DIETZEN, Justice.
Appellant Steven Emerson was employed by respondent Independent School District No. 199 (school district) in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, for 3 school years as the activities director, and then for 1 school year as interim middle school principal. Subsequently, the school district terminated Emerson's employment. Emerson filed a grievance on the ground that he was a continuing-contract employee and entitled to continuing-contract rights under Minn.Stat. § 122A.40 (2010). The school district denied the grievance and his subsequent grievance appeals. Emerson filed a petition for writ of certiorari with the court of appeals, which affirmed the decision of the school district. We affirm.
In March 2005 Emerson responded to a posting by the school district for the position of district activities director.
The school district employed Emerson as activities director for 3 school years, from the fall of 2005 to the spring of 2008. Subsequently, an opening occurred for the position of interim middle school principal for the 2008-09 school year, and the school district hired Emerson for that position. In April 2009, the school board voted to not renew Emerson's contract for the 2009-10 school year. The school board did not conduct a hearing or afford Emerson the rights of a continuing-contract employee.
Emerson filed a grievance, arguing that while he was employed as activities director he was a "teacher" within the meaning of section 122A.40, subdivision 1, the continuing-contract statute, and therefore had continuing-contract rights. The continuing-contract statute defines a "teacher" as "a principal, supervisor, and classroom teacher and any other professional employee required to hold a license from the state department." Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, subd. 1. The school board denied the grievance on the ground that Emerson was only a
The court of appeals affirmed the decision of the school board that Emerson was not a continuing-contract employee, and therefore the decision to not renew his contract was not an error of law. Emerson v. Sch. Bd. of Indep. Sch. Dist. 199, 782 N.W.2d 844, 847 (Minn.App.2010). The court determined that a school district employee is not a "teacher" under the continuing-contract statute, Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, unless the MDE requires a license for the work performed by the employee. Id. The court reasoned that the statutory definition of a teacher "unambiguously hinges on state licensure requirements," and because the MDE does not require an activities director to be licensed, Emerson did not qualify as a "teacher" while he was employed as an activities director and was not entitled to the rights of a continuing-contract employee. Id. at 846-47. Subsequently, we granted review.
The question we must decide is whether appellant Steven Emerson's employment by the school district as an activities director falls within the definition of a "teacher" under section 122A.40, subdivision 1, and therefore he is entitled to continuing-contract rights under the statute.
Emerson argues that he qualifies as a "professional employee" under section 122A.40, subdivision 1, because the school district required that he hold a license as a principal to be employed as activities director. The school district counters that whether an individual qualifies as a "teacher" under subdivision 1 depends solely on whether the MDE requires the individual to hold a license for one of the positions enumerated in the statute. Amici curiae Education Minnesota and the Minnesota School Boards Association also urge us to adopt the interpretation proposed by the school district. It is undisputed that an activities director is not required to be licensed by the MDE. It is also undisputed that the school district advertised that an applicant for activities director must either hold a license as a principal, or be in the process of obtaining administrative licensure, in order to be hired to the position of activities director.
Minnesota Statutes § 122A.40, subd. 1, provides:
The court of appeals concluded that Emerson was hired by the school district as an activities director, that an activities director is not a "professional employee required to hold a license from the state department," and therefore Emerson was not a "teacher" within the meaning of the continuing-contract statute.
The crux of the dispute turns on the meaning of the statutory phrase "required to hold a license from the state department." It is undisputed that in subdivision 1 the "state department" means the MDE. See Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, subd. 1. The dispute centers on what the word "required" means, and what the word "required" modifies. Put differently, a professional employee is "required by whom" to be licensed.
When the language of a statute is unclear or ambiguous, we will go beyond the specific language of the statute to determine the intent of the legislature. Minn. Stat. § 645.16. The Legislature has set forth a nonexclusive list of factors we should consider to determine legislative intent. Id.
We believe that the most relevant factors in this case are: the purpose of the legislation, the occasion and necessity for the law, the mischief to be remedied, the object to be attained, and the consequences of the interpretations proposed by the parties. See Minn.Stat. § 645.16(1), (3), (4), (6).
Minnesota Statutes § 122A.40, which is popularly known as the continuing-contract statute, was enacted in 1937.
The school district's proposed interpretation that the licensure requirement to qualify for continuing-contract status must be imposed by the State licensing authority furthers the legislative purpose of having one unified system that is applicable to all school districts. Moreover, such an interpretation avoids the chaotic conditions that result in individualized determinations by hundreds of different school districts. Emerson's proposed interpretation is contrary to the legislative purpose of having one unified system applicable to all school districts.
Notably, the Legislature has promulgated one unified system for the licensing of all qualified teachers. Specifically, Minn. Stat. ch. 122A (2010), sets forth the procedure
The broad interpretation proposed by Emerson, and embraced by the dissent, does not support the legislative purpose of one uniform standard for determining continuing-contract status applicable to all school districts. Rather, Emerson's interpretation will create a decentralized system in which hiring policies adopted by individual school districts, including licensure requirements not imposed by the State, as here, will result in hundreds of different continuing-contract standards. This potential for uncontrolled variations in positions through which a person can achieve continuing-contract status is magnified by the possible delegation of hiring standards from a school board to each school principal, or even a faculty-community committee.
Moreover, an individual school district's variation from state-imposed licensing requirements that make a position eligible for continuing-contract status may adversely affect other school districts as well. Specifically, section 122A.40, subdivision 5, provides that after the first 3 years of experience in a qualifying position in one school district, the probationary period in a subsequent school district is only 1 year. Thus, when a prior school district establishes its own standards that qualify for continuing-contract status, the subsequent-hiring school district may be required to grant continuing-contract status in only 1 year to a person who does not qualify by its own standards. Consequently, a subsequent school district could easily determine that the uncertainty created by differing license standards for continuing contract rights among school districts renders it too risky to hire a "transferred" employee and determine within 1 year whether to grant that employee continuing-contract status. Significantly, the net result of the uncertainty created by differing standards is to adversely affect the transferability of state-licensed employees to subsequent school districts. The uncertainty of differing standards among school districts is the type of condition that the statute was intended to avoid.
In contrast, the school district's proposed interpretation, which recognizes a relationship between the authority that requires the license and the authority that issues the license, harmonizes the language of section 122A.40, subdivision 1— "license from the state department"—with the licensing statutes in sections 122A.15 and 122A.18. See Schroedl, 616 N.W.2d at 277 (interpreting each section of a statute in light of the surrounding sections "to
Additionally, the school district's proposed interpretation that recognizes a relationship between the authority that requires the license and the authority that issues the license is supported by other provisions in the continuing-contract statute that implicate state licensing requirements rather than district hiring standards. Section 122A.40, subdivision 3, provides that "[c]ontracts for teaching and supervision of teaching can be made only with qualified teachers." Minnesota Statutes § 122A.16(a) defines a qualified teacher as "one holding a valid license, under this chapter, to perform the particular service for which the teacher is employed in a public school." Thus, a contract recognized under the continuing-contract statute can only be with a qualified teacher, and the definition of qualified teacher requires a fit between the teaching position and the license required by the State licensing authority under chapter 122A, not a license required only by school district hiring policy. The relationship mandated in subdivision 3 between the license required by State law and the position for which the teacher is hired is consistent with the relationship between State licensure requirements and the teaching position inherent in the school board's interpretation of the language in subdivision 1.
Emerson's proposed interpretation of section 122A.40, subdivision 1, would lead to absurd results. As noted above, the Legislature used similar language in section 122A.06, subdivision 2, by defining teacher to mean "a classroom teacher or other similar professional employee required to hold a license from the Board of Teaching." Minn.Stat. § 122A.06, subd. 2 (emphasis added). This definition is "[f]or the purpose[s] of section[s] 122A.05 to 122A.09 ... unless another meaning is clearly indicated." Id., subd. 1. Sections 122A.05 to 122A.09 establish and set out the licensing authority of the Board of Teaching. Applying Emerson's proposed interpretation of section 122A.40, subdivision 1, would lead to results that are absurd and unreasonable. Specifically, defining "teacher" to mean the hiring policies of each school board would make the provisions of sections 122A.05 to 122A.09 almost impossible to execute. For example, section 122A.09, subdivision 4(a), provides that "[t]he board must adopt rules to license public school teachers and interns." The broad interpretation proposed by Emerson would require the Board of Teaching to adopt rules to license any position for which a school board decided to impose a license requirement from the Board. Similarly, section 122A.09, subdivision 4(c), provides that the "board must adopt rules to approve teacher preparation programs." Emerson's interpretation of "required to hold a license" would put in the hands of each school district what position-preparation programs the Board would need to address. In summary, the consequence of Emerson's proposed interpretation of section 122A.40, subdivision 1, applied to section 122A.06, subdivision 2, is that any
Finally, we observe that the school board's proposed interpretation has been uniformly applied by school districts and teachers' unions for decades. Although this is not an administrative interpretation within the meaning of section 645.16(8), it is not insignificant that these parties operated under this interpretation since the statute was enacted. The consequence of Emerson's proposed interpretation would be to overturn an interpretation that is long-standing.
We conclude that an activities director is not a professional employee "required to hold a license from the state department" and therefore is not a "teacher" within the meaning of the continuing-contract statute. Emerson's proposed interpretation that one entity may require the license (school district) and another entity may issue it is sufficiently reasonable to indicate ambiguity in the language. But the more logical interpretation of the language is to recognize a relationship between the entity that "issues" the license and the entity that "requires" the employee to hold a license. It logically follows that the "required to hold a license" language means a professional employee required by the state licensing authority in chapter 122A to hold a license from the MDE. Our interpretation furthers the legislative purpose of the statute to adopt one unified system applicable to all school districts and avoids the chaotic situations that would result from individualized determinations by hundreds of school districts. Moreover, our interpretation is consistent with the licensing procedures of the MDE, and with related statutes in chapter 122A. Accordingly, we hold that Emerson was not a "professional employee required to hold a license from the state department," and therefore is not a "teacher" under section 122A.40. Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, subd. 1.
Appellant also argues that he should be deemed a continuing-contract employee because "while employed in the Activities Director position [appellant] was performing job duties typically performed by a principal." But appellant makes this argument for the first time in his reply brief to this court. We acknowledge that in his initial brief appellant made a one-sentence reference to his duties as activities director, stating that many of his duties were consistent with employment as a principal. But appellant made no argument in that brief that he should have been considered a "principal" for purposes of section 122A.40 based on those duties. Similarly, in his brief to the court of appeals, appellant referenced his job responsibilities, but did not explicitly argue that those job responsibilities made the activities director position a "principal" position under the statute.
Previously, we have held that we will not address issues raised for the first time on appeal, particularly when the issue is raised in a reply brief. See George v. Estate of Baker, 724 N.W.2d 1, 7 (Minn. 2006) (citations omitted). Accordingly, appellant's argument based on his job duties as activities director is not properly before the court, and we decline to address it.
Affirmed.
ANDERSON, PAUL H., J., took no part in the consideration or decision of this case.
The question presented by this case is whether Steven Emerson, who was an employee of Independent School District No. 199 ("ISD-199") for 4 years, was a teacher entitled to the procedural protections granted by statute to continuing-contract employees. The answer to that question turns on the plain and unambiguous language of Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, subd. 1 (2010), which defines the class of "teacher[s]" who are eligible for continuing-contract rights. Here, Emerson is entitled to continuing-contract rights because, under the plain language of subdivision 1, Emerson was a "professional employee required to hold a license from the [Minnesota Department of Education]." Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, subd. 1. Only by adding words to the unambiguous language in subdivision 1 does the court conclude otherwise. Because the court's interpretation of subdivision 1 is inconsistent with the statute's plain language, I respectfully dissent.
Minnesota Statutes § 122A.40 provides rules for the hiring and firing of Minnesota "teacher[s]" employed by school districts that are not located in "first-class" cities.
ISD-199 concedes that Emerson completed a probationary period with another Minnesota school district prior to beginning his employment with ISD-199. Emerson worked at ISD-199 for 3 years as its District Director of Activities ("activities director") and one year as an interim middle school principal. Emerson argues that, because the activities director position falls within the definition of "teacher" in Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, subd. 1, he was entitled to the procedural protections granted to employees who have attained continuing-contract rights, including the right to a hearing before ISD-199 discharged him.
Whether Emerson satisfied the statutory definition of "teacher" is a question of law that is subject to de novo review. See Larson v. State, 790 N.W.2d 700, 703
Minnesota Statutes § 122A.40, subd. 1, states in relevant part: "A principal, supervisor, and classroom teacher and any other professional employee required to hold a license from the state department shall be deemed to be a `teacher' within the meaning of this section." To qualify as a "teacher" eligible for continuing-contract rights under subdivision 1, a school employee must be a principal, supervisor, classroom teacher, or other professional employee. Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, subd. 1. If the employee is a professional employee, then he or she must be "required to hold a license from the state department." Id. As the court correctly notes, the "state department" refers to the Minnesota Department of Education ("MDE").
Emerson was a "professional employee," and neither the court nor ISD-199 assert otherwise. A professional is someone "engaged in ... an occupation requiring a high level of training and proficiency." Webster's Third International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged 1811 (2002). ISD-199's job description for activities director stated that Emerson was "responsible for the overall operation of K-12 co-curricular programs of ISD-199." Emerson's job responsibilities included planning and implementing programs for ISD-199; supervising, evaluating, and recruiting coaches and counselors throughout ISD-199; developing and maintaining the activities budget for ISD-199; and reporting directly to the superintendent of ISD-199. The qualifications required for the position emphasized supervisory and leadership experience in school settings. Given the job requirements and correspondingly high level of responsibility for the position of activities director, Emerson's position qualifies as "an occupation requiring a high level of training and proficiency." Therefore, Emerson was a "professional employee" under Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, subd. 1.
The dispute in this case is whether Emerson was "required to hold a license from the state department." It is undisputed that Emerson held three licenses during his employment with ISD-199: a K-12 principal's license, a license to teach English and language arts, and a coaching license. The MDE issued each of Emerson's licenses. Even so, the parties dispute whether Emerson was "required to hold a license from the" MDE as activities director for ISD-199. Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, subd. 1 (emphasis added).
The question presented, therefore, is what it means to "require" a license from the MDE. In this context, the meaning of the word "require" is "to demand as necessary or essential." Webster's Third International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged 1929 (2002); see also The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language 1482 (4th ed.2009) (defining "require" as "[t]o call for as obligatory or appropriate; demand"). Implicit in the definition of the word "require" is that the person, entity, or other body making the demand must have the authority to deem something necessary and essential. In other words, a particular qualification or characteristic cannot be "required" unless the entity imposing the obligation has the authority to do so.
In this case, a variety of entities and bodies had the authority to require Emerson to hold a license from the MDE. The
ISD-199's job announcement stated the following requirement for its activities director position: "Candidates must hold a current Minnesota principal license or be in the process of obtaining administrative licensure." (Emphasis added). The position description also required a principal's license for the activities director.
The court apparently agrees that ISD-199 had the authority to require Emerson, as a professional employee, to "hold a license from the" MDE. Despite ISD-199's unquestioned authority to "require" Emerson "to hold a license from the state department," the court argues that subdivision 1 imposes an additional requirement: the MDE, the Board of Teaching, or the Board of School Administrators must require a professional employee to hold a license from the MDE. The flaw in the court's approach, however, is that subdivision 1 does not hint, much less contain, any language that supports the court's interpretation. Indeed, the plain language of subdivision 1 does not explicitly limit the entities that may require a professional employee to hold a license from the MDE.
First, this court has never found an ambiguity through legislative silence because a statute does not contain a sufficiently comprehensive definition of a term. As we have repeatedly stated, courts may not add words to a statute "that are purposely omitted or inadvertently overlooked" by the Legislature. Premier Bank, 785 N.W.2d at 760 (citing Genin v. 1996 Mercury Marquis, 622 N.W.2d 114, 117 (Minn.2001)). I can find only two cases in which this court has found an ambiguity through legislative silence: in Burkstrand v. Burkstrand, 632 N.W.2d 206 (Minn.2001), and MBNA America Bank, N.A. v. Commissioner of Revenue, 694 N.W.2d 778 (Minn.2005), the statutes at issue set forth a specific procedural requirement, but then failed to provide a remedy for violation of the requirement.
Second, the court is simply wrong that subdivision 1 is ambiguous. In concluding that subdivision 1 is ambiguous through legislative silence, the court fails to point to any ambiguity in the express language of the statute. Instead, the court concludes that subdivision 1 is ambiguous because ISD-199's interpretation "recognizes a connection between the authority that requires the license and the authority that issues the license," and because this interpretation "has been consistently used by school districts and amici for decades." The court apparently concludes, therefore, that the mere mention of the MDE in the text of subdivision 1 means that the MDE is the only entity that may "require" a professional employee to hold a license. The flaw in the court's alternative interpretation
The fact that subdivision 1 explicitly references the MDE tells us only that Emerson must be required to hold a license "from" the MDE—a fact compelled by the text of the statute and not disputed by anyone—not that Emerson must be required to hold a license by the MDE. To find an ambiguity, the court must therefore alter the text of subdivision 1 as follows: "any other professional employee required [by the State licensing authority] to hold a license from the state department." That alternative interpretation is unreasonable, however, because the statute does not include the bracketed phrase added to the statute by the court: "by the State licensing authority." It is axiomatic that a court may not create a statutory ambiguity by changing the plain text of an otherwise unambiguous statute. To hold otherwise would mean that we could deem any statute ambiguous once we conceive of alternative language that the Legislature could have included in the statute. See Laase v. 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe, 776 N.W.2d 431, 438 (Minn.2009) (stating that this court "cannot rewrite a statute under the guise of statutory interpretation" by substituting words in the statute (citation omitted)); Beardsley, 753 N.W.2d at 740 (rejecting an invitation to rewrite the text of a statute in order to find ambiguity because "[t]he prerogative of amending a statute in such a fashion belongs to the legislature, not to this court").
Third, the court contravenes case law by using extrinsic evidence to conclude that subdivision 1 is ambiguous. Specifically, the court relies on the fact that its alternative interpretation is consistent with "decades" of interpretation and practice by school districts. Even aside from the fact that there is no evidence in the record to suggest that school districts have consistently interpreted subdivision 1 to mean that only the licensing authorities may require a professional employee to hold a license, we have repeatedly held that it is improper to resort to extrinsic evidence to find a statutory ambiguity. In re Welfare of R.S., 805 N.W.2d 44, 52 (Minn.2011) ("[E]xtrinsic evidence can be used only to resolve existing statutory ambiguity; it cannot be used to create ambiguity where none exists."); Reiter v. Kiffmeyer, 721 N.W.2d 908, 911 (Minn.2006) ("[U]se of extrinsic aids to determine legislative intent where there is no ambiguity in the express language of the statute would be unnecessary and improper."). Here, the court improperly bootstraps extrinsic, historical evidence of custom and practice into its finding of ambiguity, and then relies on that same extrinsic evidence to conclude that its alternative interpretation of the statute is the more reasonable one. Such an analysis deviates from our traditional approach to statutory interpretation.
In sum, the court's opinion represents a radical departure from traditional methods of statutory interpretation. The court finds an ambiguity through legislative silence in a novel circumstance, the court adds words to a statute to create an alternative interpretation of an otherwise unambiguous statute, and the court resorts to extrinsic evidence to support its conclusion that the statute is ambiguous. In my view, the court concludes that subdivision 1 is ambiguous by creating a false dichotomy: either (1) the Legislature intended to include the phrase "required by [the school district] to hold a license"; or (2) the Legislature intended to include the phrase "required by [the State licensing authority] to hold a license." But the court apparently overlooks a third alternative: the statute means exactly what it says and the Legislature failed to include any language qualifying who or what may require a school employee to hold a license from
In this case, the statute at issue requires Emerson to show: (1) that he is a "professional employee"; and (2) that he was required to hold a license issued from the MDE. Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, subd. 1. By satisfying both statutory requirements, Emerson is entitled to continuing-contract rights. Accordingly, I would reverse the decision of the court of appeals and remand this case to the school board of ISD-199 for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
PAGE, J. (dissenting).
I join in the dissent of Justice Stras.
There is a discrepancy over whether Emerson was required to complete 3 years as a probationary teacher or whether he had already attained continuing-contract status in another district and thus was only required to complete 1 year as a probationary teacher. The court of appeals stated that Emerson "did not complete three probationary `teacher' years." Emerson, 782 N.W.2d at 847. The school district, however, does not deny that Emerson had already attained continuing-contract status in another district, and therefore he needed to complete only 1 year of probationary teaching. Emerson does not address this question, but the answer does not affect our analysis because Emerson was employed by the school district for a total of 4 years, encompassing either period in which to establish continuing-contract status under the statute.
In subdivision 1, the Legislature identified two groups of employees: (1) "principal[s], supervisor[s], and classroom teacher[s]," and (2) "any other professional employee[s] required to hold a license from the state department." Minn.Stat. § 122A.40, subd. 1. Specifically, it makes sense that the Legislature did not attach the "required to hold a license from the state department" language to the first group, because every principal, supervisor, or classroom teacher is required by law to hold a license from the department. See Minn.Stat. §§ 122A.15, subd. 1, 122A.18, subd. 1. The "required to hold a license" language would have been superfluous if applied to principals, supervisors, and classroom teachers. In contrast, the second category, "other professional employee," includes some positions for which a license is required from the department and others for which no license is required.
More importantly, Emerson's argument is a nonsequitur. Simply stated, Emerson's conclusion that "required to hold a license from the state department" modifies "professional employee" does not resolve the primary dispute between the parties over the meaning of a "professional employee required to hold a license from the state department."
Premier Bank, 785 N.W.2d at 760 (citations omitted) (internal quotations omitted). To the extent that the statute at issue here is silent, that silence causes an ambiguity of expression that results in two reasonable interpretations of the language. The examples cited by the dissent of statutes in which the Legislature has made express cross-reference to another statute are unhelpful because none have a subsequent clause that makes specific reference to a state licensing agency and, implicitly, its licensing authority.
