Opinion ID: 1704346
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: the tenure commission order

Text: We have previously quoted the pertinent part of the order of the Commission. In short, it held that the cancellation of Baugh's contract was motivated by political or personal reasons, but went further and stated that it makes no finding as to the competency or incompetency of Mr. Baugh or whether he was guilty of insubordination as charged by the Board. We think the order in its present form was unfair to both sides. It was unfair to the Board because no reason is given why the Board's decision was unjust. Even though the Board is the only body which can hire, transfer or discharge tenured teachers, and although it is the only body charged with administration and supervision of schools, the determination of the educational policy of the county and the prescribing of rules and regulations for the conduct and management of the county schools (§§ 62, 73), and it held a long hearing in this case, the only explanation given by the Commission is that the cancellation of Baugh's contract was motivated by political or personal reasons. It is not stated whose political or personal reasons and under the order those reasons must be attributed to the Board, but at the same time, there is a strong inference in the opinion of the Court of Civil Appeals that there was no evidence of political or personal reasons on the part of any member of the Board. The order is also unfair to Baugh. It states that the Commission makes no finding as to the charges of incompetency or insubordination which the Board found to be supported by the evidence adduced at the hearing. Although the Commission's order had the effect of permitting Baugh to retain his job, there is, inferentially, the stigma of proven charges of incompetency and insubordination which the Commission expressly refused to pass upon. If either or both were not sustained by the evidence, the Commission should have so stated. We also note that the order is inadequate because the case may be, as here, ultimately reviewed in this court. The petitioner charges in brief: There was absolutely no testimony that any member of the Marshall County Board of Education was motivated by political or personal reasons in proposing the cancellation of Arthur Baugh's contract. Not only was there no testimony to that effect, there was not even a charge. We recall no refutation of that statement in any of the briefs filed here on behalf of Baugh, the Commission or amicus curiae. The order of the Commission sheds no light on what the political or personal reasons were, to whom they were attributed, their background, what motivated whom, or any other pertinent information. The only reason given is copying the general words of the statute with no comment or explanation. The judgment of the circuit court does not mention any reasons; it merely found that the action of the State Tenure Commission complied with the provisions of said Chapter 13 (Tit. 52) and that the decision of the Commission of December 3, 1970, was not unjust. (This statement is in nowise critical of the circuit court. It did and said all it was required to do if it was going to concur with the finding of the Commission.) The Court of Civil Appeals affirmed the judgment of the circuit court, but we are still unapprised of what or whose political or personal reasons motivated the cancellation of the contract. Owing to our limited review, already noted, we have not read the proceedings before the Board, but we have read the two hundred pages of narrative testimony in petitioner's brief. Even so, we have not referred to that testimony because very little of it is contained in the opinion of the Court of Civil Appeals. The point we make here is that nowhere in any finding or opinion of the Commission, the circuit court or the Court of Civil Appeals is there any information as to what the political or personal reasons were that caused the action of the Board to be overturned. Since the appellate review of action taken by the Commission is by mandamus to the circuit court, § 361, and certiorari to this court (Act No. 987, cited supra), it is imperative that some specificity be given by the Commission to support its reversal of the findings of the only trier of facts, the Board of Education. Personal or political reasons is too general and too indefinite and it does not give the courts sufficient information to decide the case on its merits. We know there were three volumes of testimony taken, but nowhere are we presented with any evidence in all that testimony that the cancellation of Baugh's contract was due to any specific political or personal reason. Whatever the political or personal reasons were, or who held them, should have been stated so that all school boards could learn what political or personal activity is not allowed and to keep it from happening again. Another matter merits attention. We have held that the purpose of the teacher tenure law is to insure teachers, as there defined, some measure of security and to secure permanency in the teaching force; and are to be read into all contracts entered into between school boards and teachers. Madison County Board of Education v. Wigley, 288 Ala. 202, 259 So.2d 233, and cases there cited. The underlying purpose of providing this security and permanency is the welfare of the pupils, and the public interest in having competent personnel in education. The highest interest of the public in education is that the pupils have competent teachers and administrators. Here, Baugh was charged with incompetency and much evidence was taken on that charge. We cannot understand why the Commission did not pass on his competency. If a teacher is incompetent, he should be removed. Not many tenured teachers become incompetent, but a few do. Surely, the welfare of the pupils and the public interest should outweigh political or personal reasons if, in fact, the teacher is incompetent. We are not to be understood as holding or intimating that Baugh is incompetent. But the Board, following a full hearing, found that he was. The same law which names incompetency as a ground for cancellation of a contract allows an appeal to the Commission. We do not think that the Legislature intended that the Commission should exercise its veto power over the Board's action without giving a more specific reason than the words of the statute, i. e., the action of the Board was arbitrarily unjust or the transfer or cancellation was the result of political or personal reasons, especially when the charge of incompetency was sustained by the Board. The Commission should, when reversing a decision of the Board which follows the statute, state sufficient reasons it has found from the evidence to justify its action so that on final review by this court, which does not have access to all the evidence, can still pass upon the question of whether the Commission's action is unjust, Tit. 52, § 361. If the Commission approves the finding of the Board, a sufficient reason would be that the evidence sustains the action of the board of education and it is not arbitrarily unjust. There is no reason to readvertise the deficiencies of the teacher if he is to be discharged, but we must insist on some reasonable statement based on the evidence of reasons for the overturning of the action of the Board. And where the charge of incompetency is sustained by the Board, a positive finding, one way or the other, on that charge and the reasons why, should always be made. It follows that the judgment of the Court of Civil Appeals is reversed and the cause is remanded to that court with directions to reverse the judgment of the circuit court and remand the cause to the circuit court to direct that court to remand the cause to the Tenure Commission with directions to make definite findings with reasons on the charges of incompetency and insubordination, and if the Commission determines that the cancellation of the contract was for political and personal reasons, then whose and what political reasons and whose and what personal reasons. Reversed and remanded with directions. COLEMAN, HARWOOD, BLOODWORTH, McCALL and FAULKNER, JJ., concur. HEFLIN, C. J., concurs in the result. MADDOX, J., concurs specially.