10 days after the distribution of the sequence of honorable dismissal list, a representative of the employing board shall, within 5 days after the request, provide to members of the joint committee a list showing the most recent and prior performance evaluation ratings of each teacher identified only by length of continuing service in the district or joint agreement and not by name.  If, after review of this list, a member of the joint committee has a good faith belief that a disproportionate number of teachers with greater length of continuing service with the district or joint agreement have received a recent performance evaluation rating lower than the prior rating, the member may request that the joint committee review the list to assess whether such a trend may exist.  Following the joint committee's review, but by no later than the end of the applicable school term, the joint committee or any member or members of the joint committee may submit a report of the review to the employing board and exclusive bargaining representative, if any.  Nothing in this paragraph (5) shall impact the order of honorable dismissal or a school district's or joint agreement's authority to carry out a dismissal in accordance with subsection (b) of this Section.
Agreement by the joint committee as to a matter requires the majority vote of all committee members, and if the joint committee does not reach agreement on a matter, then the otherwise applicable requirements of subsection (b) of this Section shall apply.  Except as explicitly set forth in this subsection (c), a joint committee has no authority to agree to any further modifications to the requirements for honorable dismissals set forth in subsection (b) of this Section.
The joint committee must be established, and the first meeting of the joint committee each school year must occur on or before December 1.
The joint committee must reach agreement on a matter on or before February 1 of a school year in order for the agreement of the joint committee to apply to the sequence of dismissal determined during that school year.  Subject to the February 1 deadline for agreements, the agreement of a joint committee on a matter shall apply to the sequence of dismissal until the agreement is amended or terminated by the joint committee.
The provisions of the Open Meetings Act shall not apply to meetings of a joint committee created under this subsection (c).
(d) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this subsection (d), the requirements and dismissal procedures of Section 24-16.5 of this Code shall apply to any dismissal sought under Section 24-16.5 of this Code.
(1) If a dismissal of a teacher in contractual     continued service is sought for any reason  or cause other than an honorable dismissal under subsections (a) or (b) of this Section or a dismissal sought under Section 24-16.5 of this Code, including those under Section 10-22.4, the board must first approve a motion containing specific charges by a majority vote of all its members.  Written notice of such charges, including a bill of particulars and the teacher's right to request a hearing, must be mailed to the teacher and also given to the teacher either by electronic mail, certified mail, return receipt requested, or personal delivery with receipt within 5 days of the adoption of the motion. Any written notice sent on or after July 1, 2012 shall inform the teacher of the right to request a hearing before a mutually selected hearing officer, with the cost of the hearing officer split equally between the teacher and the board, or a hearing before a board-selected hearing officer, with the cost of the hearing officer paid by the board.
Before setting a hearing on charges stemming from     causes that are considered remediable, a board must give the teacher reasonable warning in writing, stating specifically the causes that, if not removed, may result in charges; however, no such written warning is required if the causes have been the subject of a remediation plan pursuant to Article 24A of this Code.
If, in the opinion of the board, the interests of the     school require it, the board may suspend the teacher without pay, pending the hearing, but if the board's dismissal or removal is not sustained, the teacher shall not suffer the loss of any salary or benefits by reason of the suspension.
(2)  No hearing upon the charges is required unless     the teacher within 17 days after receiving notice requests in writing of the board that a hearing be scheduled before a mutually selected hearing officer or a hearing officer selected by the board. The secretary of the school board shall forward a copy of the notice to the State Board of Education.
(3)  Within 5 business days after receiving a notice     of hearing in which either notice to the teacher was sent before July 1, 2012 or, if the notice was sent on or after July 1, 2012, the teacher has requested a hearing before a mutually selected hearing officer, the State Board of Education shall provide a list of 5 prospective, impartial hearing officers from the master list of qualified, impartial hearing officers maintained by the State Board of Education.  Each person on the master list must (i) be accredited by a national arbitration organization and have had a minimum of 5 years of experience directly related to labor and employment relations matters between employers and employees or their exclusive bargaining representatives and (ii) beginning September 1, 2012, have participated in training provided or approved by the State Board of Education for teacher dismissal hearing officers so that he or she is familiar with issues generally involved in evaluative and non-evaluative dismissals.
If notice to the teacher was sent before July 1, 2012     or, if the notice was sent on or after July 1, 2012, the teacher has requested a hearing before a mutually selected hearing officer, the board and the teacher or their legal representatives within 3 business days shall alternately strike one name from the list provided by the State Board of Education until only one name remains.  Unless waived by the teacher, the teacher shall have the right to proceed first with the striking. Within 3 business days of receipt of the list provided by the State Board of Education, the board and the teacher or their legal representatives shall each have the right to reject all prospective hearing officers named on the list and notify the State Board of Education of such rejection.  Within 3 business days after receiving this notification, the State Board of Education shall appoint a qualified person from the master list who did not appear on the list sent to the parties to serve as the hearing officer, unless the parties notify it that they have chosen to alternatively select a hearing officer under paragraph (4) of this subsection (d).
If the teacher has requested a hearing before a     hearing officer selected by the board, the board shall select one name from the master list of qualified impartial hearing officers maintained by the State Board of Education within 3 business days after receipt and shall notify the State Board of Education of its selection.
A hearing officer mutually selected by the parties,     selected by the board, or selected through an alternative selection process under paragraph (4) of this subsection (d) (A) must not be a resident of the school district, (B) must be available to commence the hearing within 75 days and conclude the hearing within 120 days after being selected as the hearing officer, and (C) must issue a decision as to whether the teacher must be dismissed and give a copy of that decision to both the teacher and the board within 30 days from the conclusion of the hearing or closure of the record, whichever is later.
Any hearing convened during a public health emergency     pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act may be convened remotely.  Any hearing officer for a hearing convened during a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act may voluntarily withdraw from the hearing and another hearing officer shall be selected or appointed pursuant to this Section.
In this paragraph, "pre-hearing procedures" refers to     the pre-hearing procedures under Section 51.55 of Title 23 of the Illinois Administrative Code and "hearing" refers to the hearing under Section 51.60 of Title 23 of the Illinois Administrative Code. Any teacher who has been charged with engaging in acts of corporal punishment, physical abuse, grooming, or sexual misconduct and who previously paused pre-hearing procedures or a hearing pursuant to Public Act 101-643 must proceed with selection of a hearing officer or hearing date, or both, within the timeframes established by this paragraph (3) and paragraphs (4) through (6) of this subsection (d), unless the timeframes are mutually waived in writing by both parties, and all timelines set forth in this Section in cases concerning corporal punishment, physical abuse, grooming, or sexual misconduct shall be reset to begin the day after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly. Any teacher charged with engaging in acts of corporal punishment, physical abuse, grooming, or sexual misconduct on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly may not pause pre-hearing procedures or a hearing.
(4)  In the alternative to selecting a hearing     officer from the list received from the State Board of Education or accepting the appointment of a hearing officer by the State Board of Education or if the State Board of Education cannot provide a list or appoint a hearing officer that meets the foregoing requirements, the board and the teacher or their legal representatives may mutually agree to select an impartial hearing officer who is not on the master list either by direct appointment by the parties or by using procedures for the appointment of an arbitrator established by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service or the American Arbitration Association. The parties shall notify the State Board of Education of their intent to select a hearing officer using an alternative procedure within 3 business days of receipt of a list of prospective hearing officers provided by the State Board of Education, notice of appointment of a hearing officer by the State Board of Education, or receipt of notice from the State Board of Education that it cannot provide a list that meets the foregoing requirements, whichever is later.
(5)  If the notice of dismissal was sent to the     teacher before July 1, 2012, the fees and costs for the hearing officer must be paid by the State Board of Education. If the notice of dismissal was sent to the teacher on or after July 1, 2012, the hearing officer's fees and costs must be paid as follows in this paragraph (5).  The fees and permissible costs for the hearing officer must be determined by the State Board of Education. If the board and the teacher or their legal representatives mutually agree to select an impartial hearing officer who is not on a list received from the State Board of Education, they may agree to supplement the fees determined by the State Board to the hearing officer, at a rate consistent with the hearing officer's published professional fees. If the hearing officer is mutually selected by the parties, then the board and the teacher or their legal representatives shall each pay 50% of the fees and costs and any supplemental allowance to which they agree. If the hearing officer is selected by the board, then the board shall pay 100% of the hearing officer's fees and costs. The fees and costs must be paid to the hearing officer within 14 days after the board and the teacher or their legal representatives receive the hearing officer's decision set forth in paragraph (7) of this subsection (d).
(6)  The teacher is required to answer the bill of     particulars and aver affirmative matters in his or her defense, and the time for initially doing so and the time for updating such answer and defenses after pre-hearing discovery must be set by the hearing officer. The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules so that each party has a fair opportunity to present its case and to ensure that the dismissal process proceeds in a fair and expeditious manner. These rules shall address, without limitation, discovery and hearing scheduling conferences; the teacher's initial answer and affirmative defenses to the bill of particulars and the updating of that information after pre-hearing discovery; provision for written interrogatories and requests for production of documents; the requirement that each party initially disclose to the other party and then update the disclosure no later than 10 calendar days prior to the commencement of the hearing, the names and addresses of persons who may be called as  witnesses at the hearing, a summary of the facts or opinions each witness will testify to, and all other documents and materials, including information maintained electronically, relevant to its own as well as the other party's case (the hearing officer may exclude witnesses and exhibits not identified and shared, except those offered in rebuttal for which the party could not reasonably have anticipated prior to the hearing); pre-hearing discovery and preparation, including provision for written interrogatories and requests for production of documents, provided that discovery depositions are prohibited; the conduct of the hearing; the right of each party to be represented by counsel, the offer of evidence and witnesses and the cross-examination of witnesses; the authority of the hearing officer to issue subpoenas and subpoenas duces tecum, provided that the hearing officer may limit the number of witnesses to be subpoenaed on behalf of each party to no more than 7; the length of post-hearing briefs; and the form, length, and content of hearing officers' decisions.  The hearing officer shall hold a hearing and render a final decision for dismissal pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or shall report to the school board findings of fact and a recommendation as to whether or not the teacher must be dismissed for conduct. The hearing officer shall commence the hearing within 75 days and conclude the hearing within 120 days after being selected as the hearing officer, provided that the hearing officer may modify these timelines upon the showing of good cause or mutual agreement of the parties.  Good cause for the purpose of this subsection (d) shall mean the illness or otherwise unavoidable emergency of the teacher, district representative, their legal representatives, the hearing officer, or an essential witness as indicated in each party's pre-hearing submission. In a dismissal hearing pursuant to Article 24A of this Code in which a witness is a student or is under the age of 18, the hearing officer must make accommodations for the witness, as provided under paragraph (6.5) of this subsection. The hearing officer shall consider and give weight to all of the teacher's evaluations written pursuant to Article 24A that are relevant to the issues in the hearing.
Each party shall have no more than 3 days to present     its case, unless extended by the hearing officer to enable a party to present adequate evidence and testimony, including due to the other party's cross-examination of the party's witnesses, for good cause or by mutual agreement of the parties. The State Board of Education shall define in rules the meaning of "day" for such purposes. All testimony at the hearing shall be taken under oath administered by the hearing officer.  The hearing officer shall cause a record of the proceedings to be kept and shall employ a competent reporter to take stenographic or stenotype notes of all the testimony.  The costs of the reporter's attendance and services at the hearing shall be paid by the party or parties who are responsible for paying the fees and costs of the hearing officer. Either party desiring a transcript of the hearing shall pay for the cost thereof. Any post-hearing briefs must be submitted by the parties by no later than 21 days after a party's receipt of the transcript of the hearing, unless extended by the hearing officer for good cause or by mutual agreement of the parties.
(6.5) In the case of charges involving any witness     who is or was at the time of the alleged conduct a student or a person under the age of 18, the hearing officer shall make accommodations to protect a witness from being intimidated, traumatized, or re-traumatized. No alleged victim or other witness who is or was at the time of the alleged conduct a student or under the age of 18 may be compelled to testify in the physical or visual presence of a teacher or other witness. If such a witness invokes this right, then the hearing officer must provide an accommodation consistent with the invoked right and use a procedure by which each party may hear such witness' testimony. Accommodations may include, but are not limited to: (i) testimony made via a telecommunication device in a location other than the hearing room and outside the physical or visual presence of the teacher and other hearing participants, but accessible to the teacher via a telecommunication device,  (ii) testimony made in the hearing room but outside the physical presence of the teacher and accessible to the teacher via a telecommunication device, (iii) non-public testimony, (iv) testimony made via videoconference with the cameras and microphones of the teacher turned off, or (v) pre-recorded testimony, including, but not limited  to, a recording of a forensic interview conducted at an accredited Children's Advocacy Center. With all accommodations, the hearing officer shall give such testimony the same consideration as if the witness testified without the accommodation. The teacher may not directly, or through a representative, question a witness called by the school board who is or was a student or under 18 years of age at the time of the alleged conduct. The hearing officer must permit the teacher to submit all relevant questions and follow-up questions for such a witness to have the questions posed by the hearing officer. All questions must exclude evidence of the witness' sexual behavior or predisposition, unless the evidence is offered to prove that someone other than the teacher subject to the dismissal hearing engaged in the charge at issue.
(7) The hearing officer shall, within 30 days from     the conclusion of the hearing or closure of the record, whichever is later, make a decision as to whether or not the teacher shall be dismissed pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or report to the school board findings of fact and a recommendation as to whether or not the teacher shall be dismissed for cause and shall give a copy of the decision or findings of fact and recommendation to both the teacher and the school board.  If a hearing officer fails without good cause, specifically provided in writing to both parties and the State Board of Education, to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation within 30 days after the hearing is concluded or the record is closed, whichever is later, the  parties may mutually agree to select a hearing officer pursuant to the alternative procedure, as provided in this Section, to rehear the charges heard by the hearing officer who failed to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation or to review the record and render a decision. If any hearing officer fails without good cause, specifically provided in writing to both parties and the State Board of Education, to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation within 30 days after the hearing is concluded or the record is closed, whichever is later or if any hearing officer fails to make an accommodation as described in paragraph (6.5), the hearing officer shall be removed from the master list of hearing officers maintained by the State Board of Education for not more than 24 months. The parties and the State Board of Education may also take such other actions as it deems appropriate, including recovering, reducing, or withholding any fees paid or to be paid to the hearing officer. If any hearing officer repeats such failure, he or she must be permanently removed from the master list maintained by the State Board of Education and may not be selected by parties through the alternative selection process under this paragraph (7) or paragraph (4) of this subsection (d). The board shall not lose jurisdiction to discharge a teacher if the hearing officer fails to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation within the time specified in this Section. If the decision of the hearing officer for dismissal pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or of the school board for dismissal for cause is in favor of the teacher, then the hearing officer or school board shall order reinstatement to the same or substantially equivalent position and shall determine the amount for which the school board is liable, including, but not limited to, loss of income and benefits.
(8)  The school board, within 45 days after receipt     of the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation as to whether (i) the conduct at issue occurred, (ii) the conduct that did occur was remediable, and (iii) the proposed dismissal should be sustained, shall issue a written order as to whether the teacher must be retained or dismissed for cause from its employ. The school board's written order shall incorporate the hearing officer's findings of fact, except that the school board may modify or supplement the findings of fact if, in its opinion, the findings of fact are against the manifest weight of the evidence.
If the school board dismisses the teacher     notwithstanding the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation, the school board shall make a conclusion in its written order, giving its reasons therefor, and such conclusion and reasons must be included in its written order. The failure of the school board to strictly adhere to the timelines contained in this Section shall not render it without jurisdiction to dismiss the teacher.  The school board shall not lose jurisdiction to discharge the teacher for cause if the hearing officer fails to render a recommendation within the time specified in this Section.  The decision of the school board is final, unless reviewed as provided in paragraph (9) of this subsection (d).
If the school board retains the teacher, the school     board shall enter a written order stating the amount of back pay and lost benefits, less mitigation, to be paid to the teacher, within 45 days after its retention order. Should the teacher object to the amount of the back pay and lost benefits or amount mitigated, the teacher shall give written objections to the amount within 21 days.  If the parties fail to reach resolution within 7 days, the dispute shall be referred to the hearing officer, who shall consider the school board's written order and teacher's written objection and determine the amount to which the school board is liable.  The costs of the hearing officer's review and determination must be paid by the board.
(9) The decision of the  hearing officer pursuant to     Article 24A of this Code or of the school board's decision to dismiss for cause is final unless reviewed as provided in Section 24-16 of this Code. If the school board's decision to dismiss for cause is contrary to the hearing officer's recommendation, the court on review shall give consideration to the school board's decision and its supplemental findings of fact, if applicable, and the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation in making its decision.  In the event such review is instituted, the school board shall be responsible for preparing and filing the record of proceedings, and such costs associated therewith must be divided equally between the parties.
(10) If a decision of the hearing officer for     dismissal pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or of the school board for dismissal for cause is adjudicated upon review or appeal in favor of the teacher, then the trial court shall order reinstatement and shall remand the matter to the school board with direction for entry of an order setting the amount of back pay, lost benefits, and costs, less mitigation.  The teacher may challenge the school board's order setting the amount of back pay, lost benefits, and costs, less mitigation, through an expedited arbitration procedure, with the costs of the arbitrator borne by the school board.
Any teacher who is reinstated by any hearing or     adjudication brought under this Section shall be assigned by the board to a position substantially similar to the one which that teacher held prior to that teacher's suspension or dismissal.
(11) Subject to any later effective date referenced     in this Section for a specific aspect of the dismissal process, the changes made by Public Act 97-8 shall apply to dismissals instituted on or after September 1, 2011.  Any dismissal instituted prior to September 1, 2011 must be carried out in accordance with the requirements of this Section prior to amendment by Public Act 97-8.
(e) Nothing contained in Public Act 98-648 repeals, supersedes, invalidates, or nullifies final decisions in lawsuits pending on July 1, 2014 (the effective date of Public Act 98-648) in Illinois courts involving the interpretation of Public Act 97-8.
(Source: P.A. 102-708, eff. 4-22-22; 103-354, eff. 1-1-24.)
(Text of Section from P.A. 103-398)
Sec. 24-12. Removal or dismissal of teachers in contractual
continued service.
(a) This subsection (a) applies only to honorable dismissals and recalls in which the notice of dismissal is provided on or before the end of the 2010-2011 school term. If a teacher in contractual continued service is
removed or dismissed as a result of a decision of the board to decrease
the number of teachers employed by the board or to discontinue some
particular type of teaching service, written notice shall be mailed to the
teacher and also given the
teacher either by certified mail, return receipt requested or
personal delivery with receipt at least 60
days before
the end of the school term, together with a statement of honorable
dismissal and the reason therefor, and in all such cases the board shall
first remove or dismiss all teachers who have not entered upon contractual
continued service before removing or dismissing any teacher who has entered
upon contractual continued service and who is legally qualified to hold a
position currently held by a teacher who has not entered upon contractual
continued service.
As between teachers who have entered upon contractual
continued service, the teacher or teachers with the shorter length of
continuing service with the district shall be dismissed first
unless an alternative method of determining the sequence of dismissal is
established in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the
board and a professional faculty members' organization and except that
this provision shall not impair the operation of any affirmative action
program in the district, regardless of whether it exists by operation of
law or is conducted on a voluntary basis by the board. Any teacher
dismissed as a result of such decrease or discontinuance shall be paid
all earned compensation on or before the third business day following
the last day of pupil attendance in the regular school term.
If the
board has any vacancies for the following school term or within one
calendar year from the beginning of the following school term, the
positions thereby becoming available shall be tendered to the teachers
so removed or dismissed so far as they are legally qualified to hold
such positions; provided, however, that if the number of honorable
dismissal notices based on economic necessity exceeds 15% of the number of full-time
 equivalent positions filled by certified employees (excluding
principals and administrative personnel) during the preceding school year,
then if the board has any vacancies for the following school term or within
2 calendar years from the beginning of the following
school term, the positions so becoming available shall be tendered to the
teachers who were so notified and removed or dismissed whenever they are
legally qualified to hold such positions. Each board shall, in consultation
with any exclusive employee representatives, each year establish a list,
categorized by positions, showing the length of continuing service of each
teacher who is qualified to hold any such positions, unless an alternative
method of determining a sequence of dismissal is established as provided
for in this Section, in which case a list shall be made in accordance with
the alternative method.  Copies of the list shall be distributed to the
exclusive employee representative on or before February 1 of each year.
Whenever the number of honorable dismissal notices based upon economic
necessity exceeds 5, or 150% of the average number of teachers honorably
dismissed in the preceding 3 years, whichever is more, then the board also
shall hold a public hearing on the question of the dismissals.  Following
the hearing and board review, the action to approve any such reduction shall
require a majority vote of the board members.
(b)  This subsection (b) applies only to honorable dismissals and recalls in which the notice of dismissal is provided during the 2011-2012 school term or a subsequent school term.   If any teacher, whether or not in contractual continued service, is removed or dismissed as a result of a decision of a school board to decrease the number of teachers employed by the board, a decision of a school board to discontinue some particular type of teaching service, or a reduction in the number of programs or positions in a special education joint agreement, then written notice must be mailed to the teacher and also given to the teacher either by electronic mail, certified mail, return receipt requested, or personal delivery with receipt at least 45 days before the end of the school term, together with a statement of honorable dismissal and the reason therefor, and in all such cases the sequence of dismissal shall occur in accordance with this subsection (b); except that this subsection (b) shall not impair the operation of any affirmative action program in the school district, regardless of whether it exists by operation of law or is conducted on a voluntary basis by the board.
Each teacher must be categorized into one or more positions for which the teacher is qualified to hold, based upon legal qualifications and any other qualifications established in a district or joint agreement job description, on or before the May 10 prior to the school year during which the sequence of dismissal is determined.  Within each position and subject to agreements made by the joint committee on honorable dismissals that are authorized by subsection (c) of this Section, the school district or joint agreement must establish 4 groupings of teachers qualified to hold the position as follows:
(1) Grouping one shall consist of each teacher who is     not in contractual continued service and who (i) has not received a performance evaluation rating, (ii) is employed for one school term or less to replace a teacher on leave, or (iii) is employed on a part-time basis. "Part-time basis" for the purposes of this subsection (b) means a teacher who is employed to teach less than a full-day, teacher workload or less than 5 days of the normal student attendance week, unless otherwise provided for in a collective bargaining agreement between the district and the exclusive representative of the district's teachers. For the purposes of this Section, a teacher (A) who is employed as a full-time teacher but who actually teaches or is otherwise present and participating in the district's educational program for less than a school term or (B) who, in the immediately previous school term, was employed on a full-time basis and actually taught or was otherwise present and participated in the district's educational program for 120 days or more is not considered employed on a part-time basis.
(2)  Grouping 2 shall consist of each teacher with a     Needs Improvement or Unsatisfactory performance evaluation rating on either of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings.
(3)  Grouping 3 shall consist of each teacher with a     performance evaluation rating of at least Satisfactory or Proficient on both of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings, if 2 ratings are available, or on the teacher's last performance evaluation rating, if only one rating is available, unless the teacher qualifies for placement into grouping 4.
(4)  Grouping 4 shall consist of each teacher whose     last 2  performance evaluation ratings are Excellent and each teacher with 2 Excellent performance evaluation ratings out of the teacher's last 3 performance evaluation ratings with a third rating of Satisfactory or Proficient.
Among teachers qualified to hold a position, teachers must be dismissed in the order of their groupings, with teachers in grouping one dismissed first and teachers in grouping 4 dismissed last.
Within grouping one, the sequence of dismissal must be at the discretion of the school district or joint agreement.  Within grouping 2, the sequence of dismissal must be based upon average performance evaluation ratings, with the teacher or teachers with the lowest average performance evaluation rating dismissed first.  A teacher's average performance evaluation rating must be calculated using the average of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings, if 2 ratings are available, or the teacher's last performance evaluation rating, if only one rating is available, using the following numerical values:  4 for Excellent; 3 for Proficient or Satisfactory; 2 for Needs Improvement; and 1 for Unsatisfactory.  As between or among teachers in grouping 2 with the same average performance evaluation rating and within each of groupings 3 and 4, the teacher or teachers with the shorter length of continuing service with the school district or joint agreement must be dismissed first unless an alternative method of determining the sequence of dismissal is established in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the board and a professional faculty members' organization.
Each board, including the governing board of a joint agreement, shall, in consultation with any exclusive employee representatives, each year establish a sequence of honorable dismissal list categorized by positions and the groupings defined in this subsection (b).  Copies of the list showing each teacher by name, along with the race or ethnicity of the teacher if provided by the teacher, and categorized by positions and the groupings defined in this subsection (b) must be distributed to the exclusive bargaining representative at least 75 days before the end of the school term, provided that the school district or joint agreement may, with notice to any exclusive employee representatives, move teachers from grouping one into another grouping during the period of time from 75 days until 45 days before the end of the school term. Each year, each board shall also establish, in consultation with any exclusive employee representatives, a list showing the length of continuing service of each teacher who is qualified to hold any such positions, unless an alternative method of determining a sequence of dismissal is established as provided for in this Section, in which case a list must be made in accordance with the alternative method. Copies of the list must be distributed to the exclusive employee representative at least 75 days before the end of the school term.
Any teacher dismissed as a result of such decrease or discontinuance must be paid all earned compensation on or before the third business day following the last day of pupil attendance in the regular school term.
If the board or joint agreement has any vacancies for the following school term or within one calendar year from the beginning of the following school term, the positions thereby becoming available must be tendered to the teachers so removed or dismissed who were in grouping 3 or 4 of the sequence of dismissal and are qualified to hold the positions, based upon legal qualifications and any other qualifications established in a district or joint agreement job description, on or before the May 10 prior to the date of the positions becoming available, provided that if the number of honorable dismissal notices based on economic necessity exceeds 15% of the number of full-time equivalent positions filled by certified employees (excluding principals and administrative personnel) during the preceding school year, then the recall period is for the following school term or within 2 calendar years from the beginning of the following school term. If the board or joint agreement has any vacancies within the period from the beginning of the following school term through February 1 of the following school term (unless a date later than February 1, but no later than 6 months from the beginning of the following school term, is established in a collective bargaining agreement), the positions thereby becoming available must be tendered to the teachers so removed or dismissed who were in grouping 2 of the sequence of dismissal due to one "needs improvement" rating on either of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings, provided that, if 2 ratings are available, the other performance evaluation rating used for grouping purposes is "satisfactory", "proficient", or "excellent", and are qualified to hold the positions, based upon legal qualifications and any other qualifications established in a district or joint agreement job description, on or before the May 10 prior to the date of the positions becoming available. On and after July 1, 2014 (the effective date of Public Act 98-648), the preceding sentence shall apply to teachers removed or dismissed by honorable dismissal, even if notice of honorable dismissal occurred during the 2013-2014 school year.  Among teachers eligible for recall pursuant to the preceding sentence, the order of recall must be in inverse order of dismissal, unless an alternative order of recall is established in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the board and a professional faculty members' organization.  Whenever the number of honorable dismissal notices based upon economic necessity exceeds 5 notices or 150% of the average number of teachers honorably dismissed in the preceding 3 years, whichever is more, then the school board or governing board of a joint agreement, as applicable, shall also hold a public hearing on the question of the dismissals. Following the hearing and board review, the action to approve any such reduction shall require a majority vote of the board members.
For purposes of this subsection (b), subject to agreement on an alternative definition reached by the joint committee described in subsection (c) of this Section, a teacher's performance evaluation rating means the overall performance evaluation rating resulting from an annual or biennial performance evaluation conducted pursuant to Article 24A of this Code by the school district or joint agreement determining the sequence of dismissal, not including any performance evaluation conducted during or at the end of a remediation period. No more than one evaluation rating each school term shall be one of the evaluation ratings used for the purpose of determining the sequence of dismissal. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection for any performance evaluations conducted during or at the end of a remediation period, if multiple performance evaluations are conducted in a school term, only the rating from the last evaluation conducted prior to establishing the sequence of honorable dismissal list in such school term shall be the one evaluation rating from that school term used for the purpose of determining the sequence of dismissal. Averaging ratings from multiple evaluations is not permitted unless otherwise agreed to in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the board and a professional faculty members' organization. The preceding 3 sentences are not a legislative declaration that existing law does or does not already require that only one performance evaluation each school term shall be used for the purpose of determining the sequence of dismissal.  For performance evaluation ratings determined prior to September 1, 2012, any school district or joint agreement with a performance evaluation rating system that does not use either of the rating category systems specified in subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code for all teachers must establish a basis for assigning each teacher a rating that complies with subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code for all of the performance evaluation ratings that are to be used to determine the sequence of dismissal.  A teacher's grouping and ranking on a sequence of honorable dismissal shall be deemed a part of the teacher's performance evaluation, and that information shall be disclosed to the exclusive bargaining representative as part of a sequence of honorable dismissal list, notwithstanding any laws prohibiting disclosure of such information.  A performance evaluation rating may be used to determine the sequence of dismissal, notwithstanding the pendency of any grievance resolution or arbitration procedures relating to the performance evaluation.  If a teacher has received at least one performance evaluation rating conducted by the school district or joint agreement determining the sequence of dismissal and a subsequent performance evaluation is not conducted in any school year in which such evaluation is required to be conducted under Section 24A-5 of this Code, the teacher's performance evaluation rating for that school year for purposes of determining the sequence of dismissal is deemed Proficient, except that, during any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, this default to Proficient does not apply to any teacher who has entered into contractual continued service and who was deemed Excellent on his or her most recent evaluation.  During any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act and unless the school board and any exclusive bargaining representative have completed the performance rating for teachers or have mutually agreed to an alternate performance rating, any teacher who has entered into contractual continued service, whose most recent evaluation was deemed Excellent, and whose performance evaluation is not conducted when the  evaluation is required to be conducted shall receive a teacher's performance rating deemed Excellent. A school board and any exclusive bargaining representative may mutually agree to an alternate performance rating for teachers not in contractual continued service during any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, as long as the agreement is in writing. If a performance evaluation rating is nullified as the result of an arbitration, administrative agency, or court determination, then the school district or joint agreement is deemed to have conducted a performance evaluation for that school year, but the performance evaluation rating may not be used in determining the sequence of dismissal.
Nothing in this subsection (b) shall be construed as limiting the right of a school board or governing board of a joint agreement to dismiss a teacher not in contractual continued service in accordance with Section 24-11 of this Code.
Any provisions regarding the sequence of honorable dismissals and recall of honorably dismissed teachers in a collective bargaining agreement entered into on or before January 1, 2011 and in effect on June 13, 2011 (the effective date of Public Act 97-8) that may conflict with Public Act 97-8 shall remain in effect through the expiration of such agreement or June 30, 2013, whichever is earlier.
(c)  Each school district and special education joint agreement must use a joint committee composed of equal representation selected by the school board and its teachers or, if applicable, the exclusive bargaining representative of its teachers, to address the matters described in paragraphs (1) through (5) of this subsection (c) pertaining to honorable dismissals under subsection (b) of this Section.
(1)  The joint committee must consider and may agree     to criteria for excluding from grouping 2 and placing into grouping 3 a teacher whose last 2 performance evaluations include a Needs Improvement and either a Proficient or Excellent.
(2)  The joint committee must consider and may agree     to an alternative definition for grouping 4, which definition must take into account prior performance evaluation ratings and may take into account other factors that relate to the school district's or program's educational objectives.  An alternative definition for grouping 4 may not permit the inclusion of a teacher in the grouping with a Needs Improvement or Unsatisfactory performance evaluation rating on either of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings.
(3) The joint committee may agree to including within     the definition of a performance evaluation rating a performance evaluation rating administered by a school district or joint agreement other than the school district or joint agreement determining the sequence of dismissal.
(4) For each school district or joint agreement that     administers performance evaluation ratings that are inconsistent with either of the rating category systems specified in subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code, the school district or joint agreement must consult with the joint committee on the basis for assigning a rating that complies with subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code to each performance evaluation rating that will be used in a sequence of dismissal.
(5)  Upon request by a joint committee member     submitted to the employing board by no later than 10 days after the distribution of the sequence of honorable dismissal list, a representative of the employing board shall, within 5 days after the request, provide to members of the joint committee a list showing the most recent and prior performance evaluation ratings of each teacher identified only by length of continuing service in the district or joint agreement and not by name.  If, after review of this list, a member of the joint committee has a good faith belief that a disproportionate number of teachers with greater length of continuing service with the district or joint agreement have received a recent performance evaluation rating lower than the prior rating, the member may request that the joint committee review the list to assess whether such a trend may exist.  Following the joint committee's review, but by no later than the end of the applicable school term, the joint committee or any member or members of the joint committee may submit a report of the review to the employing board and exclusive bargaining representative, if any.  Nothing in this paragraph (5) shall impact the order of honorable dismissal or a school district's or joint agreement's authority to carry out a dismissal in accordance with subsection (b) of this Section.
Agreement by the joint committee as to a matter requires the majority vote of all committee members, and if the joint committee does not reach agreement on a matter, then the otherwise applicable requirements of subsection (b) of this Section shall apply.  Except as explicitly set forth in this subsection (c), a joint committee has no authority to agree to any further modifications to the requirements for honorable dismissals set forth in subsection (b) of this Section.
The joint committee must be established, and the first meeting of the joint committee each school year must occur on or before December 1.
The joint committee must reach agreement on a matter on or before February 1 of a school year in order for the agreement of the joint committee to apply to the sequence of dismissal determined during that school year.  Subject to the February 1 deadline for agreements, the agreement of a joint committee on a matter shall apply to the sequence of dismissal until the agreement is amended or terminated by the joint committee.
The provisions of the Open Meetings Act shall not apply to meetings of a joint committee created under this subsection (c).
(d) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this subsection (d), the requirements and dismissal procedures of Section 24-16.5 of this Code shall apply to any dismissal sought under Section 24-16.5 of this Code.
(1) If a dismissal of a teacher in contractual     continued service is sought for any reason  or cause other than an honorable dismissal under subsections (a) or (b) of this Section or a dismissal sought under Section 24-16.5 of this Code, including those under Section 10-22.4, the board must first approve a motion containing specific charges by a majority vote of all its members.  Written notice of such charges, including a bill of particulars and the teacher's right to request a hearing, must be mailed to the teacher and also given to the teacher either by electronic mail, certified mail, return receipt requested, or personal delivery with receipt within 5 days of the adoption of the motion. Any written notice sent on or after July 1, 2012 shall inform the teacher of the right to request a hearing before a mutually selected hearing officer, with the cost of the hearing officer split equally between the teacher and the board, or a hearing before a board-selected hearing officer, with the cost of the hearing officer paid by the board.
Before setting a hearing on charges stemming from     causes that are considered remediable, a board must give the teacher reasonable warning in writing, stating specifically the causes that, if not removed, may result in charges; however, no such written warning is required if the causes have been the subject of a remediation plan pursuant to Article 24A of this Code.
If, in the opinion of the board, the interests of the     school require it, the board may suspend the teacher without pay, pending the hearing, but if the board's dismissal or removal is not sustained, the teacher shall not suffer the loss of any salary or benefits by reason of the suspension.
(2)  No hearing upon the charges is required unless     the teacher within 17 days after receiving notice requests in writing of the board that a hearing be scheduled before a mutually selected hearing officer or a hearing officer selected by the board. The secretary of the school board shall forward a copy of the notice to the State Board of Education.
(3)  Within 5 business days after receiving a notice     of hearing in which either notice to the teacher was sent before July 1, 2012 or, if the notice was sent on or after July 1, 2012, the teacher has requested a hearing before a mutually selected hearing officer, the State Board of Education shall provide a list of 5 prospective, impartial hearing officers from the master list of qualified, impartial hearing officers maintained by the State Board of Education.  Each person on the master list must (i) be accredited by a national arbitration organization and have had a minimum of 5 years of experience directly related to labor and employment relations matters between employers and employees or their exclusive bargaining representatives and (ii) beginning September 1, 2012, have participated in training provided or approved by the State Board of Education for teacher dismissal hearing officers so that he or she is familiar with issues generally involved in evaluative and non-evaluative dismissals.
If notice to the teacher was sent before July 1, 2012     or, if the notice was sent on or after July 1, 2012, the teacher has requested a hearing before a mutually selected hearing officer, the board and the teacher or their legal representatives within 3 business days shall alternately strike one name from the list provided by the State Board of Education until only one name remains.  Unless waived by the teacher, the teacher shall have the right to proceed first with the striking. Within 3 business days of receipt of the list provided by the State Board of Education, the board and the teacher or their legal representatives shall each have the right to reject all prospective hearing officers named on the list and notify the State Board of Education of such rejection.  Within 3 business days after receiving this notification, the State Board of Education shall appoint a qualified person from the master list who did not appear on the list sent to the parties to serve as the hearing officer, unless the parties notify it that they have chosen to alternatively select a hearing officer under paragraph (4) of this subsection (d).
If the teacher has requested a hearing before a     hearing officer selected by the board, the board shall select one name from the master list of qualified impartial hearing officers maintained by the State Board of Education within 3 business days after receipt and shall notify the State Board of Education of its selection.
A hearing officer mutually selected by the parties,     selected by the board, or selected through an alternative selection process under paragraph (4) of this subsection (d) (A) must not be a resident of the school district, (B) must be available to commence the hearing within 75 days and conclude the hearing within 120 days after being selected as the hearing officer, and (C) must issue a decision as to whether the teacher must be dismissed and give a copy of that decision to both the teacher and the board within 30 days from the conclusion of the hearing or closure of the record, whichever is later.
Any hearing convened during a public health emergency     pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act may be convened remotely.  Any hearing officer for a hearing convened during a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act may voluntarily withdraw from the hearing and another hearing officer shall be selected or appointed pursuant to this Section.
In this paragraph, "pre-hearing procedures" refers to     the pre-hearing procedures under Section 51.55 of Title 23 of the Illinois Administrative Code and "hearing" refers to the hearing under Section 51.60 of Title 23 of the Illinois Administrative Code. Any teacher who has been charged with engaging in acts of corporal punishment, physical abuse, grooming, or sexual misconduct and who previously paused pre-hearing procedures or a hearing pursuant to Public Act 101-643 must proceed with selection of a hearing officer or hearing date, or both, within the timeframes established by this paragraph (3) and paragraphs (4) through (6) of this subsection (d), unless the timeframes are mutually waived in writing by both parties, and all timelines set forth in this Section in cases concerning corporal punishment, physical abuse, grooming, or sexual misconduct shall be reset to begin the day after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly. Any teacher charged with engaging in acts of corporal punishment, physical abuse, grooming, or sexual misconduct on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly may not pause pre-hearing procedures or a hearing.
(4)  In the alternative to selecting a hearing     officer from the list received from the State Board of Education or accepting the appointment of a hearing officer by the State Board of Education or if the State Board of Education cannot provide a list or appoint a hearing officer that meets the foregoing requirements, the board and the teacher or their legal representatives may mutually agree to select an impartial hearing officer who is not on the master list either by direct appointment by the parties or by using procedures for the appointment of an arbitrator established by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service or the American Arbitration Association. The parties shall notify the State Board of Education of their intent to select a hearing officer using an alternative procedure within 3 business days of receipt of a list of prospective hearing officers provided by the State Board of Education, notice of appointment of a hearing officer by the State Board of Education, or receipt of notice from the State Board of Education that it cannot provide a list that meets the foregoing requirements, whichever is later.
(5)  If the notice of dismissal was sent to the     teacher before July 1, 2012, the fees and costs for the hearing officer must be paid by the State Board of Education. If the notice of dismissal was sent to the teacher on or after July 1, 2012, the hearing officer's fees and costs must be paid as follows in this paragraph (5).  The fees and permissible costs for the hearing officer must be determined by the State Board of Education. If the board and the teacher or their legal representatives mutually agree to select an impartial hearing officer who is not on a list received from the State Board of Education, they may agree to supplement the fees determined by the State Board to the hearing officer, at a rate consistent with the hearing officer's published professional fees. If the hearing officer is mutually selected by the parties, then the board and the teacher or their legal representatives shall each pay 50% of the fees and costs and any supplemental allowance to which they agree. If the hearing officer is selected by the board, then the board shall pay 100% of the hearing officer's fees and costs. The fees and costs must be paid to the hearing officer within 14 days after the board and the teacher or their legal representatives receive the hearing officer's decision set forth in paragraph (7) of this subsection (d).
(6)  The teacher is required to answer the bill of     particulars and aver affirmative matters in his or her defense, and the time for initially doing so and the time for updating such answer and defenses after pre-hearing discovery must be set by the hearing officer. The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules so that each party has a fair opportunity to present its case and to ensure that the dismissal process proceeds in a fair and expeditious manner. These rules shall address, without limitation, discovery and hearing scheduling conferences; the teacher's initial answer and affirmative defenses to the bill of particulars and the updating of that information after pre-hearing discovery; provision for written interrogatories and requests for production of documents; the requirement that each party initially disclose to the other party and then update the disclosure no later than 10 calendar days prior to the commencement of the hearing, the names and addresses of persons who may be called as  witnesses at the hearing, a summary of the facts or opinions each witness will testify to, and all other documents and materials, including information maintained electronically, relevant to its own as well as the other party's case (the hearing officer may exclude witnesses and exhibits not identified and shared, except those offered in rebuttal for which the party could not reasonably have anticipated prior to the hearing); pre-hearing discovery and preparation, including provision for written interrogatories and requests for production of documents, provided that discovery depositions are prohibited; the conduct of the hearing; the right of each party to be represented by counsel, the offer of evidence and witnesses and the cross-examination of witnesses; the authority of the hearing officer to issue subpoenas and subpoenas duces tecum, provided that the hearing officer may limit the number of witnesses to be subpoenaed on behalf of each party to no more than 7; the length of post-hearing briefs; and the form, length, and content of hearing officers' decisions.  The hearing officer shall hold a hearing and render a final decision for dismissal pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or shall report to the school board findings of fact and a recommendation as to whether or not the teacher must be dismissed for conduct. The hearing officer shall commence the hearing within 75 days and conclude the hearing within 120 days after being selected as the hearing officer, provided that the hearing officer may modify these timelines upon the showing of good cause or mutual agreement of the parties.  Good cause for the purpose of this subsection (d) shall mean the illness or otherwise unavoidable emergency of the teacher, district representative, their legal representatives, the hearing officer, or an essential witness as indicated in each party's pre-hearing submission. In a dismissal hearing pursuant to Article 24A of this Code in which a witness is a student or is under the age of 18, the hearing officer must make accommodations for the witness, as provided under paragraph (6.5) of this subsection. The hearing officer shall consider and give weight to all of the teacher's evaluations written pursuant to Article 24A that are relevant to the issues in the hearing.
Each party shall have no more than 3 days to present     its case, unless extended by the hearing officer to enable a party to present adequate evidence and testimony, including due to the other party's cross-examination of the party's witnesses, for good cause or by mutual agreement of the parties. The State Board of Education shall define in rules the meaning of "day" for such purposes. All testimony at the hearing shall be taken under oath administered by the hearing officer.  The hearing officer shall cause a record of the proceedings to be kept and shall employ a competent reporter to take stenographic or stenotype notes of all the testimony.  The costs of the reporter's attendance and services at the hearing shall be paid by the party or parties who are responsible for paying the fees and costs of the hearing officer. Either party desiring a transcript of the hearing shall pay for the cost thereof. Any post-hearing briefs must be submitted by the parties by no later than 21 days after a party's receipt of the transcript of the hearing, unless extended by the hearing officer for good cause or by mutual agreement of the parties.
(6.5) In the case of charges involving sexual abuse     or severe physical abuse of a student or a person under the age of 18, the hearing officer shall make alternative hearing procedures to protect a witness who is a student or who is under the age of 18 from being intimidated or traumatized. Alternative hearing procedures may include, but are not limited to: (i) testimony made via a telecommunication device in a location other than the hearing room and outside the physical presence of the teacher and other hearing participants, (ii) testimony outside the physical presence of the teacher, or (iii) non-public testimony. During a testimony described under this subsection, each party must be permitted to ask a witness who is a student or who is under 18 years of age all relevant questions and follow-up questions. All questions must exclude evidence of the witness' sexual behavior or predisposition, unless the evidence is offered to prove that someone other than the teacher subject to the dismissal hearing engaged in the charge at issue.
(7) The hearing officer shall, within 30 days from     the conclusion of the hearing or closure of the record, whichever is later, make a decision as to whether or not the teacher shall be dismissed pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or report to the school board findings of fact and a recommendation as to whether or not the teacher shall be dismissed for cause and shall give a copy of the decision or findings of fact and recommendation to both the teacher and the school board.  If a hearing officer fails without good cause, specifically provided in writing to both parties and the State Board of Education, to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation within 30 days after the hearing is concluded or the record is closed, whichever is later, the  parties may mutually agree to select a hearing officer pursuant to the alternative procedure, as provided in this Section, to rehear the charges heard by the hearing officer who failed to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation or to review the record and render a decision. If any hearing officer fails without good cause, specifically provided in writing to both parties and the State Board of Education, to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation within 30 days after the hearing is concluded or the record is closed, whichever is later, the hearing officer shall be removed from the master list of hearing officers maintained by the State Board of Education for not more than 24 months. The parties and the State Board of Education may also take such other actions as it deems appropriate, including recovering, reducing, or withholding any fees paid or to be paid to the hearing officer. If any hearing officer repeats such failure, he or she must be permanently removed from the master list maintained by the State Board of Education and may not be selected by parties through the alternative selection process under this paragraph (7) or paragraph (4) of this subsection (d). The board shall not lose jurisdiction to discharge a teacher if the hearing officer fails to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation within the time specified in this Section. If the decision of the hearing officer for dismissal pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or of the school board for dismissal for cause is in favor of the teacher, then the hearing officer or school board shall order reinstatement to the same or substantially equivalent position and shall determine the amount for which the school board is liable, including, but not limited to, loss of income and benefits.
(8)  The school board, within 45 days after receipt     of the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation as to whether (i) the conduct at issue occurred, (ii) the conduct that did occur was remediable, and (iii) the proposed dismissal should be sustained, shall issue a written order as to whether the teacher must be retained or dismissed for cause from its employ. The school board's written order shall incorporate the hearing officer's findings of fact, except that the school board may modify or supplement the findings of fact if, in its opinion, the findings of fact are against the manifest weight of the evidence.
If the school board dismisses the teacher     notwithstanding the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation, the school board shall make a conclusion in its written order, giving its reasons therefor, and such conclusion and reasons must be included in its written order. The failure of the school board to strictly adhere to the timelines contained in this Section shall not render it without jurisdiction to dismiss the teacher.  The school board shall not lose jurisdiction to discharge the teacher for cause if the hearing officer fails to render a recommendation within the time specified in this Section.  The decision of the school board is final, unless reviewed as provided in paragraph (9) of this subsection (d).
If the school board retains the teacher, the school     board shall enter a written order stating the amount of back pay and lost benefits, less mitigation, to be paid to the teacher, within 45 days after its retention order. Should the teacher object to the amount of the back pay and lost benefits or amount mitigated, the teacher shall give written objections to the amount within 21 days.  If the parties fail to reach resolution within 7 days, the dispute shall be referred to the hearing officer, who shall consider the school board's written order and teacher's written objection and determine the amount to which the school board is liable.  The costs of the hearing officer's review and determination must be paid by the board.
(9) The decision of the  hearing officer pursuant to     Article 24A of this Code or of the school board's decision to dismiss for cause is final unless reviewed as provided in Section 24-16 of this Code. If the school board's decision to dismiss for cause is contrary to the hearing officer's recommendation, the court on review shall give consideration to the school board's decision and its supplemental findings of fact, if applicable, and the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation in making its decision.  In the event such review is instituted, the school board shall be responsible for preparing and filing the record of proceedings, and such costs associated therewith must be divided equally between the parties.
(10) If a decision of the hearing officer for     dismissal pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or of the school board for dismissal for cause is adjudicated upon review or appeal in favor of the teacher, then the trial court shall order reinstatement and shall remand the matter to the school board with direction for entry of an order setting the amount of back pay, lost benefits, and costs, less mitigation.  The teacher may challenge the school board's order setting the amount of back pay, lost benefits, and costs, less mitigation, through an expedited arbitration procedure, with the costs of the arbitrator borne by the school board.
Any teacher who is reinstated by any hearing or     adjudication brought under this Section shall be assigned by the board to a position substantially similar to the one which that teacher held prior to that teacher's suspension or dismissal.
(11) Subject to any later effective date referenced     in this Section for a specific aspect of the dismissal process, the changes made by Public Act 97-8 shall apply to dismissals instituted on or after September 1, 2011.  Any dismissal instituted prior to September 1, 2011 must be carried out in accordance with the requirements of this Section prior to amendment by Public Act 97-8.
(e) Nothing contained in Public Act 98-648 repeals, supersedes, invalidates, or nullifies final decisions in lawsuits pending on July 1, 2014 (the effective date of Public Act 98-648) in Illinois courts involving the interpretation of Public Act 97-8.
(Source: P.A. 102-708, eff. 4-22-22; 103-398, eff. 1-1-24.)
(Text of Section from P.A. 103-500)
Sec. 24-12. Removal or dismissal of teachers in contractual
continued service.
(a) This subsection (a) applies only to honorable dismissals and recalls in which the notice of dismissal is provided on or before the end of the 2010-2011 school term. If a teacher in contractual continued service is
removed or dismissed as a result of a decision of the board to decrease
the number of teachers employed by the board or to discontinue some
particular type of teaching service, written notice shall be mailed to the
teacher and also given the
teacher either by certified mail, return receipt requested or
personal delivery with receipt at least 60
days before
the end of the school term, together with a statement of honorable
dismissal and the reason therefor, and in all such cases the board shall
first remove or dismiss all teachers who have not entered upon contractual
continued service before removing or dismissing any teacher who has entered
upon contractual continued service and who is legally qualified to hold a
position currently held by a teacher who has not entered upon contractual
continued service.
As between teachers who have entered upon contractual
continued service, the teacher or teachers with the shorter length of
continuing service with the district shall be dismissed first
unless an alternative method of determining the sequence of dismissal is
established in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the
board and a professional faculty members' organization and except that
this provision shall not impair the operation of any affirmative action
program in the district, regardless of whether it exists by operation of
law or is conducted on a voluntary basis by the board. Any teacher
dismissed as a result of such decrease or discontinuance shall be paid
all earned compensation on or before the third business day following
the last day of pupil attendance in the regular school term.
If the
board has any vacancies for the following school term or within one
calendar year from the beginning of the following school term, the
positions thereby becoming available shall be tendered to the teachers
so removed or dismissed so far as they are legally qualified to hold
such positions; provided, however, that if the number of honorable
dismissal notices based on economic necessity exceeds 15% of the number of full-time
 equivalent positions filled by certified employees (excluding
principals and administrative personnel) during the preceding school year,
then if the board has any vacancies for the following school term or within
2 calendar years from the beginning of the following
school term, the positions so becoming available shall be tendered to the
teachers who were so notified and removed or dismissed whenever they are
legally qualified to hold such positions. Each board shall, in consultation
with any exclusive employee representatives, each year establish a list,
categorized by positions, showing the length of continuing service of each
teacher who is qualified to hold any such positions, unless an alternative
method of determining a sequence of dismissal is established as provided
for in this Section, in which case a list shall be made in accordance with
the alternative method.  Copies of the list shall be distributed to the
exclusive employee representative on or before February 1 of each year.
Whenever the number of honorable dismissal notices based upon economic
necessity exceeds 5, or 150% of the average number of teachers honorably
dismissed in the preceding 3 years, whichever is more, then the board also
shall hold a public hearing on the question of the dismissals.  Following
the hearing and board review, the action to approve any such reduction shall
require a majority vote of the board members.
(b)   If any teacher, whether or not in contractual continued service, is removed or dismissed as a result of a decision of a school board to decrease the number of teachers employed by the board, a decision of a school board to discontinue some particular type of teaching service, or a reduction in the number of programs or positions in a special education joint agreement, then written notice must be mailed to the teacher and also given to the teacher either by electronic mail, certified mail, return receipt requested, or personal delivery with receipt on or before April 15, together with a statement of honorable dismissal and the reason therefor, and in all such cases the sequence of dismissal shall occur in accordance with this subsection (b); except that this subsection (b) shall not impair the operation of any affirmative action program in the school district, regardless of whether it exists by operation of law or is conducted on a voluntary basis by the board.
Each teacher must be categorized into one or more positions for which the teacher is qualified to hold, based upon legal qualifications and any other qualifications established in a district or joint agreement job description, on or before the May 10 prior to the school year during which the sequence of dismissal is determined.  Within each position and subject to agreements made by the joint committee on honorable dismissals that are authorized by subsection (c) of this Section, the school district or joint agreement must establish 4 groupings of teachers qualified to hold the position as follows:
(1) Grouping one shall consist of each teacher who is     not in contractual continued service and who (i) has not received a performance evaluation rating, (ii) is employed for one school term or less to replace a teacher on leave, or (iii) is employed on a part-time basis. "Part-time basis" for the purposes of this subsection (b) means a teacher who is employed to teach less than a full-day, teacher workload or less than 5 days of the normal student attendance week, unless otherwise provided for in a collective bargaining agreement between the district and the exclusive representative of the district's teachers. For the purposes of this Section, a teacher (A) who is employed as a full-time teacher but who actually teaches or is otherwise present and participating in the district's educational program for less than a school term or (B) who, in the immediately previous school term, was employed on a full-time basis and actually taught or was otherwise present and participated in the district's educational program for 120 days or more is not considered employed on a part-time basis.
(2)  Grouping 2 shall consist of each teacher with a     Needs Improvement or Unsatisfactory performance evaluation rating on either of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings.
(3)  Grouping 3 shall consist of each teacher with a     performance evaluation rating of at least Satisfactory or Proficient on both of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings, if 2 ratings are available, or on the teacher's last performance evaluation rating, if only one rating is available, unless the teacher qualifies for placement into grouping 4.
(4)  Grouping 4 shall consist of each teacher whose     last 2  performance evaluation ratings are Excellent and each teacher with 2 Excellent performance evaluation ratings out of the teacher's last 3 performance evaluation ratings with a third rating of Satisfactory or Proficient.
Among teachers qualified to hold a position, teachers must be dismissed in the order of their groupings, with teachers in grouping one dismissed first and teachers in grouping 4 dismissed last.
Within grouping one, the sequence of dismissal must be at the discretion of the school district or joint agreement.  Within grouping 2, the sequence of dismissal must be based upon average performance evaluation ratings, with the teacher or teachers with the lowest average performance evaluation rating dismissed first.  A teacher's average performance evaluation rating must be calculated using the average of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings, if 2 ratings are available, or the teacher's last performance evaluation rating, if only one rating is available, using the following numerical values:  4 for Excellent; 3 for Proficient or Satisfactory; 2 for Needs Improvement; and 1 for Unsatisfactory.  As between or among teachers in grouping 2 with the same average performance evaluation rating and within each of groupings 3 and 4, the teacher or teachers with the shorter length of continuing service with the school district or joint agreement must be dismissed first unless an alternative method of determining the sequence of dismissal is established in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the board and a professional faculty members' organization.
Each board, including the governing board of a joint agreement, shall, in consultation with any exclusive employee representatives, each year establish a sequence of honorable dismissal list categorized by positions and the groupings defined in this subsection (b).  Copies of the list showing each teacher by name and categorized by positions and the groupings defined in this subsection (b) must be distributed to the exclusive bargaining representative at least 75 days before the end of the school term, provided that the school district or joint agreement may, with notice to any exclusive employee representatives, move teachers from grouping one into another grouping during the period of time from 75 days until April 15. Each year, each board shall also establish, in consultation with any exclusive employee representatives, a list showing the length of continuing service of each teacher who is qualified to hold any such positions, unless an alternative method of determining a sequence of dismissal is established as provided for in this Section, in which case a list must be made in accordance with the alternative method. Copies of the list must be distributed to the exclusive employee representative at least 75 days before the end of the school term.
Any teacher dismissed as a result of such decrease or discontinuance must be paid all earned compensation on or before the third business day following the last day of pupil attendance in the regular school term.
If the board or joint agreement has any vacancies for the following school term or within one calendar year from the beginning of the following school term, the positions thereby becoming available must be tendered to the teachers so removed or dismissed who were in grouping 3 or 4 of the sequence of dismissal and are qualified to hold the positions, based upon legal qualifications and any other qualifications established in a district or joint agreement job description, on or before the May 10 prior to the date of the positions becoming available, provided that if the number of honorable dismissal notices based on economic necessity exceeds 15% of the number of full-time equivalent positions filled by certified employees (excluding principals and administrative personnel) during the preceding school year, then the recall period is for the following school term or within 2 calendar years from the beginning of the following school term. If the board or joint agreement has any vacancies within the period from the beginning of the following school term through February 1 of the following school term (unless a date later than February 1, but no later than 6 months from the beginning of the following school term, is established in a collective bargaining agreement), the positions thereby becoming available must be tendered to the teachers so removed or dismissed who were in grouping 2 of the sequence of dismissal due to one "needs improvement" rating on either of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings, provided that, if 2 ratings are available, the other performance evaluation rating used for grouping purposes is "satisfactory", "proficient", or "excellent", and are qualified to hold the positions, based upon legal qualifications and any other qualifications established in a district or joint agreement job description, on or before the May 10 prior to the date of the positions becoming available. On and after July 1, 2014 (the effective date of Public Act 98-648), the preceding sentence shall apply to teachers removed or dismissed by honorable dismissal, even if notice of honorable dismissal occurred during the 2013-2014 school year.  Among teachers eligible for recall pursuant to the preceding sentence, the order of recall must be in inverse order of dismissal, unless an alternative order of recall is established in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the board and a professional faculty members' organization.  Whenever the number of honorable dismissal notices based upon economic necessity exceeds 5 notices or 150% of the average number of teachers honorably dismissed in the preceding 3 years, whichever is more, then the school board or governing board of a joint agreement, as applicable, shall also hold a public hearing on the question of the dismissals. Following the hearing and board review, the action to approve any such reduction shall require a majority vote of the board members.
For purposes of this subsection (b), subject to agreement on an alternative definition reached by the joint committee described in subsection (c) of this Section, a teacher's performance evaluation rating means the overall performance evaluation rating resulting from an annual or biennial performance evaluation conducted pursuant to Article 24A of this Code by the school district or joint agreement determining the sequence of dismissal, not including any performance evaluation conducted during or at the end of a remediation period. No more than one evaluation rating each school term shall be one of the evaluation ratings used for the purpose of determining the sequence of dismissal. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection for any performance evaluations conducted during or at the end of a remediation period, if multiple performance evaluations are conducted in a school term, only the rating from the last evaluation conducted prior to establishing the sequence of honorable dismissal list in such school term shall be the one evaluation rating from that school term used for the purpose of determining the sequence of dismissal. Averaging ratings from multiple evaluations is not permitted unless otherwise agreed to in a collective bargaining agreement or contract between the board and a professional faculty members' organization. The preceding 3 sentences are not a legislative declaration that existing law does or does not already require that only one performance evaluation each school term shall be used for the purpose of determining the sequence of dismissal.  For performance evaluation ratings determined prior to September 1, 2012, any school district or joint agreement with a performance evaluation rating system that does not use either of the rating category systems specified in subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code for all teachers must establish a basis for assigning each teacher a rating that complies with subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code for all of the performance evaluation ratings that are to be used to determine the sequence of dismissal.  A teacher's grouping and ranking on a sequence of honorable dismissal shall be deemed a part of the teacher's performance evaluation, and that information shall be disclosed to the exclusive bargaining representative as part of a sequence of honorable dismissal list, notwithstanding any laws prohibiting disclosure of such information.  A performance evaluation rating may be used to determine the sequence of dismissal, notwithstanding the pendency of any grievance resolution or arbitration procedures relating to the performance evaluation.  If a teacher has received at least one performance evaluation rating conducted by the school district or joint agreement determining the sequence of dismissal and a subsequent performance evaluation is not conducted in any school year in which such evaluation is required to be conducted under Section 24A-5 of this Code, the teacher's performance evaluation rating for that school year for purposes of determining the sequence of dismissal is deemed Proficient, except that, during any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, this default to Proficient does not apply to any teacher who has entered into contractual continued service and who was deemed Excellent on his or her most recent evaluation.  During any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act and unless the school board and any exclusive bargaining representative have completed the performance rating for teachers or have mutually agreed to an alternate performance rating, any teacher who has entered into contractual continued service, whose most recent evaluation was deemed Excellent, and whose performance evaluation is not conducted when the  evaluation is required to be conducted shall receive a teacher's performance rating deemed Excellent. A school board and any exclusive bargaining representative may mutually agree to an alternate performance rating for teachers not in contractual continued service during any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, as long as the agreement is in writing. If a performance evaluation rating is nullified as the result of an arbitration, administrative agency, or court determination, then the school district or joint agreement is deemed to have conducted a performance evaluation for that school year, but the performance evaluation rating may not be used in determining the sequence of dismissal.
Nothing in this subsection (b) shall be construed as limiting the right of a school board or governing board of a joint agreement to dismiss a teacher not in contractual continued service in accordance with Section 24-11 of this Code.
Any provisions regarding the sequence of honorable dismissals and recall of honorably dismissed teachers in a collective bargaining agreement entered into on or before January 1, 2011 and in effect on June 13, 2011 (the effective date of Public Act 97-8) that may conflict with Public Act 97-8 shall remain in effect through the expiration of such agreement or June 30, 2013, whichever is earlier.
(c)  Each school district and special education joint agreement must use a joint committee composed of equal representation selected by the school board and its teachers or, if applicable, the exclusive bargaining representative of its teachers, to address the matters described in paragraphs (1) through (5) of this subsection (c) pertaining to honorable dismissals under subsection (b) of this Section.
(1)  The joint committee must consider and may agree     to criteria for excluding from grouping 2 and placing into grouping 3 a teacher whose last 2 performance evaluations include a Needs Improvement and either a Proficient or Excellent.
(2)  The joint committee must consider and may agree     to an alternative definition for grouping 4, which definition must take into account prior performance evaluation ratings and may take into account other factors that relate to the school district's or program's educational objectives.  An alternative definition for grouping 4 may not permit the inclusion of a teacher in the grouping with a Needs Improvement or Unsatisfactory performance evaluation rating on either of the teacher's last 2 performance evaluation ratings.
(3) The joint committee may agree to including within     the definition of a performance evaluation rating a performance evaluation rating administered by a school district or joint agreement other than the school district or joint agreement determining the sequence of dismissal.
(4) For each school district or joint agreement that     administers performance evaluation ratings that are inconsistent with either of the rating category systems specified in subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code, the school district or joint agreement must consult with the joint committee on the basis for assigning a rating that complies with subsection (d) of Section 24A-5 of this Code to each performance evaluation rating that will be used in a sequence of dismissal.
(5)  Upon request by a joint committee member     submitted to the employing board by no later than 10 days after the distribution of the sequence of honorable dismissal list, a representative of the employing board shall, within 5 days after the request, provide to members of the joint committee a list showing the most recent and prior performance evaluation ratings of each teacher identified only by length of continuing service in the district or joint agreement and not by name.  If, after review of this list, a member of the joint committee has a good faith belief that a disproportionate number of teachers with greater length of continuing service with the district or joint agreement have received a recent performance evaluation rating lower than the prior rating, the member may request that the joint committee review the list to assess whether such a trend may exist.  Following the joint committee's review, but by no later than the end of the applicable school term, the joint committee or any member or members of the joint committee may submit a report of the review to the employing board and exclusive bargaining representative, if any.  Nothing in this paragraph (5) shall impact the order of honorable dismissal or a school district's or joint agreement's authority to carry out a dismissal in accordance with subsection (b) of this Section.
Agreement by the joint committee as to a matter requires the majority vote of all committee members, and if the joint committee does not reach agreement on a matter, then the otherwise applicable requirements of subsection (b) of this Section shall apply.  Except as explicitly set forth in this subsection (c), a joint committee has no authority to agree to any further modifications to the requirements for honorable dismissals set forth in subsection (b) of this Section.
The joint committee must be established, and the first meeting of the joint committee each school year must occur on or before December 1.
The joint committee must reach agreement on a matter on or before February 1 of a school year in order for the agreement of the joint committee to apply to the sequence of dismissal determined during that school year.  Subject to the February 1 deadline for agreements, the agreement of a joint committee on a matter shall apply to the sequence of dismissal until the agreement is amended or terminated by the joint committee.
The provisions of the Open Meetings Act shall not apply to meetings of a joint committee created under this subsection (c).
(d) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this subsection (d), the requirements and dismissal procedures of Section 24-16.5 of this Code shall apply to any dismissal sought under Section 24-16.5 of this Code.
(1) If a dismissal of a teacher in contractual     continued service is sought for any reason  or cause other than an honorable dismissal under subsections (a) or (b) of this Section or a dismissal sought under Section 24-16.5 of this Code, including those under Section 10-22.4, the board must first approve a motion containing specific charges by a majority vote of all its members.  Written notice of such charges, including a bill of particulars and the teacher's right to request a hearing, must be mailed to the teacher and also given to the teacher either by electronic mail, certified mail, return receipt requested, or personal delivery with receipt within 5 days of the adoption of the motion. Any written notice sent on or after July 1, 2012 shall inform the teacher of the right to request a hearing before a mutually selected hearing officer, with the cost of the hearing officer split equally between the teacher and the board, or a hearing before a board-selected hearing officer, with the cost of the hearing officer paid by the board.
Before setting a hearing on charges stemming from     causes that are considered remediable, a board must give the teacher reasonable warning in writing, stating specifically the causes that, if not removed, may result in charges; however, no such written warning is required if the causes have been the subject of a remediation plan pursuant to Article 24A of this Code.
If, in the opinion of the board, the interests of the     school require it, the board may suspend the teacher without pay, pending the hearing, but if the board's dismissal or removal is not sustained, the teacher shall not suffer the loss of any salary or benefits by reason of the suspension.
(2)  No hearing upon the charges is required unless     the teacher within 17 days after receiving notice requests in writing of the board that a hearing be scheduled before a mutually selected hearing officer or a hearing officer selected by the board. The secretary of the school board shall forward a copy of the notice to the State Board of Education.
(3)  Within 5 business days after receiving a notice     of hearing in which either notice to the teacher was sent before July 1, 2012 or, if the notice was sent on or after July 1, 2012, the teacher has requested a hearing before a mutually selected hearing officer, the State Board of Education shall provide a list of 5 prospective, impartial hearing officers from the master list of qualified, impartial hearing officers maintained by the State Board of Education.  Each person on the master list must (i) be accredited by a national arbitration organization and have had a minimum of 5 years of experience directly related to labor and employment relations matters between employers and employees or their exclusive bargaining representatives and (ii) beginning September 1, 2012, have participated in training provided or approved by the State Board of Education for teacher dismissal hearing officers so that he or she is familiar with issues generally involved in evaluative and non-evaluative dismissals.
If notice to the teacher was sent before July 1, 2012     or, if the notice was sent on or after July 1, 2012, the teacher has requested a hearing before a mutually selected hearing officer, the board and the teacher or their legal representatives within 3 business days shall alternately strike one name from the list provided by the State Board of Education until only one name remains.  Unless waived by the teacher, the teacher shall have the right to proceed first with the striking. Within 3 business days of receipt of the list provided by the State Board of Education, the board and the teacher or their legal representatives shall each have the right to reject all prospective hearing officers named on the list and notify the State Board of Education of such rejection.  Within 3 business days after receiving this notification, the State Board of Education shall appoint a qualified person from the master list who did not appear on the list sent to the parties to serve as the hearing officer, unless the parties notify it that they have chosen to alternatively select a hearing officer under paragraph (4) of this subsection (d).
If the teacher has requested a hearing before a     hearing officer selected by the board, the board shall select one name from the master list of qualified impartial hearing officers maintained by the State Board of Education within 3 business days after receipt and shall notify the State Board of Education of its selection.
A hearing officer mutually selected by the parties,     selected by the board, or selected through an alternative selection process under paragraph (4) of this subsection (d) (A) must not be a resident of the school district, (B) must be available to commence the hearing within 75 days and conclude the hearing within 120 days after being selected as the hearing officer, and (C) must issue a decision as to whether the teacher must be dismissed and give a copy of that decision to both the teacher and the board within 30 days from the conclusion of the hearing or closure of the record, whichever is later.
Any hearing convened during a public health emergency     pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act may be convened remotely.  Any hearing officer for a hearing convened during a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act may voluntarily withdraw from the hearing and another hearing officer shall be selected or appointed pursuant to this Section.
In this paragraph, "pre-hearing procedures" refers to     the pre-hearing procedures under Section 51.55 of Title 23 of the Illinois Administrative Code and "hearing" refers to the hearing under Section 51.60 of Title 23 of the Illinois Administrative Code. Any teacher who has been charged with engaging in acts of corporal punishment, physical abuse, grooming, or sexual misconduct and who previously paused pre-hearing procedures or a hearing pursuant to Public Act 101-643 must proceed with selection of a hearing officer or hearing date, or both, within the timeframes established by this paragraph (3) and paragraphs (4) through (6) of this subsection (d), unless the timeframes are mutually waived in writing by both parties, and all timelines set forth in this Section in cases concerning corporal punishment, physical abuse, grooming, or sexual misconduct shall be reset to begin the day after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly. Any teacher charged with engaging in acts of corporal punishment, physical abuse, grooming, or sexual misconduct on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly may not pause pre-hearing procedures or a hearing.
(4)  In the alternative to selecting a hearing     officer from the list received from the State Board of Education or accepting the appointment of a hearing officer by the State Board of Education or if the State Board of Education cannot provide a list or appoint a hearing officer that meets the foregoing requirements, the board and the teacher or their legal representatives may mutually agree to select an impartial hearing officer who is not on the master list either by direct appointment by the parties or by using procedures for the appointment of an arbitrator established by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service or the American Arbitration Association. The parties shall notify the State Board of Education of their intent to select a hearing officer using an alternative procedure within 3 business days of receipt of a list of prospective hearing officers provided by the State Board of Education, notice of appointment of a hearing officer by the State Board of Education, or receipt of notice from the State Board of Education that it cannot provide a list that meets the foregoing requirements, whichever is later.
(5)  If the notice of dismissal was sent to the     teacher before July 1, 2012, the fees and costs for the hearing officer must be paid by the State Board of Education. If the notice of dismissal was sent to the teacher on or after July 1, 2012, the hearing officer's fees and costs must be paid as follows in this paragraph (5).  The fees and permissible costs for the hearing officer must be determined by the State Board of Education. If the board and the teacher or their legal representatives mutually agree to select an impartial hearing officer who is not on a list received from the State Board of Education, they may agree to supplement the fees determined by the State Board to the hearing officer, at a rate consistent with the hearing officer's published professional fees. If the hearing officer is mutually selected by the parties, then the board and the teacher or their legal representatives shall each pay 50% of the fees and costs and any supplemental allowance to which they agree. If the hearing officer is selected by the board, then the board shall pay 100% of the hearing officer's fees and costs. The fees and costs must be paid to the hearing officer within 14 days after the board and the teacher or their legal representatives receive the hearing officer's decision set forth in paragraph (7) of this subsection (d).
(6)  The teacher is required to answer the bill of     particulars and aver affirmative matters in his or her defense, and the time for initially doing so and the time for updating such answer and defenses after pre-hearing discovery must be set by the hearing officer. The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules so that each party has a fair opportunity to present its case and to ensure that the dismissal process proceeds in a fair and expeditious manner. These rules shall address, without limitation, discovery and hearing scheduling conferences; the teacher's initial answer and affirmative defenses to the bill of particulars and the updating of that information after pre-hearing discovery; provision for written interrogatories and requests for production of documents; the requirement that each party initially disclose to the other party and then update the disclosure no later than 10 calendar days prior to the commencement of the hearing, the names and addresses of persons who may be called as  witnesses at the hearing, a summary of the facts or opinions each witness will testify to, and all other documents and materials, including information maintained electronically, relevant to its own as well as the other party's case (the hearing officer may exclude witnesses and exhibits not identified and shared, except those offered in rebuttal for which the party could not reasonably have anticipated prior to the hearing); pre-hearing discovery and preparation, including provision for written interrogatories and requests for production of documents, provided that discovery depositions are prohibited; the conduct of the hearing; the right of each party to be represented by counsel, the offer of evidence and witnesses and the cross-examination of witnesses; the authority of the hearing officer to issue subpoenas and subpoenas duces tecum, provided that the hearing officer may limit the number of witnesses to be subpoenaed on behalf of each party to no more than 7; the length of post-hearing briefs; and the form, length, and content of hearing officers' decisions.  The hearing officer shall hold a hearing and render a final decision for dismissal pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or shall report to the school board findings of fact and a recommendation as to whether or not the teacher must be dismissed for conduct. The hearing officer shall commence the hearing within 75 days and conclude the hearing within 120 days after being selected as the hearing officer, provided that the hearing officer may modify these timelines upon the showing of good cause or mutual agreement of the parties.  Good cause for the purpose of this subsection (d) shall mean the illness or otherwise unavoidable emergency of the teacher, district representative, their legal representatives, the hearing officer, or an essential witness as indicated in each party's pre-hearing submission. In a dismissal hearing pursuant to Article 24A of this Code in which a witness is a student or is under the age of 18, the hearing officer must make accommodations for the witness, as provided under paragraph (6.5) of this subsection. The hearing officer shall consider and give weight to all of the teacher's evaluations written pursuant to Article 24A that are relevant to the issues in the hearing.
Each party shall have no more than 3 days to present     its case, unless extended by the hearing officer to enable a party to present adequate evidence and testimony, including due to the other party's cross-examination of the party's witnesses, for good cause or by mutual agreement of the parties. The State Board of Education shall define in rules the meaning of "day" for such purposes. All testimony at the hearing shall be taken under oath administered by the hearing officer.  The hearing officer shall cause a record of the proceedings to be kept and shall employ a competent reporter to take stenographic or stenotype notes of all the testimony.  The costs of the reporter's attendance and services at the hearing shall be paid by the party or parties who are responsible for paying the fees and costs of the hearing officer. Either party desiring a transcript of the hearing shall pay for the cost thereof. Any post-hearing briefs must be submitted by the parties by no later than 21 days after a party's receipt of the transcript of the hearing, unless extended by the hearing officer for good cause or by mutual agreement of the parties.
(6.5) In the case of charges involving sexual abuse     or severe physical abuse of a student or a person under the age of 18, the hearing officer shall make alternative hearing procedures to protect a witness who is a student or who is under the age of 18 from being intimidated or traumatized. Alternative hearing procedures may include, but are not limited to: (i) testimony made via a telecommunication device in a location other than the hearing room and outside the physical presence of the teacher and other hearing participants, (ii) testimony outside the physical presence of the teacher, or (iii) non-public testimony. During a testimony described under this subsection, each party must be permitted to ask a witness who is a student or who is under 18 years of age all relevant questions and follow-up questions. All questions must exclude evidence of the witness' sexual behavior or predisposition, unless the evidence is offered to prove that someone other than the teacher subject to the dismissal hearing engaged in the charge at issue.
(7) The hearing officer shall, within 30 days from     the conclusion of the hearing or closure of the record, whichever is later, make a decision as to whether or not the teacher shall be dismissed pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or report to the school board findings of fact and a recommendation as to whether or not the teacher shall be dismissed for cause and shall give a copy of the decision or findings of fact and recommendation to both the teacher and the school board.  If a hearing officer fails without good cause, specifically provided in writing to both parties and the State Board of Education, to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation within 30 days after the hearing is concluded or the record is closed, whichever is later, the  parties may mutually agree to select a hearing officer pursuant to the alternative procedure, as provided in this Section, to rehear the charges heard by the hearing officer who failed to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation or to review the record and render a decision. If any hearing officer fails without good cause, specifically provided in writing to both parties and the State Board of Education, to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation within 30 days after the hearing is concluded or the record is closed, whichever is later, the hearing officer shall be removed from the master list of hearing officers maintained by the State Board of Education for not more than 24 months. The parties and the State Board of Education may also take such other actions as it deems appropriate, including recovering, reducing, or withholding any fees paid or to be paid to the hearing officer. If any hearing officer repeats such failure, he or she must be permanently removed from the master list maintained by the State Board of Education and may not be selected by parties through the alternative selection process under this paragraph (7) or paragraph (4) of this subsection (d). The board shall not lose jurisdiction to discharge a teacher if the hearing officer fails to render a decision or findings of fact and recommendation within the time specified in this Section. If the decision of the hearing officer for dismissal pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or of the school board for dismissal for cause is in favor of the teacher, then the hearing officer or school board shall order reinstatement to the same or substantially equivalent position and shall determine the amount for which the school board is liable, including, but not limited to, loss of income and benefits.
(8)  The school board, within 45 days after receipt     of the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation as to whether (i) the conduct at issue occurred, (ii) the conduct that did occur was remediable, and (iii) the proposed dismissal should be sustained, shall issue a written order as to whether the teacher must be retained or dismissed for cause from its employ. The school board's written order shall incorporate the hearing officer's findings of fact, except that the school board may modify or supplement the findings of fact if, in its opinion, the findings of fact are against the manifest weight of the evidence.
If the school board dismisses the teacher     notwithstanding the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation, the school board shall make a conclusion in its written order, giving its reasons therefor, and such conclusion and reasons must be included in its written order. The failure of the school board to strictly adhere to the timelines contained in this Section shall not render it without jurisdiction to dismiss the teacher.  The school board shall not lose jurisdiction to discharge the teacher for cause if the hearing officer fails to render a recommendation within the time specified in this Section.  The decision of the school board is final, unless reviewed as provided in paragraph (9) of this subsection (d).
If the school board retains the teacher, the school     board shall enter a written order stating the amount of back pay and lost benefits, less mitigation, to be paid to the teacher, within 45 days after its retention order. Should the teacher object to the amount of the back pay and lost benefits or amount mitigated, the teacher shall give written objections to the amount within 21 days.  If the parties fail to reach resolution within 7 days, the dispute shall be referred to the hearing officer, who shall consider the school board's written order and teacher's written objection and determine the amount to which the school board is liable.  The costs of the hearing officer's review and determination must be paid by the board.
(9) The decision of the  hearing officer pursuant to     Article 24A of this Code or of the school board's decision to dismiss for cause is final unless reviewed as provided in Section 24-16 of this Code. If the school board's decision to dismiss for cause is contrary to the hearing officer's recommendation, the court on review shall give consideration to the school board's decision and its supplemental findings of fact, if applicable, and the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation in making its decision.  In the event such review is instituted, the school board shall be responsible for preparing and filing the record of proceedings, and such costs associated therewith must be divided equally between the parties.
(10) If a decision of the hearing officer for     dismissal pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or of the school board for dismissal for cause is adjudicated upon review or appeal in favor of the teacher, then the trial court shall order reinstatement and shall remand the matter to the school board with direction for entry of an order setting the amount of back pay, lost benefits, and costs, less mitigation.  The teacher may challenge the school board's order setting the amount of back pay, lost benefits, and costs, less mitigation, through an expedited arbitration procedure, with the costs of the arbitrator borne by the school board.
Any teacher who is reinstated by any hearing or     adjudication brought under this Section shall be assigned by the board to a position substantially similar to the one which that teacher held prior to that teacher's suspension or dismissal.
(11) Subject to any later effective date referenced     in this Section for a specific aspect of the dismissal process, the changes made by Public Act 97-8 shall apply to dismissals instituted on or after September 1, 2011.  Any dismissal instituted prior to September 1, 2011 must be carried out in accordance with the requirements of this Section prior to amendment by Public Act 97-8.
(e) Nothing contained in Public Act 98-648 repeals, supersedes, invalidates, or nullifies final decisions in lawsuits pending on July 1, 2014 (the effective date of Public Act 98-648) in Illinois courts involving the interpretation of Public Act 97-8.
(Source: P.A. 102-708, eff. 4-22-22; 103-500, eff. 8-4-23.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-12.1) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-12.1)
Sec. 24-12.1. 
		Rights of recalled teachers. 
		Any teacher on contractual
continued service who is removed or dismissed as a result of a decision
of the board to decrease the number of teachers employed by the board or
to discontinue some particular type of teaching service and who accepts
the tender of a vacancy within one calendar year from the beginning of the
following school term pursuant to Section 24-12 shall lose no rights which
accrued while in contractual continued service.
(Source: P.A. 82-997.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-13) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-13)
Sec. 24-13. 
		
		Age or absences not affecting contractual continued service
- Teachers replacing teachers in military service or in the General Assembly.
The contractual continued service status of a teacher is not affected by
his attained age, promotion, absence caused by temporary illness or
temporary incapacity as defined by regulations of the employing board,
leave of absence mutually agreed upon between the teacher and the board, or
because of absence while in the military service of the United States. If a
teacher is elected to serve in the General Assembly, the board shall grant
him a leave of absence if he so requests. A teacher employed to replace one
in the military service of the United States or one serving in the General
Assembly does not acquire contractual continued service under this Article.
If a teacher is elected to serve as an officer of a state or national
teacher organization that represents teachers in collective bargaining
negotiations, the board shall grant the teacher, upon written request, a
leave (or leaves) of absence of up to 6 years
or the period of time the teacher serves as an officer, whichever is
longer.
(Source: P.A. 93-377, eff. 1-1-04.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-13.1) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-13.1)
Sec. 24-13.1. 
		
		Contractual continued service of teachers employed in
Department of Defense
overseas dependents' schools.
By mutual agreement of a teacher and the employing board, the board may,
but is not required to, grant the teacher a leave of absence to accept
employment in a Department of Defense overseas dependents' school. If such
a leave of absence is granted, the teacher may elect, for a period not
exceeding the lesser of the period for which he is so employed or 5 years,
(a) to preserve his contractual continued service status under this Act,
and (b) to continue receipt, on the same basis as if he were teaching in
the school system subject to the employing board, of service credit earned
for requirements of promotion, incremental increases in salary, leaves of
absence and other privileges based on an established period of service or
employment.
In addition, a teacher whose armed forces reserve unit is activated
during the school year and who as a result is required to enter into active
military service duty shall continue to have his or her full salary as a
teacher paid by the school board for the first 2 weeks of the period during which he or
she is required to remain on active military service duty; provided,
however, that if the teacher is required to remain on active military
service duty for any additional period, his or her contractual continued
service under this Act shall be preserved, and he or she shall continue to
receive throughout the entire period that he or she is required to remain
on active military service duty, on the same basis as if he or she were
teaching in the school system governed by the employing board, service
credit earned for requirements of promotion, incremental increases in
salary, leaves of absence and other privileges based on an established
period of service or employment; provided further that a teacher who
receives payment of his or her full
salary as a teacher for the first 2 weeks of the period his or her armed
forces reserve unit
is required to remain on active military service duty shall return to the
school board such portion of his or her teaching salary so paid as is equal
to the payment he or she received for such 2 week period from his or her armed
forces reserve unit, excluding, however, all payments received by the teacher
from the armed forces reserve unit which are allocable to nonschool days
or which constitute a travel, meal or housing allowance.
A person employed to replace a teacher making the election provided for
in this Section does not acquire contractual continued service status as a
teacher under this Article.
(Source: P.A. 84-1401.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-14) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-14)
Sec. 24-14. Termination of service by teacher. As used in this Section, "teaching assignment" means any full-time position that requires licensure under Article 21B of this Code.
A teacher, as defined in Section 24-11 of this Code may resign
at any time by obtaining concurrence of the board.  During the school term, no teacher
may resign, without the concurrence of the board,
in order to accept another teaching assignment. Outside of a school term, a resignation submitted by any teacher after the completion of the school year must be submitted in writing to the secretary of the board a minimum of 30 calendar days prior to the first student attendance day of the following school year or else the teacher will be deemed to have resigned during the school term. Any teacher
terminating said service not in accordance with this Section may be referred by the board to the State Superintendent of Education.  A referral to the State Superintendent for an alleged violation of this Section must include (i) a dated copy of the teacher's resignation letter, (ii) a copy of the reporting district's current school year calendar, (iii) proof of employment for the school year at issue, (iv) documentation showing that the district's  board  did not accept the teacher's resignation, and (v) evidence that the teacher left the district in order to accept another teaching assignment. If the district intends to submit a referral to the State Superintendent, the district shall submit the referral to the State Superintendent within 10 business days after the board denies acceptance of the resignation. The district shall notify the teacher that it submitted the referral to the State Superintendent within 5 business days after submitting the referral to the State Superintendent. The State Superintendent or his or her designee shall convene an informal evidentiary hearing no later than 90 days after receipt of the required documentation from the school district as required in this Section. The teacher shall receive a written determination from the State Superintendent or his or her designee no later than 14 days after the hearing is completed.  If the State Superintendent or his or her designee finds that the teacher resigned during the school term without the concurrence of the board to accept another teaching assignment, the State Superintendent must suspend the teacher's license for one calendar year.  In lieu of a hearing and finding, the teacher may agree to a lesser licensure sanction at the discretion of the State Superintendent or his or her designee.
(Source: P.A. 102-552, eff. 1-1-22; 103-549, eff. 8-11-23.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-15) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-15)
Sec. 24-15. 
		Right to amend or repeal-Partial invalidity. 
		
		Nothing herein limits the right of the General Assembly to amend or
repeal any part of Sections 24-11 to 24-15, inclusive, or any contract
resulting therefrom.
If any section, paragraph, sentence or clause of this Article is held
invalid or unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the remaining
portion of this Article or this Act, or any section or part thereof.
(Source: Laws 1961, p. 31.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-16) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-16)
Sec. 24-16. Judicial review of administrative decision. The provisions
of the Administrative Review Law, and all amendments and modifications thereof
and the rules adopted pursuant thereto, shall apply to and govern all proceedings
instituted for the judicial review of final administrative decisions of the
 hearing officer for dismissals pursuant to Article 24A of this Code or of a school board for dismissal for cause under Section 24-12 of this Article.  The term "administrative
decision" is defined as in Section 3-101 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(Source: P.A. 97-8, eff. 6-13-11.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-16.5)
Sec. 24-16.5. Optional alternative evaluative dismissal process for PERA evaluations.
(a)  As used in this Section:
"Applicable hearing requirements" means (i) for any school district having less than 500,000 inhabitants or a program of a special education joint agreement, those procedures and requirements relating to a teacher's request for a hearing, selection of a hearing officer, pre-hearing and hearing procedures, and post-hearing briefs set forth in paragraphs (1) through (6) of subsection (d) of Section 24-12 of this Code or (ii) for a school district having 500,000 inhabitants or
more, those procedures and requirements relating to a teacher's request for a hearing, selection of a hearing officer, pre-hearing and hearing procedures, and post-hearing briefs set forth in paragraphs (1) through (5) of subsection (a) of Section 34-85 of this Code.
"Board" means, for a school district having less than 500,000 inhabitants or a program of a special education joint agreement, the board of directors, board of education, or board of school inspectors, as the case may be.  For a school district having 500,000 inhabitants or more, "board" means the Chicago Board of Education.
"Evaluator" means an evaluator, as defined in Section 24A-2.5 of this Code, who has successfully completed the pre-qualification program described in subsection (b) of Section 24A-3 of this Code.
"PERA-trained board member" means a member of a board that has completed a training program on PERA evaluations either administered or approved by the State Board of Education.
"PERA evaluation" means a performance evaluation of a teacher after the implementation date of an evaluation system for teachers, as specified by Section 24A-2.5 of this Code, using a performance evaluation instrument and process that meets the minimum requirements for teacher evaluation instruments and processes set forth in rules adopted by the State Board of Education to implement Public Act 96-861.
"Remediation" means the remediation plan, mid-point and final evaluations, and related processes and requirements set forth in subdivisions (i), (j), and (k) of Section 24A-5 of this Code.
"School district" means a school district or a program of a special education joint agreement.
"Second evaluator" means an evaluator who either conducts the mid-point and final remediation evaluation or conducts an independent assessment of whether the teacher completed the remediation plan with a rating equal to or better than a "Proficient" rating, all in accordance with subdivision (c) of this Section.
"Student growth components" means the components of a performance evaluation plan described in subdivision (c) of Section 24A-5 of this Code, as may be supplemented by administrative rules adopted by the State Board of Education.
"Teacher practice components" means the components of a performance evaluation plan described in subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 24A-5 of this Code, as may be supplemented by administrative rules adopted by the State Board of Education.
"Teacher representatives" means the exclusive bargaining representative of a school district's teachers or, if no exclusive bargaining representatives exists, a representative committee selected by teachers.
(b)  This Section applies to all school districts, including those having 500,000 or more inhabitants.  The optional dismissal process set forth in this Section is an alternative to those set forth in Sections 24-12 and 34-85 of this Code.   Nothing in this Section is intended to change the existing practices or precedents under Section 24-12 or 34-85 of this Code, nor shall this Section be interpreted as implying standards and procedures that should or must be used as part of a remediation that precedes a dismissal sought under Section 24-12 or 34-85 of this Code.
A board may dismiss a teacher who has entered upon contractual continued service under this Section if the following are met:
(1) the cause of dismissal is that the teacher has     failed to complete a remediation plan with a rating equal to or better than a "Proficient" rating;
(2) the "Unsatisfactory" performance evaluation     rating that preceded remediation resulted from a PERA evaluation; and
(3) the school district has complied with subsection     (c) of this Section.
A school district may not, through agreement with a teacher or its teacher representatives, waive its right to dismiss a teacher under this Section.
(c)  Each school district electing to use the dismissal process set forth in this Section must comply with the pre-remediation and remediation activities and requirements set forth in this subsection (c).
(1)  Before a school district's first remediation     relating to a dismissal under this Section, the school district must create and establish a list of at least 2 evaluators who will be available to serve as second evaluators under this Section. The school district shall provide its teacher representatives with an opportunity to submit additional names of teacher evaluators who will be available to serve as second evaluators and who will be added to the list created and established by the school district, provided that, unless otherwise agreed to by the school district, the teacher representatives may not submit more teacher evaluators for inclusion on the list than the number of evaluators submitted by the school district.  Each teacher evaluator must either have (i) National Board of Professional Teaching Standards certification, with no "Unsatisfactory" or "Needs Improvement" performance evaluating ratings in his or her 2 most recent performance evaluation ratings; or (ii) "Excellent" performance evaluation ratings in 2 of his or her 3 most recent performance evaluations, with no "Needs Improvement" or "Unsatisfactory" performance evaluation ratings in his or her last 3 ratings.  If the teacher representatives do not submit a list of teacher evaluators within 21 days after the school district's request, the school district may proceed with a remediation using a list that includes only the school district's selections.  Either the school district or the teacher representatives may revise or add to their selections for the list at any time with notice to the other party, subject to the limitations set forth in this paragraph (1).
(2)  Before a school district's first remediation     relating to a dismissal under this Section, the school district shall, in good faith cooperation with its teacher representatives, establish a process for the selection of a second evaluator from the list created pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection (c).  Such process may be amended at any time in good faith cooperation with the teacher representatives.  If the teacher representatives are given an opportunity to cooperate with the school district and elect not to do so, the school district may, at its discretion, establish or amend the process for selection. Before the hearing officer and as part of any judicial review of a dismissal under this Section, a teacher may not challenge a remediation or dismissal on the grounds that the process used by the school district to select a second evaluator was not established in good faith cooperation with its teacher representatives.
(3)  For each remediation preceding a dismissal under     this Section, the school district shall select a second evaluator from the list of second evaluators created pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection (c), using the selection process established pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection (c).  The selected second evaluator may not be the same individual who determined the teacher's "Unsatisfactory" performance evaluation rating preceding remediation, and, if the second evaluator is an administrator, may not be a direct report to the individual who determined the teacher's "Unsatisfactory" performance evaluation rating preceding remediation.  The school district's authority to select a second evaluator from the list of second evaluators must not be delegated or limited through any agreement with the teacher representatives, provided that nothing shall prohibit a school district and its teacher representatives from agreeing to a formal peer evaluation process as permitted under Article 24A of this Code that could be used to meet the requirements for the selection of second evaluators under this subsection (c).
(4)  The second evaluator selected pursuant to     paragraph (3) of this subsection (c) must either (i)  conduct the mid-point and final evaluation during remediation or (ii) conduct an independent assessment of whether the teacher completed the remediation plan with a rating equal to or better than a "Proficient" rating, which independent assessment shall include, but is not limited to, personal or video-recorded observations of the teacher that relate to the teacher practice components of the remediation plan.  Nothing in this subsection (c) shall be construed to limit or preclude the participation of the evaluator who rated a teacher as "Unsatisfactory" in remediation.
(d)  To institute a dismissal proceeding under this Section, the board must first provide written notice to the teacher within 30 days after the completion of the final remediation evaluation.  The notice shall comply with the applicable hearing requirements and, in addition, must specify that dismissal is sought under this Section and include a copy of each performance evaluation relating to the scope of the hearing as described in this subsection (d).
The applicable hearing requirements shall apply to the teacher's request for a hearing, the selection and qualifications of the hearing officer, and pre-hearing and hearing procedures, except that all of the following must be met:
(1) The hearing officer must, in addition to meeting     the qualifications set forth in the applicable hearing requirements, have successfully completed the pre-qualification program described in subsection (b) of Section 24A-3 of this Code, unless the State Board of Education waives this requirement to provide an adequate pool of hearing officers for consideration.
(2) The scope of the hearing must be limited as     follows:
(A) The school district must demonstrate the         following:
(i)  that the "Unsatisfactory" performance             evaluation rating that preceded remediation applied the teacher practice components and student growth components and determined an overall evaluation rating of "Unsatisfactory" in accordance with the standards and requirements of the school district's evaluation plan;
(ii)  that the remediation plan complied with             the requirements of Section 24A-5 of this Code;
(iii) that the teacher failed to complete the             remediation plan with a performance evaluation rating equal to or better than a "Proficient" rating, based upon a final remediation evaluation meeting the applicable standards and requirements of the school district's evaluation plan; and
(iv) that if the second evaluator selected             pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection (c) of this Section does not conduct the mid-point and final evaluation and makes an independent assessment that the teacher completed the remediation plan with a rating equal to or better than a "Proficient" rating, the school district must demonstrate that the final remediation evaluation is a more valid assessment of the teacher's performance than the assessment made by the second evaluator.
(B)  The teacher may only challenge the         substantive and procedural aspects of (i) the "Unsatisfactory" performance evaluation rating that led to the remediation, (ii) the remediation plan, and (iii) the final remediation evaluation.  To the extent the teacher challenges procedural aspects, including any in applicable collective bargaining agreement provisions, of a relevant performance evaluation rating or the remediation plan, the teacher must demonstrate how an alleged procedural defect materially affected the teacher's ability to demonstrate a level of performance necessary to avoid remediation or dismissal or successfully complete the remediation plan.  Without any such material effect, a procedural defect shall not impact the assessment by the hearing officer, board, or reviewing court of the validity of a performance evaluation or a remediation plan.
(C)  The hearing officer shall only consider and         give weight to performance evaluations relevant to the scope of the hearing as described in clauses (A) and (B) of this subdivision (2).
(3) Each party shall be given only 2 days to present     evidence and testimony relating to the scope of the hearing, unless a longer period is mutually agreed to by the parties or deemed necessary by the hearing officer to enable a party to present adequate evidence and testimony to address the scope of the hearing, including due to the other party's cross-examination of the party's witnesses.
(e)  The provisions of Sections 24-12 and 34-85 pertaining to the decision or recommendation of the hearing officer do not apply to dismissal proceedings under this Section.  For any dismissal proceedings under this Section, the hearing officer shall not issue a decision, and shall issue only findings of fact and a recommendation, including the reasons therefor, to the board to either retain or dismiss the teacher and shall give a copy of the report to both the teacher and the superintendent of the school district.  The hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation must be issued within 30 days from the close of the record of the hearing.
The State Board of Education shall adopt rules regarding the length of the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation.  If a hearing officer fails without good cause, specifically provided in writing to both parties and the State Board of Education, to render a recommendation within 30 days after the hearing is concluded or the record is closed, whichever is later, the parties may mutually agree to select a hearing officer pursuant to the alternative procedure, as provided in Section 24-12 or 34-85, to rehear the charges heard by the hearing officer who failed to render a recommendation or to review the record and render a recommendation. If any hearing officer fails without good cause, specifically provided in writing to both parties and the State Board of Education, to render a recommendation within 30 days after the hearing is concluded or the record is closed, whichever is later, the hearing officer shall be removed from the master list of hearing officers maintained by the State Board of Education for not more than 24 months. The parties and the State Board of Education may also take such other actions as it deems appropriate, including recovering, reducing, or withholding any fees paid or to be paid to the hearing officer. If any hearing officer repeats such failure, he or she shall be permanently removed from the master list of hearing officers maintained by the State Board of Education.
(f)  The board, within 45 days after receipt of the hearing officer's findings of fact and recommendation, shall decide, through adoption of a written order, whether the teacher must be dismissed from its employ or retained, provided that only PERA-trained board members may participate in the vote with respect to the decision.
If the board dismisses the teacher notwithstanding the hearing officer's recommendation of retention, the board shall make a conclusion, giving its reasons therefor, and such conclusion and reasons must be included in its written order.  The failure of the board to strictly adhere to the timelines contained in this Section does not render it without jurisdiction to dismiss the teacher.  The board shall not lose jurisdiction to discharge the teacher if the hearing officer fails to render a recommendation within the time specified in this Section.  The decision of the board is final, unless reviewed as provided in subsection (g) of this Section.
If the board retains the teacher, the board shall enter a written order stating the amount of back pay and lost benefits, less mitigation, to be paid to the teacher, within 45 days of its retention order.
(g)  A teacher dismissed under this Section may apply for and obtain judicial review of a decision of the board in accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Review Law, except as follows:
(1) for a teacher dismissed by a school district     having 500,000 inhabitants or more, such judicial review must be taken directly to the appellate court of the judicial district in which the board maintains its primary administrative office, and any direct appeal to the appellate court must be filed within 35 days from the date that a copy of the decision sought to be reviewed was served upon the teacher;
(2)  for a teacher dismissed by a school district     having less than 500,000 inhabitants after the hearing officer recommended dismissal, such judicial review must be taken directly to the appellate court of the judicial district in which the board maintains its primary administrative office, and any direct appeal to the appellate court must be filed within 35 days from the date that a copy of the decision sought to be reviewed was served upon the teacher; and
(3) for all school districts, if the hearing officer     recommended dismissal, the decision of the board may be reversed only if it is found to be arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or not in accordance with law.
In the event judicial review is instituted by a teacher, any costs of preparing and filing the record of proceedings must be paid by the teacher.  If a decision of the board is adjudicated upon judicial review in favor of the teacher, then the court shall remand the matter to the board with direction for entry of an order setting the amount of back pay, lost benefits, and costs, less mitigation.  The teacher may challenge the board's order setting the amount of back pay, lost benefits, and costs, less mitigation, through an expedited arbitration procedure with the costs of the arbitrator borne by the board.
(Source: P.A. 97-8, eff. 6-13-11; 98-513, eff. 1-1-14.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-17) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-17)
Sec. 24-17. 
		
		Care
of property.
Every teacher shall see that the property of the district under his care
and control is not unnecessarily damaged or destroyed. No teacher shall be
paid any part of the school funds unless he has furnished schedules, when
required by law, and has satisfactorily accounted for all books, apparatus
and other property belonging to the district.
(Source: Laws 1961, p. 31.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-18) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-18)
Sec. 24-18. 
		Daily registers. 
		Teachers shall keep daily registers showing the name, age and
attendance of each pupil, the day of the week, month and year. Registers
shall be in the form prescribed by the State Board of Education.
Such registers shall be furnished by the school directors, and each
teacher shall, at the end of his term of school, return his register to
the clerk or secretary of the school board. No teacher shall be paid any
part of the school funds unless he has accurately kept and returned such
a register.
(Source: P.A. 81-1508.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-19)
Sec. 24-19. (Repealed).
(Source: Laws 1961, p. 31. Repealed by P.A. 94-1105, eff. 6-1-07.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-20)
Sec. 24-20. (Repealed).
(Source: Laws 1961, p. 31. Repealed by P.A. 94-1105, eff. 6-1-07.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-21) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-21)
Sec. 24-21. 
		Payment of teachers' wages. 
		The directors shall pay the wages
of teachers in a manner agreed upon by the board, but at least 1 payment
shall be made during each school month.  The directors shall issue and deliver
to the teacher an order on the school treasurer for the amount of salary
due. The order shall state the rate and time for which the teacher is paid.
It is unlawful for the directors: (1) to issue an order before they have
certified to any schedule then required to be made; (2) after the date for
filing schedules as fixed by law, to certify any schedule not delivered
to them before that date when such schedule is for time taught before the
first of July preceding; (3) to give an order in payment of a teacher's
wages for the time covered by such delinquent schedule.  Teachers not
covered by a negotiated collective bargaining agreement may elect to receive
payment of wages over either a 10 or 12 month period annually.
(Source: P.A. 82-396.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-21.1) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-21.1)
Sec. 24-21.1. 
		Organization dues, payments and contributions. 
		The board shall, upon the written request of an employee, withhold from
the compensation of that employee any
dues, payments or contributions payable by such employee to any employee
labor organization as defined in the Illinois Educational Labor Relations
Act. Under such
arrangement, an amount shall be withheld from each regular payroll
period which is equal to the pro rata share of the annual
dues plus any payments or contributions and the board shall transmit
such withholdings to the specified labor organization within 10 working
days from the time
of the withholding.
(Source: P.A. 83-1014.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-22)
Sec. 24-22. (Repealed).
(Source: P.A. 81-1508. Repealed by P.A. 94-1105, eff. 6-1-07.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-23) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-23)
Sec. 24-23. Teacher transcript of credits. Each teacher shall file with the superintendent of the school in which
he is teaching or, if there is no such superintendent, with the Regional 
Superintendent of Schools a complete transcript of credits earned in
recognized institutions of higher learning attended by him. On or before September 1 of each year thereafter, unless otherwise provided in a collective bargaining agreement, every teacher shall file
a transcript of any credits that have been earned since the date the
last transcript was filed.
Such record of credits shall be used as the base for determining the
minimum salary for such teachers as provided by Section 24-8 of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 96-998, eff. 7-2-10.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-24) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-24)
Sec. 24-24. 
		Maintenance of discipline. 
		Subject to the limitations of all
policies established or adopted under Section 14-8.05, teachers,
other
certificated educational employees, and any other person, whether or not a
certificated employee, providing a related service for or with respect to a
student shall maintain discipline in the schools,
including school grounds which are owned or leased by the board and used for
school purposes and activities. In all matters relating to the discipline in
and conduct of the schools and the school children, they stand in the relation
of parents and guardians to the pupils.  This relationship shall extend to all
activities connected with the school program, including all athletic and
extracurricular programs, and may be exercised at any time for the safety and
supervision of the pupils in the absence of their parents or guardians.
Nothing in this Section affects the power of the board to establish
rules with respect to discipline; except that each board shall
establish a policy on discipline, and the policy so established shall
provide, subject to the limitations of all policies established or adopted
under Section 14-8.05, that a teacher, other certificated employee, and
any other person, whether or not a certificated employee, providing a related
service for or with respect to a student may use reasonable
force as needed to
maintain safety for the other students, school personnel or persons or for the
purpose of self defense or the defense of property, shall provide that a
teacher may remove a student
from the classroom for disruptive behavior, and shall include provisions
which
provide due process to students.  The policy shall not include slapping,
paddling or prolonged maintenance of students in physically painful positions
nor shall it include the intentional infliction of bodily harm.
The board may make and enforce reasonable rules of conduct and
sportsmanship for athletic and extracurricular school events.  Any person
who violates such rules may be denied admission to school events for not
more than one year, provided that written 10 days notice of the violation
is given such person and a hearing had thereon by the board pursuant to its
rules and regulations.  The administration of any school may sign complaints
as agents of the school against persons committing any offense at school
events.
(Source: P.A. 88-346; 88-670, eff. 12-2-94; 89-184, eff. 7-19-95.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-25) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-25)
Sec. 24-25. 
		
		Teachers and other employees may request any person entering
a public school building or the grounds which are owned or leased by the
board and used for school purposes and activities to identify himself and
the purpose of his entry.  A person who refuses to provide such information
is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
Authorized agents of an exclusive bargaining representative, upon
notifying the school office, may meet with school employees in the school
building during duty free times of such employees.
(Source: P.A. 86-202.)
(105 ILCS 5/24-26) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-26)
Sec. 24-26. 
		
		Intervening to help students or their family members who
may have alcohol or other drug problems. Teachers and other employees of
school districts may intervene to help students or their family members who
appear to have problems with alcohol and other drugs by encouraging them to
seek an assessment and treatment. School personnel who intervene shall have
immunity from civil liability in accordance with the Alcoholism and Drug
Addiction Intervenor and Reporter Immunity Law. School personnel shall not
be subject to disciplinary action by the school because of an intervention
and may not be prohibited by school policy from intervening.
(Source: P.A. 87-213.)