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Education Board approves ethics code Tuesday, Jun 10, 2008 By John Lyon Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - The state Board of Education on Monday unanimously approved a code of ethics for Arkansas educators. The board voted to make the code effective Sept. 1, rejecting a request by a teachers' union to delay implementation until Jan. 30. A state law passed last year requires the state to establish a code of professional standards for teachers and school administrators. The law also created the 15-member Professional Licensure Standards Board, the body that developed the code and will investigate possible violations. State Education Commissioner Ken James said coming up with a code that all parties could agree on was a phenomenal task, given the volatility of the subject. "Folks, I think the next assignment for the standards board and our staff will be in the Middle East, brokering a new peace initiative," James joked. The code requires educators to maintain professional relationships with students; maintain competence in their field; fulfill all reporting requirements; be responsible stewards of public funds and property; refrain from using their positions for personal gain; and keep in confidence standardized testing materials and private information about students and colleagues. It also requires educators to refrain from using, possessing or being under the influence of alcohol, tobacco, or unauthorized drugs at school or school-sponsored activities involving students. Penalties for violations can range from a written warning to revocation of a teaching license. An educator who is accused of ethical violations can request a hearing to contest the allegations. The Arkansas Education Association had asked the board to delay implementation until Jan. 30, saying it wanted to give lawmakers time to pass laws to strengthen the code. The AEA wants the standards board to have authority to subpoena people to appear at hearings and wants investigative information that does not lead to disciplinary action to be exempt from the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act. Education Department attorney Scott Smith said other professional boards do not have subpoena power or FOIA exemptions and advised against delaying implementation of the code for the sake of action the Legislature might or might not take. To pay for enforcement of the code, Arkansas teachers will for the first time have to pay fees for some licenses. No fee will be charged for provisional one-year or initial three-year teaching licenses, but the fee to obtain or renew a five-year license will be $100. Williams said the fees will raise about $1 million a year. Assistant Education Commissioner Beverly Williams told the Education Board seven public hearings on the code were held across the state in March and April, and 375 written public comments were received. The comments resulted in several revisions to the original proposal, Williams said, including removal of a prohibition against "moral turpitude." "People thought we were trying to be the bedroom police of the state, and that was not our goal," she said. Also removed was a requirement that educators report suspected violations of the code by others. "They felt like they didn't want to have to tattle on their colleagues if they were violating some of these pieces," Williams said. Education Board member Mary Jane Rebick of Little Rock said it was unfortunate that so much time and effort had to be devoted to the code. "It amazes me how so many important things, not that this isn't important certainly, kind of slip by - you know, all the testing issues and curriculum and standards and all this stuff, and the most comment we get is about something as basic as this," she said. |
