Illinois Administrative Code › Title 23 - EDUCATION AND CULTURAL RESOURCES › Part 51 - DISMISSAL OF TENURED TEACHERS UNDER ARTICLE 24 AND DISMISSAL OF TENURED TEACHERS AND PRINCIPALS UNDER ARTICLE 34 OF THE SCHOOL CODE › Subpart B - STANDARD DISMISSAL PROCEDURES UNDER ARTICLES 24 AND 34 OF THE SCHOOL CODE › Section 51.60 - The Hearing

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 28, July 12, 2024
a) The hearing
				shall be closed to the public unless one of the parties requests that it be
				open and the hearing officer so orders. The hearing officer shall exclude
				witnesses during the testimony of other witnesses upon the motion of either
				party, except that, at any time, one representative of each party in addition
				to counsel (or other authorized representative) shall be allowed to be present,
				even if that representative is also a witness.
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
pursuant to Section 24-12(d)(6.5) or 34-85(a)(5.5) of
				the School Code, as applicable. In open hearings, individuals who are not
				witnesses are not affected by exclusion under this subsection (a).
b) The parties may be present and represented
				by counsel and by other authorized representatives.
c) The order of proceeding shall be as
				follows:
1) The hearing shall be opened by the
				recording of the place, time, and date of the hearing, the presence of the
				hearing officer and the parties and counsel, if any, and any stipulations as to
				facts. Pre-hearing motions submitted in accordance with Section
				51.55 and not previously
				disposed of shall be heard at this time.
2) Upon the opening of the hearing, the
				hearing officer shall allow the parties to make opening statements.
3) The Board shall proceed first to present
				its evidence, and it shall have the burden of proof. Parties may agree to take
				witnesses out of order. The hearing officer may, at the hearing officer's
				discretion, vary the normal procedure under which the Board presents its case
				first, provided that the parties agree to take witnesses out of order, but in
				any event shall afford full and equal opportunity to all parties for
				presentation of relevant proof.
4)
				Either party may offer evidence and witnesses, cross-examine the witnesses, and
				present a defense or rebuttal.
5)
				All testimony shall be taken under oath or affirmation administered by the
				hearing officer.
6) The hearing
				officer may issue subpoenas requiring the attendance of witnesses and subpoenas
				duces tecum and, at the request of either of the parties, shall issue the
				requested subpoenas but may limit the number of witnesses to be subpoenaed on
				behalf of either party to not more than seven.
7) 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 party or
				parties who are responsible for paying the fees and costs of the hearing
				officer
(Sections 24-12(d)(6) and 34-85(a)(5) of the School Code)
				shall pay for the attendance and services of the court reporter or other
				competent reporter who can provide a verbatim transcript of the proceeding.
				(See Section 51.40(f))
A) The cost of any transcript ordered by the
				hearing officer shall be paid by the party or parties responsible for paying
				the fees and cost of the hearing officer.
B) Either party desiring a transcript of the
				hearing shall pay for the cost of the transcript (see Sections 24-12(d)(6) and
				34-85(a)(5) of the School Code).
8) Exhibits, when offered by either party,
				may be received in evidence by the hearing officer. The names and addresses of
				all witnesses and exhibits, in order received, shall be made a part of the
				record. The hearing officer shall make rulings on the admissibility of
				exhibits.
9) The hearing shall
				commence within 75 days and conclude within 120 days after the appointment of
				the hearing officer, barring modification of these timelines by the hearing
				officer upon a showing of good cause or mutual agreement of the parties. "Good
				cause" for the purpose of this subsection (c)(9) 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
(Sections 24-12(d)(6)
				and 34-85(a)(5) of the School Code).
10) The hearing may proceed in the absence of
				either party, who, after due notice, fails to be present or fails to obtain a
				continuance.
11) Each party shall
				be provided no more than three business days to present its case, unless the
				hearing officer determines, in accordance with the provisions of Section
				24-12(d)(6) or 34-85(a)(5) of the School Code, that more time is needed for
				either the tenured teacher or the Board to present adequate evidence and
				testimony, including due to the other party's cross-examination of the party's
				witnesses. For the purposes of this subsection (c)(11), a "business day" shall
				consist of 7.5 hours, such that three business days equates to 22.5 hours,
				exclusive of time taken for lunch and other breaks.
12) At the conclusion of the hearing, each
				party may make an oral closing statement incorporating arguments of fact and
				law.
13) When the hearing officer
				determines that neither party has further proof to offer or witnesses to be
				heard, the hearing officer shall declare the hearing concluded and so note in
				the record.
14) At the close of the
				hearing, the hearing officer shall direct the parties to submit post-hearing
				briefs no later than 21 days after receipt of the transcript,
unless
				extended by the hearing officer for good cause or by mutual agreement of the
				parties
(Sections 24-12(d)(6) and 34-85(a)(5) of the School Code).
				Post-hearing briefs may not exceed 50 pages in length, unless the hearing
				officer determines in a written order that the circumstances of a particular
				matter (e.g., length of the hearing) warrant a limitation shorter or longer
				than 50 pages. Either party may waive submission of a brief. If written briefs
				are to be submitted subsequently, the hearing officer shall so note in the
				record.
15) The record of the
				proceedings shall not be considered closed until all evidence has been
				submitted and any briefs have been timely received by the hearing officer. The
				hearing officer shall notify the parties, in writing, of the closing date of
				the record.