Beaverton School Board lets March nonrenewal stand after probationary teacher's hearing

The Beaverton School Board on April 29 held a public hearing at the request of probationary teacher Vitus Nagasetti to review the board’s March 11 decision not to renew his employment contract; after presentations by the district and by Nagasetti and a closed executive session, the board declined to reverse the March decision and took no further action.

The hearing, called by Board Chair Karen Perez, was held “in accordance with ORS 3428352” as cited by the board at the outset. The district presented a multi-year supervisory timeline it said showed persistent deficits in instruction, inconsistent implementation of corrective strategies and insufficient, sustained student learning in Nagasetti’s classroom. Nagasetti disputed the district’s characterization, presented numeric summaries of evaluation indicators and letters of recommendation, and told the board he had been pressured to resign in exchange for a recommendation.

The district’s presentation was led by school administrator Andrew Guilford, who said the school provided training, mentoring and a formal plan of assistance across Mr. Nagasetti’s probationary years starting in fall 2022. Guilford said observations and evaluations showed intermittent improvement but not consistent, sustained proficiency. “Students continue to struggle to learn in…