TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Hernando Today

Teacher Suspended Without Pay

ADVERTISEMENT

By LINNEA BROWN, Hernando Today

Published: February 20, 2008

BROOKSVILLE - A Spring Hill teacher's illness may have prevented her from working, but she'll have to prove it first.

The Hernando County School Board voted 5-0 Tuesday to suspend fourth-grade teacher Jennifer Gallagher without pay and forward the case to Florida's Department of Administrative Hearings.

In a special meeting, board members reviewed Superintendent Wayne Alexander's recommendation to fire Gallagher, a teacher at Westside Elementary School in Spring Hill.

A Spring Hill resident, Gallagher did not elaborate on her specific health issues, but said she had doctors' notes for all of her time off.

She brought the letters to Tuesday's meeting, which she mistakenly thought was the opportunity to show them to the board.

"I thought today was (meant) to go through the paperwork, and that if this did not go through correctly, it would go on to the DOAH," Gallagher told board members, displaying a briefcase full of paperwork. "I have been chronically ill and as far as I know, have been on (the U.S. government's) Family And Medical Leave Act."

A teacher with the district for 11 years, Gallagher's grounds for termination include excessive absenteeism, gross insubordination and not following appropriate procedure.

According to district documents, Gallagher has missed more than three months of work since August, including all of October and December.

School officials say Gallagher has not returned repeated attempts to contact her regarding the absences and her employment status, including letters that were sent to her home, phone calls and visits.

Vice Chairman Jim Malcolm expressed little sympathy for the teacher's apparent lack of understanding, citing the district's numerous attempts to communicate.

"There should be no doubt that this (goes to the DOAH)," he said.

While some of the days were approved by administrators, many weren't. While she was technically suspended with pay in early February, Gallagher's sick days ran out early on, and she was not getting paid for them, officials said.

Gallagher could earn back pay if she prevails in the hearing and officials decide it is warranted, said school board attorney Paul Carland, who will be prosecuting the case on behalf of Alexander.

Gallagher's class at Westside has been handed over to a permanent substitute.

Reporter Linnea Brown can be reached at 352-544-5289 or lbrown@hernandotoday.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT