Discharge and Discipline of Teachers
By Richard R. Hammar, J.D., LL.M., CPA
© Copyright 1991, 1998 by Church Law & Tax Report. All rights reserved. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is provided with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Church Law & Tax Report, PO Box 1098, Matthews, NC 28106. Reference Code: m65
In general, if a teacher has contracted to work for a definite term, a school may not terminate such employment prior to the end of the term without “good cause.” Breach of such a contract, without good cause, will render the school liable for money damages. To illustrate, one court ruled that when teachers are discharged by a private school before the end of their contractual term, the school “is legally required to pay to them the salaries which they would have been entitled to had they been permitted to render services for the full term stipulated by the agreement.”1
A school can discharge a teacher before the end of a term specified in an employment contract on the basis of “good cause.” The term good cause includes grounds for dismissal specified in the employment contract, and also may include certain “implied” grounds that are reasonable inferences of the parties' intent. To illustrate, a teacher employed by a private school for a full school year and discharged two months prior to the end of the term was found to have been properly discharged since her contract stipulated discharge before the end of the term upon the occurrence of a “serious ground of complaint”—which did occur.2 Another court concluded that a teacher hired for a full school year was properly dismissed before the end of her term since she had fraudulently concealed from her employer her dismissal from another school during the previous school year.3 The court held that a false representation of a material fact by a teacher, with full knowledge of its falsity and with an intent to induce a school to enter into a contract of employment to teach, constitutes fraud sufficient to entitle the school to disregard the contract.
Teachers employed for definite terms can be discharged at the conclusion of such terms without a hearing or other procedure since they have no right to be rehired beyond the term of their current employment without some contractual provision to the contrary. One court noted that a
non--tenured teacher at a private school operating on a one academic year contract [has] no right to renewal of her contract and [is] not entitled either by law or by contract to a hearing upon renewal . . . . There is no due process guarantee of the procedural rights of a hearing and a statement of reasons for nonrenewal . . . .4
Private schools are under no obligation to create a tenure policy. If they choose to do so, the discharge of a tenured teacher will be subject to the procedures and standards mandated by the tenure policy. Typically, the school will have to establish incompetency or unfitness, or some related ground. Tenured private school teachers are not entitled to procedural due process protections, and so they ordinarily must be content with whatever procedures are afforded them by the school tenure policy.
Teachers employed for indefinite terms generally may be discharged at any time, with or without cause. Since the teachers are employed by a private institution, no procedural due process requirements need be followed during the discharge determination.5
Church schools often employ clergy as teachers or administrators. The civil courts have been very reluctant to review claims by teachers or administrators who are clergy that their dismissal or discipline was illegal or improper.6
For related information on this topic see the following articles:Incorporation and Tax Exemption of Private Religious Schools
Proof of Nondiscrimination in Private Schools
Right to Attend Private Schools
The Distinction Between Public and Private Education
Discharge and Discipline of Students of Private Schools
Application of Federal Labor and Discrimination Laws to Private Schools
Government Regulation of Private Schools
Zoning Laws and Private Schools
Safety and Health Regulations for Private Schools
Taxation of Private Religious Schools
Child Abuse Reporting Requirements for Private Schools
Legal Liability for Student Injuries