New York's Teacher Disciplinary Process Debated

New York's Teacher Disciplinary Process Debated: "NEW YORK -- A state Senate hearing in Albany on Monday explored ways to make the process for disciplining teachers suspected of incompetence or ethical errors less cumbersome and more consistent.

'I really haven’t met anyone who thinks it’s going swimmingly,' said state Sen. John Flanagan, who convened the hearing, according to GothamSchools. He said the process as it stands favors teachers, allowing them to resign quietly as hearings lag or as school districts choose not to formally press charges and risk spending thousands of dollars in litigation.

Monday's senate hearing focused on the state's 3020-a hearing, the process that requires districts to prove their case for terminating a tenured teacher. The 3020-a hearings, senators said, are too lengthy and expensive. As the Albany Times Union notes, such cases can cost the state up to $7 or $8 million per year. The arbitrators of these cases are now facing delays in payment because of the state's deficit."