Disciplinary actions against educators in Butler County
Edgewood: 6 cases
Fairfield: 6
Hamilton: 8
Lakota: 16
Madison: 2
Middletown: 9
Monroe: 3
New Miami: 2
Ross: 0
Talawanda: 1
Source: Ohio Department of Education’s Office of Professional Conduct
Licensure Code of Professional Conduct for Ohio Educators
Eight principles
- Educators behave in a professional manner
- Educators maintain a professional relationship with all students at all times, both in and outside the classroom
- Educators accurately report information required by the local board of education or governing board, state education agency, federal agency or state or federal law
- Educators adhere to federal, state and local laws and statutes regarding criminal activity
- Educators comply with state and federal laws related to maintaining confidential information
- Educators serve as positive role models and do not use, possess or unlawfully distribute illegal or unauthorized drugs
- Educators ensure that school property, public funds or fees paid by students or the community are used in the best interest of students and not for personal gain
- Educators fulfill all of the terms and obligations in their employment contract
Source: Ohio Department of Education
The Ohio Department of Education received more than 8,000 referrals last year for possible educator misconduct involving criminal or ethical violations.
Referrals, for behaviors ranging from conduct unbecoming to more serious violent and drug offenses, have recorded a 69 percent increase over the past seven years — from 4,770 in 2005 to more than 8,000 in 2012, according to the latest annual report from ODE’s Office of Professional Conduct.
Steady increases can be attributed to several sources, including changes to state law in the past decade that have allowed for greater accountability and tracking of state-licensed educators, said Lori Kelly, director of the Office of Professional Conduct
“The safety and welfare of kids is the most important driving force,” Kelly said.
Kelly said referrals come from a variety of sources, most commonly licensure applications, background checks and school district reports. But cases investigated by the Office of Professional Conduct only represent about 0.5 percent of the 185,000 licensed educators in Ohio.
About 90 educators associated with school districts in Butler and Warren counties have received some form of discipline since the Office of Professional Conduct was created in 1999, according to the state’s educator conduct database.
Area districts with the most disciplinary actions from the state include Lakota Local Schools with 16; Warren County Educational Service Center with 11; Hamilton and Middletown school districts with eight each; and Mason City Schools with seven, according to the state database.
The Little Miami and Ross school districts had zero recorded instances in the state database.
Most recently, the State Board of Education unanimously voted in September to revoke the five-year teaching license of former Franklin City Schools teacher Patrise L. Elliott and to revoke the one-year educational aide permit issued to former Middletown City Schools’ employee El-Mon J. Prier, according to ODE.
Prier, a former school aide at Middletown High School, pleaded guilty earlier this year to two counts of attempted sexual battery.
In Elliott’s case, she was convicted in December of 2012 for one count of aggravated possession of drugs and entered an intervention in lieu of conviction program, according to ODE reports.
Changes in state legislation that have lead to a higher rate of referrals include a 2007 requirement that all licensed educators undergo background checks from the state and federal bureaus of investigation (previously only state checks were required if you lived in Ohio more than five years); and the creation of a retained applicant fingerprint database in 2008 by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation.
“If a background check comes back with concerns, depending, we probably would not hire them,” said Kathy Leist, assistant superintendent of human resources for Hamilton City Schools. “It would be our expectations that people we hire are of good character and emotionally mature.”
School districts are also required to self-report allegations of misconduct to ODE.
Roger Martin, assistant superintendent of Fairfield City Schools, said his district errs on the side of caution when it comes to self-reporting instances of conduct unbecoming of an educator. He said the district will report any behavior it believes could be a violation of the Licensure Code of Professional Conduct for Ohio Educators, which the state adopted in 2008.
“Sometimes it can be cumbersome but it’s a worthwhile process,” Martin said. “It’s all about the kids’ safety.”
Martin said the change in state law to require background checks every five years has been a welcomed improvement. The fingerprint database, commonly referred to as “rap back,” sends daily notifications to ODE when a licensed-educator is arrested or convicted.
“It was a loophole in the past; if (something) happened on vacation we might not have known,” Martin said.
In Butler County school districts, around 53 teachers have been investigated for misconduct since 1999. About 40 percent of those cases were spurred by prior or new criminal convictions.
Remaining investigations include five cases of inappropriate relationships with students; 10 cases of inappropriate communications with students; two cases of inappropriate physical contact with a student; four testing security violations; two cases of forged documents; and two cases of accessing inappropriate photos on a school computer, according to the state database.
Kelly said the Licensure Code of Professional Conduct — developed by the Ohio Educator Standards Board — serves as the foundation for decisions on licensure, consistent with applicable law, and otherwise is a guide for conduct with professional implications, according to ODE.
Kelly said state law also outlines about 80 criminal offenses that require the automatic revocation of a license, including murder, reckless homicide, bribery and compelling prostitution.
After an allegation of misconduct is investigated, the State Board of Education can decide to take no action; issue a letter of admonishment that doesn’t affect license status; or take more severe steps, including revoking a license or denying an application.
“The board decision is on a case-by-case basis,” Kelly said.
The Butler County cases were resolved through 10 letters of admonishment; nine licenses suspended; 15 licenses revoked or permanently revoked; and 28 consent agreements, or a settlement with both disciplinary action and rehabilitation components.
Two other recent examples of area licenses being permanently revoked include former Mason High School teacher Stacy Schuler, who spent time in prison after supplying five male students with alcohol and having sex with them in her Springboro home in 2010; and Robert Supinger, a former long-term substitute teacher for Lakota Local Schools, who engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a female student in 2011, according to an ODE report.
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