FILE: GAMCB
INVESTIGATIONS WHERE BOARD PUBLICLY ANNOUNCES
DISCIPLINARY ACTION AGAINST AN EMPLOYEE
The Rapides Parish School Board shall require investigations of alleged employee misconduct or neglect of duty to be conducted by the Superintendent or his/her designee.
In any investigation into incidents involving accidents or injuries to students or employees, or involving student misconduct or the competence, honesty or performance of duties of School Board employees, all employees of the Rapides Parish School Board shall, upon reasonable request by the superintendent or his/her designee, give a statement of the facts and circumstances within the employee’s knowledge, or an accounting of the employee’s conduct concerning the circumstances which are the subject of the investigation.
If deemed appropriate by the superintendent or his/her designee in the conduct of such investigation, employees of Rapides Parish School Board shall, upon reasonable notification, appear at the offices of the Superintendent or at such other suitable location within the parish as might be appropriate and convenient in the investigation.
During any such employee interview, the employee may have representation if desired by the employee, but said representation shall be at no cost to the Rapides Parish School Board.
Unless disclosure of a specific employee’s identity is required in judicial proceedings or other like matters, the identity of individual employees who are the subject of investigations for the purpose of potential disciplinary action shall not be divulged by public announcement by the Superintendent or his/her staff unless and until the Superintendent at the conclusion of the investigation, depending on the classification of the employee, takes disciplinary action or recommends such to the School Board.
Based on the classification of the employee, if the Superintendent makes such a recommendation and said recommendation involves a demotion in job description or job assignment, whether or not there is an accompanying reduction in employee pay, the following procedures shall be followed:
The Superintendent’s recommendations to the School Board shall be in writing and signed by the Superintendent or designee.
The employee who is the subject of the recommendation shall be notified in writing by certified mail addressed to the last address of the employee contained in the School Board’s personnel records that the Superintendent will recommend disciplinary action against said employee and the employee shall be notified of the date and time of the meeting of the School Board at which the recommendation shall be made. The letter to the employee shall be mailed certified mail at least five (5) days prior to the date on which the School Board meeting shall be held; the employee’s failure to accept the certified letter shall not invalidate any proceedings hereunder;
The Superintendent shall present the recommendations for discipline to the School Board in executive session; the employee may be present during such executive session and may be represented by counsel at the employee’s option.
Following the presentation of the letter recommending disciplinary action by the Superintendent, in the case of non-tenured personnel, to demote any employee, the School Board shall, upon written request by the employee, convene in open session and the employee shall be given a reasonable time, not to exceed ten (10) minutes, to comment on the investigation and any actions taken or proposed to be taken involving the employee.
Following said comment period, the School Board may vote in open session to discipline or demote the employee or to fix a hearing at which time it will consider charges against the employee in accordance with statutory provisions.
This policy shall not be applicable in the case of an employee affected by a reduction in force instituted by the School Board.
It is the policy of the Rapides Parish School Board that employees who are the subject of disciplinary investigations in cases in which there is a public announcement by the School Board that the employee may be disciplined shall be given the opportunity of public comment as above described not later than thirty (30) days after the conclusion of such investigation and public announcement.
SUSPENSION
The Superintendent for Rapides Parish may, in his/her discretion, suspend with or without pay any employee who is the subject of disciplinary investigation by the Superintendent’s office when, in the opinion of the Superintendent the suspension is necessary to promote the orderly process of the investigation or the ongoing process of student education in the area affected by the employee, or to safeguard the health or safety of the employee, co-employees, or the students of the Rapides Parish school system.
DISCIPLINARY ACTION RESCINDED
In the event of a violation of this policy by the Superintendent or his/her designee and the demonstration by the affected employee of substantial prejudice as a result of said violation, disciplinary action taken against the employee may be vacated provided the employee gives notice in writing of the policy violation to the Rapides Parish School Board within thirty (30) days of the occurrence of the violation. The notice so given shall contain the name and address of the employee, the employee’s position with the School Board, the nature of the disciplinary action sought to be imposed or imposed by the School Board, the date on which the policy violation occurred and a general description thereof. Upon receipt of a notice of said policy violation and a determination by the School Board that the policy has been materially violated and that the employee has suffered actual and substantial prejudice as a result of the violation, the School Board shall rescind any disciplinary action imposed after the violation and advise the Superintendent of its action; the Superintendent if so advised, shall within thirty (30) days from the date of written notification of the rescission of the disciplinary action, reinstitute the appropriate disciplinary proceedings and eliminate the policy violation complained of by the employee and the proceedings shall be conducted de novo, as if no previous hearing or action had occurred.
This policy shall not be applicable to any reduction in force instituted by the Rapides Parish School Board nor shall the policy apply to any investigation of an employee conducted by the Rapides Parish School Board or its Superintendent or designee in accordance with the applicable provisions of state law relative to tenure.
Revised: July, 2012
Ref: La. Rev. Stat Ann. §17:81.8
Board minutes, 6-2-92, 8-14-92, 3-07-06, 11-5-12
Rapides Parish School Board