2006 Code of Virginia § 22.1-313 - Decision of school board; generally

22.1-313. Decision of school board; generally.

A. The school board shall retain its exclusive final authority over mattersconcerning employment and supervision of its personnel, including dismissals,suspensions and placing on probation.

B. In the case of a hearing before the school board, the school board shallgive the teacher its written decision within 30 days after the hearing. Arecord of the proceedings shall be taken and made available as provided insubsection I of 22.1-312. Witnesses who are employees of the school boardshall be granted release time if the hearing is held during the school day.The hearing shall be held at the school in which most witnesses work, iffeasible. In the case of a hearing before a fact-finding panel, the schoolboard shall give the teacher its written decision within 30 days after theschool board receives both the transcript of such hearing, if any, and thepanel's findings of fact and recommendations; however, should there be afurther hearing before the school board, as hereafter provided, such decisionshall be furnished the teacher within 30 days after such further hearing. Thedecision of the school board shall be reached after considering thetranscript, if any, and the findings of fact and recommendations of the paneland such further evidence as the school board may receive at any furtherhearing.

C. A teacher may be dismissed, suspended or placed on probation by a majorityof a quorum of the school board. In the event the school board's decision isat variance with the recommendations of the fact-finding panel, the schoolboard shall be required to conduct an additional hearing which shall bepublic unless the teacher requests a private one. However, if thefact-finding hearing was held in private, the additional hearing shall beheld in private. The hearing shall be conducted by the school board pursuantto subsection D of this section, except that the grievant and the divisionsuperintendent shall be allowed to appear, to be represented, and to givetestimony. However, the additional hearing shall not include examination andcross-examination of any other witnesses. The school board's written decisionshall include the rationale for the decision.

D. In any case in which a further hearing by a school board is held after ahearing before a fact-finding panel, the school board shall consider at suchfurther hearing the transcript, if any, the findings and recommendations ofthe fact-finding panel and such further evidence, including that of witnesseshaving testified before the panel, as the school board deems appropriate oras may be offered on behalf of the grievant or the respondent. A school boardmay initiate any such hearing upon written notice to the teacher and thedivision superintendent within 10 business days after the board receives thefindings of fact and recommendations of the panel and any transcript of anypanel hearing. Such notice shall specify each matter to be inquired into bythe school board. In any case in which a teacher may initiate any suchhearing, the teacher shall request such hearing in writing within 10 businessdays after receiving the findings of fact and recommendations of the paneland any transcript of the panel hearing. Any decision by the school boardshall be based solely on the transcript, if any, the findings of fact andrecommendations of the panel, and any evidence relevant to the issues of theoriginal grievance adduced at the hearing in the presence of each party. Suchhearing shall be conducted as a hearing by the school board as provided in 22.1-311.

E. The school board's attorney, assistants or representative, if he or theyrepresented a participant in the prior proceedings, the grievant, thegrievant's attorney or representative and, notwithstanding the provisions of 22.1-69, the superintendent shall be excluded from any executive session ofthe school board which has as its purpose reaching a decision on a grievance.However, immediately after a decision has been made and publicly announced,as in favor of or not in favor of the grievant, the school board's attorneyor representative and the superintendent may join the school board inexecutive session to assist in the writing of the decision.

(Code 1950, 22-217.8; 1968, c. 691; 1974, c. 18; 1979, c. 298; 1980, c.559; 1983, c. 327; 1992, c. 679; 2003, c. 187.)