Cannon Falls board denies five-year extended leave request over substitute, budget and tracking concerns

The Cannon Falls School Board voted 6-0 to deny a request for a five-year extended leave under state statute during its regular meeting, after administrators and board members raised concerns about substitute availability, budget risk and recordkeeping.

The board’s superintendent, Jeff (superintendent), told trustees the district would have to advertise for a long-term substitute and that approving a long leave creates staffing and financial complications. “Administratively, we’re not gonna recommend this,” Jeff said, noting the district could face unemployment costs and difficulties finding qualified long-term substitutes.

Board members said the district’s shortage of substitutes and the administrative burden of tracking long leaves were primary reasons for denying the request. “Not a benefit to the district,” said Jody (board member) during the discussion. Other trustees and administrators described substitute recruitment challenges and the potential impact on classroom continuity.

Why this matters: the statute discussed allows employees to request extended leaves of three to five years; trustees said the district can’t easily plan around extended absences, and long-term substitutes often prefer full-time permanent openings elsewhere. Superintendent Jeff said some neighboring districts rarely grant multi-year leaves and that when granted they often are renewed year-by-year instead of being approved as a single multi-year block.

Discussion highlights

- Substitute shortage and applicant quality: Trustees and administrators said advertising a long-term substitute role can yield fewer high-quality applicants when competing districts advertise full-time positions.

- Financial risk: Jeff warned of potential unemployment insurance and other unplanned costs if a long-term substitute later needs to be replaced or if nonrenewal actions occur.

- Administrative tracking: Board members noted the recordkeeping burden—especially across administrative turnover—when monitoring multi-year leaves and any renewals.

Formal action and vote

A motion to deny the extended leave request was made and seconded; the board adopted the recommendation to deny by voice vote with a 6-0 tally. The motion carried, recorded in the meeting minutes as “motion carries 6 0 for a denial.”

What the board said next

Superintendent Jeff said administrators will continue to consider individual leave requests but will bring recommendations to the board on a case-by-case basis. Trustees asked for clarity on how the district would monitor returns from leave and whether neighboring districts notify each other when an employee accepts a different education job while on leave.

Provenance

The discussion began with the agenda item “Consideration to approve a leave request in accordance with teacher's master agreement, vertical 10, leaves of absence, section 13. Extended leave in accordance with state statute 1 22 a 0.46 for up to 5 years.” The board debate and vote are recorded from the initial presentation of the statute and administrative recommendation through the motion to deny and the 6-0 vote.