Opinion ID: 1619299
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: BCBOE Policy 5.202

Text: BCBOE Policy 5.202 is titled Suspension/Dismissal of Classified Employees. It is undisputed that Bailey was a classified employee of Heritage High School. Policy 5.202 was therefore applicable to him and is the authority that Dr. Morton and Director Hord referenced in their correspondence with Bailey. Policy 5.202 provides in full as follows: SUSPENSION A director of schools/designee may suspend an employee at any time when deemed necessary. Before an employee is suspended s/he shall be: (1) provided with reasons for the suspension; (2) given an opportunity to respond; and (3) given a written decision of the suspension. A director of schools may suspend an employee with or without pay. DISMISSAL The director of schools may dismiss any classified employee or non-tenured teacher during the contract year for incompetence, inefficiency, insubordination, improper conduct or neglect of duty. The director of schools may either choose to provide the employee with a hearing or give the employee the opportunity for a hearing before the Personnel Hearing Authority. Requests for hearings must be filed in writing within ten (10) days of notification. PERSONNEL HEARING AUTHORITY The director of schools will appoint a Personnel Hearing Officer to conduct such hearings. The Personnel Hearing Officer will hear the case and the employee shall have the right to: 1. be represented by counsel; 2. call and subpoena witnesses; 3. examine all witnesses; and 4. require that all testimony be given under oath. Factual findings and decisions in all dismissal cases shall be reduced to written form and delivered to the affected employee within ten (10) working days following the close of the hearing. The employee may appeal the decision to the Board within ten (10) working days of the Personnel Hearing Officer rendering the written decision to the employee. Written notice of appeal to the Board shall be given to the director of schools. Within twenty (20) days o[f] receipt of notice, the director shall prepare a copy of the proceedings, transcript, documentary and other evidence presented and provide the Board a copy of the same. The Board shall hear the appeal. No new evidence shall be introduced. The non-tenured teacher may appear in person or be represented by counsel and argue why the decision should be modified or reversed. The Board shall take one of the following actions: 1. sustain the decision; 2. send the record back if additional evidence i[s] necessary; or 3. revise the penalty or reverse the decision. Before any decision is made, a majority of the membership of the Board shall concur in sustaining the charges. The Board shall render a decision on the appeal within ten (10) working days after the conclusion of the hearing. The director of schools shall also have the right to appeal any adverse ruling by the Personnel Hearing Officer in same manner as the non-tenured teacher. Within twenty (20) days after receipt of notice of the decision of the Board, either party may appeal to the chancery court in the county where the school system is located. The Board shall provide the entire record of the hearing to the court. (Footnotes omitted, emphasis added). Our review of Tennessee Code Annotated section 49-2-301 and BCBOE Policy 5.202 makes clear that Bailey was not entitled by their provisions to the Full Hearing prior to his dismissal. The Court of Appeals therefore erred when it concluded that Tennessee Code Annotated section 49-2-301(b)(1)(GG)(i) required that Bailey be afforded the Full Hearing before being discharged. See Bailey v. Blount County Bd. of Educ., 2008 WL 3982911, at . Bailey's claim of due process deprivation has merit only if common law principles of due process jurisprudence render the 5.202 procedure inadequate.