Opinion ID: 1805519
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Two preliminaries.

Text: Substantively, this is a suit for breach of contract. Effective July 1, 1987, EMJC entered into a contract of employment with Hoffman. Impliedly Hoffman bound himself to competent and diligent and faithful performance of the duties of District Director Vo-Tech Education. More specifically, Moore accepted the obligation to conform to all lawfully adopted school policies and procedures. EMJC could discharge Hoffman only for cause, that is, upon Hoffman's substantial breach of some material provision of his contract. Procedurally, Hoffman enjoys protections under the Due Process Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and of this state's constitution. Miss. Const. Art. III, § 14 (1890). This is so because, on September 24, 1987, Hoffman was a public employee with an expectancy in continued employment at least through June 30, 1988. Spradlin v. Bd. of Trustees of Pascagoula Sch. Dist., 515 So.2d 893, 897 (Miss. 1987) (citing Board of Regents v. Roth, 408 U.S. 564, 92 S.Ct. 2701, 33 L.Ed.2d 548 (1972); Stewart v. Bailey, 556 F.2d 281 (5th Cir.1977); Roane v. Callisburg Independent School District, 511 F.2d 633 (5th Cir.1975); Cantrell v. Vickers, 495 F. Supp. 195 (N.D.Miss. 1980). This does not mean that in cases such as this the Board must hear Hoffman with all of the formalities of a trial in a court of law. See Merchant v. Board of Trustees of Pearl Municipal Separate School District, 492 So.2d 959, 964 (Miss. 1986). In the end, the question is whether the hearing the Board afforded Hoffman employed fundamentally fair process. We have established procedures in matters like this where the teacher works for a public school, see Miss. Code Ann. §§ 37-9-109, et seq. (Supp. 1987), but have always thought those covered only elementary, junior high and high schools and special schools operated by our various public school authorities. We have held that statutory process to satisfy the structure of federal and state due process and though it has no per se application to junior colleges, now community colleges, we have regarded it an adequate analogous measuring stick. Robinson v. Board of Trustees of East Central Junior College, 477 So.2d 1352, 1354 (Miss. 1985). Parenthetically, we note that bodies such as EMJC may provide enforceable procedures by contract, subject only to due process limitations. We accept that employee handbooks are ordinarily a part of an employee's contract. See Robinson v. Board of Trustees of East Central Junior College, 477 So.2d at 1353. The point need not detain us as we have here no claim that EMJC has failed to follow any procedure it had by contract obligated itself to observe.