liability – JC Bowman

We live in a litigious society. As an educator or school employee, you should be keenly aware that professional liability insurance is critical because district coverage may not protect you individually. It is dangerous and potentially career-threatening if you enter a public-school classroom without liability or legal protection. Professional Educators of Tennessee handles legal issues in a positive, professional and confidential manner, without fanfare or publicity. Our members do not want undue publicity that can damage their case or their reputations. That is why you rarely read or hear about our members’ legal problems in the media.

Due to their unique role, educators face exposure to liability much greater than does the average citizen and therefore must exercise a higher duty of care than most professionals. Nearly every day teachers must deal with diverse laws related to issues such as child abuse, student discipline, negligence, defamation, student records, and copyright infringement. Tennessee teachers often cite professional liability insurance as a major reason for becoming a member, and rightly so. Professional Educators of Tennessee offers educators high-quality legal protection and professional liability insurance, at a fraction of the cost of labor unions. Our educators’ professional liability insurance is unmatched in Tennessee.

As an educator, you are also a consumer, and you expect and deserve quality services at an affordable price. Our dues at Professional Educators of Tennessee are currently $189. Contrast that with the roughly $600 or more that you are asked to pay for union dues and you will quickly realize not only cost savings but also more liability protection. We are less expensive because we are not part of a national organization – money collected is used on organizational goals and stays here in Tennessee. Politically, we are non-partisan. Your dues will never be utilized as political campaign contributions or to support social issue causes unrelated to education. That alone saves our members money Teachers’ unions engage in aggressive political partisanship and promote a wide-ranging social agenda on issues unrelated to education, often not reflective of the diverse political views of their broader membership.

Bad things happen to good educators every day. There are certainly increased risks for educators targeted by civil lawsuits. School districts are spending more on litigation costs and frivolous lawsuits. Educators need excellent liability coverage to cover inadvertent mistakes that could possibly happen. It’s is better to be proactive by being a member of Professional Educators of Tennessee, as countless teachers discover during the school year. In today’s society, false allegations can also occur, and with the prevalence of cell phones and social media, this has made educators even more vulnerable.

There are unnecessary lawsuits filed every year with allegations that have little basis in fact. The American legal system makes it easy to file a lawsuit regardless of the merit of the case. Unfortunately, public schools always will be susceptible to legal challenges, and we will never eliminate all lawsuits. That is why you need professional liability coverage so that you can focus on your job as an educator, and not matters out of your control. When allegations are made, or worse charges are filed, teachers may not be able to count on the backing of a school system or elected official. You need an organization to stand behind you, preferably one without a partisan agenda. Our legal resources, including attorneys who know education law are available to assist members with employment concerns. Our legal services team is a phone call away to answer any school-employment questions.

Only Professional Educators of Tennessee offers the peace of mind of $2 Million per member per occurrence, coverage for coaching, tutoring & private instruction, and up to $35,000 for Criminal Acts—and your coverage is never dependent on the discretion/pre-approval of a union boss, Access to your legal protection is not dependent upon whether your case is determined to be in the best interest of Professional Educators of Tennessee.

As with many professions requiring a state license, the teaching profession—like law and medicine—is governed by a code of ethics. This code outlines standards of personal and professional conduct that you, a member of the profession, must uphold. Violating a standard can have serious consequences for your teaching license. In addition, in 2018 the state added new laws regarding Teacher Ethics and Teacher Misconduct. Districts are now required to offer annual training in ethics. Our organization has partnered with the state to offer online ethics training to our members and other educators.

Unlike other organizations, where employment protection is discretionary, Professional Educators of Tennessee has no committee or group of people who will decide whether or not you will be represented should you face such an employment situation. This coverage saves our members thousands of dollars in legal fees every year and provides immeasurable peace of mind.

Our counseling philosophy is the best way to avoid having a situation escalate to a legal problem and only requires you to call us before the situation gets out of hand. It is very important to know your legal rights and responsibilities. Your membership with Professional Educators of Tennessee and our working relationship with you ensures your rights are not only realized but protected.

When you have a job-related legal question or concern that may have legal implications, make your first call to Professional Educators of Tennessee or email legal@proedtn.org. Speaking to an in-house attorney is the best and most efficient way to avoid having a situation escalate into a legal problem. It is critical that you know your legal rights and responsibilities. Your membership with Professional Educators of Tennessee ensures that you will be informed without delay. We are here to help and support our members.

Consistently in polling, educators refer to the heavy workload as being a major factor to why they leave the education profession. Today educators must also exercise a higher duty of care than most other professionals. Teachers face exposure to liability much greater than does the average citizen. Teacher burnout is actually an international epidemic.

Nearly every day, teachers must deal with diverse laws related to issues such as child abuse, student discipline, negligence, defamation, student records and copyright infringement. And still they must teach. So, every time we see legislation that adds to the teacher workload, we look very cautiously at it.

If we created a parent dress code, it will only add more work to our already overburdened educators, as well as increase their liability. That does not mean adults should not dress appropriately on school grounds. However, educators should not be the enforcement part of any proposed law. Do we expect teachers to issue speeding tickets in school zones? Should they enforce seatbelt laws or arrest those who violate cell phone usage in a school zone? Of course not. So why is this issue more important or any different?

As Professional Educators of Tennessee has pointed out, most of what Representative Parkinson seeks to address is already in state law. It happens to be in a different code than laws that strictly are on education. Adults should dress properly. And of course, adults should conduct themselves properly in public. Previous legislators understood that indecency laws and behavior problems, which impacts all of society, are criminal offenses. It has simply been unenforced in most cases.

Now because of a few isolated instances that were never reported to police who have proper jurisdiction, we are rushing to pass legislation and add to the burden of our public schools. Are educators now to act as law enforcement agents on matters of dress by adults? We should discuss the issue and perhaps study the issue further. But changes should be made in Title 39 of the Tennessee Code Annotated (T.C.A.): general offenses, offenses against the person, offenses against property, offenses against the family, offenses against the administration of government, and offenses against the public health, safety and welfare not Title 49 Education.

The problem that legislation like this seeks to solve with student dress code policies alone have resulted in many court cases over the years. This type of legislation will compound the problem for teachers, schools, and districts. In general, public schools are allowed to have student dress codes and uniform policies which cannot be discriminatory or censor expression. And most of the policies are targeted at females. In St. Louis area, the Mehlville School District dealt with multiple complaints in August 2018. This will prove extremely problematic when enforcing policies with adults. So, if legislation is to be passed on this matter, include immunity for teachers, schools and districts. And prepare for the litigation that is sure to follow.

The law of unintended consequences, often cited but rarely defined, is that actions always have effects that are unanticipated or unintended. It is common sense that adults should dress appropriately in public. However, to make this cultural matter one that places public education as the gatekeepers of public indecency for adults makes little sense. We hope this matter can be resolved without increasing, unnecessarily, the workload of our educators. The intended and unintended consequences of any legislation of this matter might not be what you want.

JC Bowman is the Executive Director of Professional Educators of Tennessee, a non-partisan teacher association headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Permission to reprint in whole or in part is hereby granted, provided that the author and the association are properly cited. For more information on this subject or any education issue please contact Professional Educators of Tennessee.

Tag: liability

Excellent Protection and Legal Services for Educators

Parent Dress & Unintended Consequences