The Rehiring Process: Some Basic Guidelines

The Rehiring Process: Some Basic Guidelines

Disclaimer: These guidelines are prepared as an informal introduction to the rehiring process. They are not intended to be legally definitive and are not a substitute for competent legal advice. The Board should consult with its Board Attorney regarding any legal matters relating to the rehiring process.

·  Only the Chief School Administrator (in this case, the ) can recommend a staff member for renewal. These decisions are generally made in consultation with the Executive Committee or other advisory group.

·  The Principal must notify the board of non-renewal decisions prior to notifying the employee (see Policy 3142)

·  The Principal must notify employees of non-renewal both verbally and in writing prior to May 15.

·  Employees may appeal directly to the Board to reconsider a non-renewal decision; however, the Board is not obligated to act on the appeal.

·  The Board takes action only on the Principal’s recommendations to rehire—no action is required at the Board meeting to address non-renewals.

·  All staff members should receive a Rice notice (named after a legal case Rice v. Union City Regional Highs School Board of Ed.) at least a week prior to the May Board meeting. This notifies them that their status may be discussed at the meeting. Staff members have the right to request that any discussion about them be held in open session; however, they do not have the right to participate in that discussion.

·  Normally, all discussions about personnel occur in executive (closed) session, except as noted above.

·  All renewals require a roll-call vote of the Board.

Some good practices to consider:

·  Except in cases of summary dismissal, it is a typical courtesy to offer all non-renewed staff members the opportunity to resign prior to the May Board meeting. In such a case, the letter of resignation is noted during the meeting.

·  Controversies regarding renewal of staff are best addressed prior to the May Board meeting whenever possible.

·  Staff members should be aware of their non-renewal status at the earliest date practical and in keeping with the best interests of the students and the school.

·  All staff members should know their status (as far as the Principal’s recommendation) prior to the May Board meeting.

4/20/2012