BESE convenes executive session and defers teacher-license revocations pending Attorney General opinion

The State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted to convene an executive session to discuss "the character, professional competence, or physical or mental health of a person," and after returning to open session approved a motion to defer consideration of revocations (including the case of Marsha Hardy) until the board receives an opinion from counsel through the Attorney General's Office and revisits related board policy.

At the start of the agenda item the board moved to convene executive session (item 6.1). The chair required a two-thirds affirmative vote of members present; the board conducted a roll-call vote and recorded affirmative votes from Mr. Appel, Dr. Armstrong, Mr. Birkin, Mr. Castillo, Ms. Champagne, Mr. Harris, Ms. Holloway, Ms. Mallory, Mr. Morris and Dr. Clark. Mr. Hollis was not present. The motion to go into executive session passed.

The board recessed, held the executive session and then reconvened the Educator Effectiveness Committee meeting to continue the regular order of business. A motion was made on reconvening (recorded in the transcript as made by Miss Holloway and seconded by Miss Mellerin).

After reconvening, a member (Mr. Castillo) proposed a substitute motion concerning Marsha Hardy that asked the board to defer the item and obtain legal guidance. Mr. Castillo said there was "some confusion in the law and our policy" and asked the board to seek an opinion from counsel through the Attorney General's Office and to revisit policy applicable to the situation. Other members argued for expanding that review to cover all the listed revocations so the process would be even-handed; Mr. Castillo agreed and expanded his motion to include all listed revocations with the understanding the board would quickly obtain an opinion and address appropriate policy changes.

A second to the expanded motion was recorded as made by Ms. Holloway. Board members expressed a sense of urgency that the matter be placed on the March calendar for further consideration. The motion to defer and to seek an Attorney General opinion passed with no recorded objection in the transcript. The board directed staff to return the matter with counsel guidance and proposed policy language.

The board's statements and the votes recorded in the transcript indicate the board acted to pause final administrative action on the specified revocations until it secures legal guidance and reviews comparable cases to ensure consistent application of policy. The transcript does not record the text of each revocation that had already been approved earlier in the meeting; the board explicitly discussed deferring items that had been acted on "today" so they could be reconsidered after receiving legal guidance.