The Issue Whether Respondent violated sections 1012.795(1)(d), 1012.795(1)(g), and 1012.795(1)(j), Florida Statutes (2008),1/ and Florida Administrative Code Rules 6B-1.006(3)(a) and 6B- 1.006(5)(a), and, if so, what discipline should be imposed.
Findings Of Fact Ms. Dunn holds Florida Educator's Certificate 930668, covering the area of exceptional student education, which is valid through June 30, 2012. At all times pertinent to this case, Ms. Dunn was employed as a varying exceptionalities teacher at Seminole High School in the Pinellas County School District (School District). Deborah Joseph (Ms. Joseph), the director of School Partnerships for St. Petersburg College, hired Ms. Dunn for the Spring Semester of 2009 to supervise 12 student interns, teaching in various Pinellas County elementary schools. Ms. Joseph credibly testified that she asked Ms. Dunn what Ms. Dunn would do with her current employment as a Pinellas County teacher, if offered a job. Ms. Dunn stated that she would resign as a teacher. On January 30, 2009, during school hours, Ms. Dunn left the Seminole High School campus without permission from the school administration. When the school's assistant principal, Phillip Wirth (Mr. Wirth), questioned Ms. Dunn about her whereabouts, Ms. Dunn alternately claimed that she had been given permission by another principal to leave the campus and that she had been meeting with another teacher. Neither of Ms. Dunn's explanations was supported by the assistant principal or the teacher. Consequently, on March 9, 2009, Mr. Wirth gave Ms. Dunn a written reprimand for her conduct. The evidence clearly and convincingly shows that Ms. Dunn continued her employment as a teacher at Seminole High School while at the same time working a second job for St. Petersburg College, supervising student interns working in elementary schools. Unfortunately, Ms. Dunn's work hours at Seminole High School coincided with the student interns' work hours at the elementary schools. In order to work both jobs, the record shows that Ms. Dunn was routinely untruthful in her use of sick leave time and left the Seminole High School campus during school hours without permission. For example, the record shows that she requested sick leave on February 26, 2009; March 4, 2009; March 6, 2009; and March 17, 2009. On those very same dates, Ms. Dunn signed in to supervise interns at Pinellas Central Elementary School, Sandy Lake Elementary School, Plumb Elementary School, and McMullen Booth Elementary. Again, on one date, April 23, 2009, Ms. Dunn wrote in her leave request that "family and kids touch [of] flu" and that she was signing out for a doctor's appointment beginning at 9:30 a.m. The record shows on that same day Ms. Dunn miraculously recovered from the illness and was able to eat lunch at her husband's nearby restaurant at 11:50 a.m., and then supervise an intern at Pinellas Central Elementary School at 1:33 p.m. In addition to misusing sick leave, the record clearly showed that Ms. Dunn would leave the Seminole High School campus without permission or signing out and would falsify school records. For example, the record clearly showed that, on April 16, 2009, Ms. Dunn left the school campus without permission. The record shows that she signed out for lunch at 1:00 p.m. and that she returned at 1:30 p.m. However, the records also show at 1:45 p.m., that same day, Ms. Dunn signed into High Point Elementary in order to supervise an intern. Again, on April 22, 2009, Ms. Dunn left Seminole High School without permission or signing out at 9:46 a.m. Walter Weller (Mr. Weller), the principal of Seminole High School, credibly testified that co-teachers, like Ms. Dunn, are placed in exceptional student education classes in order to assist with the students' individual education plans and to help the students succeed. Further, he credibly testified that it was important that teachers remain on campus to keep classrooms covered, and it is a safety issue for the students. James Lott (Mr. Lott), an administrator in the Office of Professional Standards for the School District, credibly testified that the School District felt that progressive discipline was not appropriate in Ms. Dunn's case, because her actions amounted to stealing time and outright falsification of records. Ms. Dunn testified that she did not dispute that she had the second job and claimed that the collective bargaining agreement allowed her to work a second job. Ms. Dunn testified that she never used time off with pay and that the School District should have used a progressive discipline against her, rather than terminating her employment. Further, Ms. Dunn claimed that she and the School District had reached an agreement concerning her claim for unemployment compensation that the School District "would not go after my certificate." Ms. Dunn showed no remorse or acknowledgement of her many untruthful statements or wrongdoing.
Recommendation Based on the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED that a final order be entered finding that Ms. Dunn violated sections 1012.795(1)(d), 1012.795(1)(g), and 1012.795(1)(j) and rules 6B-1.006(3)(a) and 6B-1.006(5)(a), and suspending her educator’s certificate for two years followed by a period of three years' probation during which she shall be required, along with standard conditions utilized by the Education Practices Commission, to complete a three-hour college level course in ethics during the first year of her probation. DONE AND ENTERED this 27th day of April, 2011, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. S THOMAS P. CRAPPS Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6847 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 27th day of April, 2011.
The Issue Whether Respondent violated Subsection 231.36(1)(a), Florida Statutes, and Rule 6B-4.009(1)(2) and (3), Rule 6B- 1.006(3)(a), (b), (e), and (f), Rule 6B-1.006(4)(a) and (b), Rule 6B.006(5)(a), (c), (d), (e), (f), and (o), and Rule 6B- 1.001(1), (2), and (3), Florida Administrative Code, and, if so, what actions should be taken.
Findings Of Fact Mr. Jenkins holds a Florida Educator Certificate. At all times pertinent to this proceeding, he was employed as a physical education teacher at Pasedena Lakes Elementary School (Pasedena Lakes) in the Broward County School District, where he had been teaching for 15 years. Mr. Jenkins was a Master Steward for the teachers' union. He was also a member of the School Advisory Council (SAC) and was chair of the Safety and Discipline Committee, which is a part of SAC. Jill Wilson has been the principal at Pasedena Lakes for six years and has a total of 29 years of educational experience. The assistant principal at Pasedena Lakes is Charlene Hogan, who has been at Pasedena Lakes for five years and has a total of 28 years of experience in the field of education. On October 29, 1998, at approximately 5:00 p.m., Mr. Jenkins came to Ms. Wilson's office and yelled at her, accusing her of discrediting him and making things worse at the school. During this incident, Donna Blank, a former employee of Pasedena Lakes, was leaving the building and, through a window, observed Mr. Jenkins pounding on Ms. Wilson's desk and saying, "You're not my boss." Ms. Blank went to her car, but returned to the building because she felt that she could not leave Ms. Wilson alone in that situation. When Ms. Blank went to Ms. Wilson's office, Ms. Wilson was visibly shaken. Ms. Wilson felt intimidated by Mr. Jenkins and, as a result of the incident, issued a memorandum to Mr. Jenkins dated October 30, 1998. The memorandum outlined the events that had taken place in Ms. Wilson's office on October 29, 1998, advised Mr. Jenkins that his actions were inappropriate, and required him to schedule future meetings with her secretary so that she could have another staff member present when they met. Pasedena Lakes has about 900 elementary students. Parking was a problem at the school, as well as traffic congestion when parents dropped off students in the mornings. Parents would park in the teachers' parking spaces, and there would be disruptions in the flow of traffic when the parents would take time to dole out lunch money, dress the children, say farewells, and otherwise take up additional time as they were dropping off the students. Mr. Jenkins volunteered to help direct traffic in the mornings in order to reduce the congestion in the parking lots. His mode of directing traffic was more aggressive than the methods that had been used previously by the other teachers. Mr. Jenkins used a bull horn to shout at the parents to move the traffic along and to tell them to kiss their kids at home and not at school. At first his efforts were commendable, but he began to become frustrated with the job. Mr. Jenkins would yell at the parents and the students, upsetting both the parents and the students. On one occasion while on traffic duty, Mr. Jenkins, using his bullhorn, called another teacher "Deadwood," belittling her in front of students, parents, and other staff members. Sometime during the fall of 1999, Patricia Lewis was bringing her two children to the school. Ms. Lewis needed to talk to one of her children's teachers, so she dropped her children off and told them to wait for her while she parked the car. While she was parking the car, Mr. Jenkins yelled at her children, "You little monkeys, hurry up and get back to class." Ms. Lewis, a Haitian-American, was upset at his remarks and confronted him. She told Mr. Jenkins, "My kids have a name. You do not call them that." Mr. Jenkins replied, "If you don't like it, go get a lawyer, and my lawyer will win." Visibly upset, Ms. Lewis went to the school administration's office and asked to speak to the principal. She talked with Ms. Wilson and explained what had happened in the parking area. Ms. Wilson assured her that she would take care of the matter and talk to Mr. Jenkins. Ms. Lewis left the office and went to find her child's teacher to talk with her as originally planned. She ran into Mr. Jenkins in the hallway. Mr. Jenkins said, "Oh, you're the one who went to the principal." Ms. Lewis told him that she did not want to talk with him and turned away. Mr. Jenkins began to yell at her, and she went back to the office in tears. When she got to the principal's office, Ms. Lewis was loud and upset. Again Ms. Wilson calmed her down. In the fall of 1999, the Safety and Discipline Committee had concerns over the traffic problems at Pasedena Lakes and over unauthorized visitors on campus. A meeting of SAC was scheduled for November 9, 1999, to discuss these issues. The Safety and Discipline Committee met and drafted a letter which was to be sent to the parents asking them to come to the meeting and outlining the concerns which would be discussed. Ms. Hogan was on the Safety and Discipline Committee, and she edited the draft letter with input from other committee members so that the letter would fit on one sheet of paper. Mr. Jenkins was not happy with the edited version, but he did not tell Hogan of his displeasure at the time the letter was rewritten. Mr. Jenkins helped distribute the letter to the parents in the parking lot. Alice Lacy, a teacher at Pasedena Lakes, was the chair of SAC, and Hogan was co-chair. On November 1, 1999, Mr. Jenkins told Ms. Lacy that he wanted to have a meeting prior to the SAC meeting scheduled for November 9, 1999, in order to get the teachers to form a coalition and come to the November 9 meeting to support him. As chair of SAC, Lacy told Mr. Jenkins that it would be better to send a memorandum to the teachers rather than schedule a separate meeting. Later on the same day, Mr. Jenkins told Ms. Lacy that he was demanding that the teachers come to the November 9 SAC meeting. He became angry with Ms. Lacy and told her that it was a personal issue and that the teachers owed it to him. He stormed away from Ms. Lacy. Ms. Lacy became concerned about the November 9 SAC meeting and felt that Mr. Jenkins should clarify his intentions prior to the meeting. She sent Mr. Jenkins a memorandum, requesting that he provide her with an agenda by November 5. Mr. Jenkins did not supply an agenda. Ms. Lacy heard him yelling at teachers outside her classroom on November 5, but did not know what he was discussing with the teachers. Ms. Lacy became concerned and sent a memorandum dated November 5, 1999, to Ms. Wilson and Ms. Hogan, urging that the November 9 SAC meeting be postponed until the issues involving Mr. Jenkins could be resolved. The administration met with Mr. Jenkins, and Ms. Lacy was assured that Mr. Jenkins understood that the SAC meeting would be under Ms. Lacy's direction, the agenda would be followed, and the meeting would take place in the media center. When Ms. Lacy went to the media center on the evening of November 9, 1999, she found that the media center was locked and that Mr. Jenkins was setting up the meeting in the cafeteria, where he could have teachers sit on stage with him to lend him support. Lacy confronted Mr. Jenkins and told him that the meeting would take place in the media center as planned. Mr. Jenkins shook his finger at Ms. Lacy and told her that she was making a big mistake. When Ms. Lacy was calling the meeting to order, Mr. Jenkins called out of turn and said, "I motion to move this meeting to the cafeteria." Ms. Lacy called Mr. Jenkins out of order. There was a large turn-out for the SAC meeting, and it was agreed that each speaker would be limited to two minutes. When Mr. Jenkins began to make his presentation for the Safety and Discipline Committee, Ms. Lacy felt that he was unprepared and was improvising. Several times Mr. Jenkins spoke and went over his two-minute limit. When he did, Ms. Lacy would cut him off and go on to the next speaker. After this happened three times, Susie Ruder, a teacher at Pasedena Lakes, sent a note to Ms. Lacy, telling Ms. Lacy that she felt Ms. Lacy was being rude to Mr. Jenkins. After Ms. Lacy received the note, she gave Mr. Jenkins more time to speak. The day after the meeting, Mr. Jenkins ran into Ms. Hogan and Cathy Greenspan, a reading resource specialist at Pasedena Lakes, on the school campus. Mr. Jenkins shook Ms. Hogan's hand and commented that the SAC meeting had been a good meeting. Approximately ten minutes later, Mr. Jenkins went to Ms. Wilson's office. He was wearing shorts, a shirt, and a fanny pack. His purpose for the visit was to discuss sending flyers to parents advising them of the decision of SAC to require parents to obtain a visitor's pass to come on the school campus. Ms. Wilson told him that the passes had been ordered but had not arrived and that she did not want the flyers to be sent until the passes had arrived. Mr. Jenkins shifted the conversation and told Ms. Wilson that she was responsible for the rumor mill around school and accused her of changing a letter that had been written by the Safety and Discipline Committee in October to advise the parents of the November 9 SAC meeting. Mr. Jenkins said the letter that went home to the parents was not the letter the Safety and Discipline Committee had agreed upon. Ms. Wilson did not know about the changes to the letter and called Ms. Hogan to come into the office to discuss the letter. Ms. Hogan brought in the disc on which the letter had been saved, and they viewed it on the computer. Mr. Jenkins again shifted the conversation to the November 9 meeting and held Ms. Wilson responsible for the rudeness he felt Ms. Lacy displayed at the SAC meeting. Mr. Jenkins then shifted the discussion again and wanted the South Area Office to look into what Ms. Wilson's role was on SAC. Mr. Jenkins started to yell and point his finger in Ms. Wilson's face. His face got red, and his voice became louder. He told Ms. Wilson that she would be in charge of damage control. Ms. Hogan told him not to point his finger at Ms. Wilson. Mr. Jenkins turned to Ms. Hogan and said, "I've got an attorney, I've got the union, and I've got a gun." Both Ms. Wilson and Ms. Hogan asked Mr. Jenkins what he said. He replied that he did not know what he said and that he had been interrupted. Either Ms. Wilson or Ms. Hogan told him that he had said, "I've got a gun." Mr. Jenkins became flustered and walked out of the office. Both Ms. Wilson and Ms. Hogan were shocked by Mr. Jenkins' outburst. Neither woman could tell whether Mr. Jenkins actually had a gun in his fanny pack. A conference room was located next to Ms. Wilson's office. Cathy Greenspan, Donna Blank, and Barbara Perkins were in the conference room when Mr. Jenkins was meeting with Ms. Wilson and Ms. Hogan. Both Ms. Blank and Ms. Perkins heard Mr. Jenkins say the word, "gun." Ms. Greenspan heard Mr. Jenkins say, "I've got a gun." After Mr. Jenkins left the administration office, Ms. Hogan called the Special Investigative Unit (SIU), which is the school police, and requested assistance. Investigator Evelyn McCabe came to the school. Ms. Hogan was afraid of what Mr. Jenkins might do and locked herself in her office until Investigator McCabe arrived. Mr. Jenkins returned to the administration office with Sydna Satterfield, a teacher at Pasedena Lakes and a friend of Mr. Jenkins. Mr. Jenkins, Ms. Satterfield, Investigator McCabe, Ms. Wilson, and Ms. Hogan went into to Ms. Wilson's office. A few minutes later Susie Ruder, another teacher and friend of Mr. Jenkins, joined them. Mr. Jenkins denied saying that he had a gun and then stated that he did not know what he said. He threw his keys on Ms. Wilson's desk and asked to be transferred to an "F" school. He walked out of the office but returned and said that he wanted an investigation. Ms. Wilson told him to think about whether he wanted an investigation or wanted to work out things. She advised him that she was willing to work with him on their problems. Mr. Jenkins said he did not know what he said, but apologized for whatever he had said. Mr. Jenkins and Ms. Wilson hugged, and they agreed to try to work together. That evening and the next morning, Ms. Wilson received calls from staff members who feared for their safety and the safety of their children as a result of the incident with Mr. Jenkins. Ms. Wilson began to think about what had happened and the complaints from staff. She also saw an article in the newspaper concerning a colleague who had not contacted authorities concerning an incident that had happened at his school and had tried to resolve the situation by himself. She felt she had to get assistance. Ms. Wilson called Bruce Wagar, who is in charge of professional standards. He advised her to file a complaint with SIU, which resulted in an investigation. As part of the investigation, Mr. Jenkins underwent a psychological evaluation in April 2000 by Dr. Joel Kimmel. The evaluation report stated: Personality tests and behavioral observations indicate that Mr. Jenkins is a frustrated individual who believes he is being prevented from doing his job. His responses to the personality tests indicate that he tends to define his identity based upon his position and derives a lot of satisfaction from his job. He enjoys working with students and motivating them to achieve their potential. He likes the status and recognition he receives from his position and may have a lonely life outside his job. He also appears to be somewhat incompetent, or inefficient. When frustrated, he can escalate and demand his way. However, there are no signs of any violent behaviors in any of his responses suggesting that he probably will not act out when frustrated. He does believe in the benefit of talking things out. However, he does want to do things his way and may not respect others if they disagree with him. He also does appear to have some boundary issues in terms of not understanding where his authority ends and being able to accept the authority of others. His greatest fear is that of failure and losing his job which could represent a failure for him. His provisional diagnosis would be Adjustment Disorder with Mixed Emotional Features (DSM IV 309.28). It is highly recommended that Mr. Jenkins participate in sensitivity training and interpersonal relationship programs in order to develop his capacity to tolerate others' viewpoints as well as decrease his frustration. A stress reduction program would also be helpful in improving his ability to control his frustration and developing more patience. Meetings between he [sic], his principal, and a counselor may be of assistance in improving their relationship. Mr. Jenkins has demonstrated inappropriate behavior on different occasions involving his students. He showed his paycheck to a first grade class and asked them if that was not a lot of money. Another time, he read an article from a newspaper to a kindergarten swim safety class about a student who had drowned and told the class that they could drown. Mr. Jenkins left his physical education class outdoors unattended when their regular classroom teacher failed to pick them up on time. On November 17, 1999, Ms. Wilson inadvertently referred to Mr. Jenkins during a morning announcement as Thomas Wilson rather than Thomas Jenkins. Mr. Jenkins and his wife composed a letter to show how one word could be misconstrued. The letter, which Mr. Jenkins referred to as a private joke, stated that Mr. Jenkins thinks that Ms. Wilson fantasizes about him being her husband, that she wants his body, that Ms. Wilson was a "horny lady," and that she might lose control and have sex with him. Mr. Jenkins' wife shared the letter, which Mr. Jenkins called a "nothing" letter, with other employees of Pasedena Lakes. Both teachers and parents testified that they were fearful of Mr. Jenkins based on his past conduct and that he had created a hostile work environment.
Recommendation Based on the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED that a final order be entered finding that just cause exists for suspending Thomas Jenkins, finding that Thomas Jenkins is guilty of immorality and misconduct in office, and suspending Thomas Jenkins for 60 days. DONE AND ENTERED this 30th day of March, 2001, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. SUSAN B. KIRKLAND Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 SUNCOM 278-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6847 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 30th day of March, 2001. COPIES FURNISHED: Randy A. Fleischer, Esquire 4801 University Drive, Suite 3070 Davie, Florida 33328 Kathleen M. Richards, Executive Director Education Practices Commission Department of Education 325 West Gaines Street, Room 224E Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0400 Charles T. Whitelock, Esquire Whitelock & Associates, P.A. 300 Southeast 13th Street Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33316 James A. Robinson, General Counsel Department of Education The Capitol, Suite 1701 Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0400 Dr. Frank L. Till, Jr., Superintendent Broward County School Board 600 Southeast Third Avenue Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301-3125
The Issue Whether Respondent violated Subsections 231.28(1)(c), (f), and (i), Florida Statutes (1999), and Rule 6B-1.006(3)(a), (b), (e), and (f), Rule 6B-1.006(4)(a) and (b), Rule 6B-1.006 (5)(a), (c), (d), (e), (f), (o), and Rule 6B-1.001(1), (2), and (3), Florida Administrative Code, and, if so, what penalty should be imposed.
Findings Of Fact Mr. Jenkins holds a Florida Educator Certificate. At all times pertinent to this proceeding, he was employed as a physical education teacher at Pasedena Lakes Elementary School (Pasedena Lakes) in the Broward County School District, where he had been teaching for 15 years. Mr. Jenkins was a Master Steward for the teachers' union. He was also a member of the School Advisory Council (SAC) and was chair of the Safety and Discipline Committee, which is a part of SAC. Jill Wilson has been the principal at Pasedena Lakes for six years and has a total of 29 years of educational experience. The assistant principal at Pasedena Lakes is Charlene Hogan, who has been at Pasedena Lakes for five years and has a total of 28 years of experience in the field of education. On October 29, 1998, at approximately 5:00 p.m., Mr. Jenkins came to Ms. Wilson's office and yelled at her, accusing her of discrediting him and making things worse at the school. During this incident, Donna Blank, a former employee of Pasedena Lakes, was leaving the building and, through a window, observed Mr. Jenkins pounding on Ms. Wilson's desk and saying, "You're not my boss." Ms. Blank went to her car, but returned to the building because she felt that she could not leave Ms. Wilson alone in that situation. When Ms. Blank went to Ms. Wilson's office, Ms. Wilson was visibly shaken. Ms. Wilson felt intimidated by Mr. Jenkins and, as a result of the incident, issued a memorandum to Mr. Jenkins dated October 30, 1998. The memorandum outlined the events that had taken place in Ms. Wilson's office on October 29, 1998, advised Mr. Jenkins that his actions were inappropriate, and required him to schedule future meetings with her secretary so that she could have another staff member present when they met. Pasedena Lakes has about 900 elementary students. Parking was a problem at the school, as well as traffic congestion when parents dropped off students in the mornings. Parents would park in the teachers' parking spaces, and there would be disruptions in the flow of traffic when the parents would take time to dole out lunch money, dress the children, say farewells, and otherwise take up additional time as they were dropping off the students. Mr. Jenkins volunteered to help direct traffic in the mornings in order to reduce the congestion in the parking lots. His mode of directing traffic was more aggressive than the methods that had been used previously by the other teachers. Mr. Jenkins used a bull horn to shout at the parents to move the traffic along and to tell them to kiss their kids at home and not at school. At first his efforts were commendable, but he began to become frustrated with the job. Mr. Jenkins would yell at the parents and the students, upsetting both the parents and the students. On one occasion while on traffic duty, Mr. Jenkins, using his bullhorn, called another teacher "Deadwood," belittling her in front of students, parents, and other staff members. Sometime during the fall of 1999, Patricia Lewis was bringing her two children to the school. Ms. Lewis needed to talk to one of her children's teachers, so she dropped her children off and told them to wait for her while she parked the car. While she was parking the car, Mr. Jenkins yelled at her children, "You little monkeys, hurry up and get back to class." Ms. Lewis, a Haitian-American, was upset at his remarks and confronted him. She told Mr. Jenkins, "My kids have a name. You do not call them that." Mr. Jenkins replied, "If you don't like it, go get a lawyer, and my lawyer will win." Visibly upset, Ms. Lewis went to the school administration's office and asked to speak to the principal. She talked with Ms. Wilson and explained what had happened in the parking area. Ms. Wilson assured her that she would take care of the matter and talk to Mr. Jenkins. Ms. Lewis left the office and went to find her child's teacher to talk with her as originally planned. She ran into Mr. Jenkins in the hallway. Mr. Jenkins said, "Oh, you're the one who went to the principal." Ms. Lewis told him that she did not want to talk with him and turned away. Mr. Jenkins began to yell at her, and she went back to the office in tears. When she got to the principal's office, Ms. Lewis was loud and upset. Again Ms. Wilson calmed her down. In the fall of 1999, the Safety and Discipline Committee had concerns over the traffic problems at Pasedena Lakes and over unauthorized visitors on campus. A meeting of SAC was scheduled for November 9, 1999, to discuss these issues. The Safety and Discipline Committee met and drafted a letter which was to be sent to the parents asking them to come to the meeting and outlining the concerns which would be discussed. Ms. Hogan was on the Safety and Discipline Committee, and she edited the draft letter with input from other committee members so that the letter would fit on one sheet of paper. Mr. Jenkins was not happy with the edited version, but he did not tell Hogan of his displeasure at the time the letter was rewritten. Mr. Jenkins helped distribute the letter to the parents in the parking lot. Alice Lacy, a teacher at Pasedena Lakes, was the chair of SAC, and Hogan was co-chair. On November 1, 1999, Mr. Jenkins told Ms. Lacy that he wanted to have a meeting prior to the SAC meeting scheduled for November 9, 1999, in order to get the teachers to form a coalition and come to the November 9 meeting to support him. As chair of SAC, Lacy told Mr. Jenkins that it would be better to send a memorandum to the teachers rather than schedule a separate meeting. Later on the same day, Mr. Jenkins told Ms. Lacy that he was demanding that the teachers come to the November 9 SAC meeting. He became angry with Ms. Lacy and told her that it was a personal issue and that the teachers owed it to him. He stormed away from Ms. Lacy. Ms. Lacy became concerned about the November 9 SAC meeting and felt that Mr. Jenkins should clarify his intentions prior to the meeting. She sent Mr. Jenkins a memorandum, requesting that he provide her with an agenda by November 5. Mr. Jenkins did not supply an agenda. Ms. Lacy heard him yelling at teachers outside her classroom on November 5, but did not know what he was discussing with the teachers. Ms. Lacy became concerned and sent a memorandum dated November 5, 1999, to Ms. Wilson and Ms. Hogan, urging that the November 9 SAC meeting be postponed until the issues involving Mr. Jenkins could be resolved. The administration met with Mr. Jenkins, and Ms. Lacy was assured that Mr. Jenkins understood that the SAC meeting would be under Ms. Lacy's direction, the agenda would be followed, and the meeting would take place in the media center. When Ms. Lacy went to the media center on the evening of November 9, 1999, she found that the media center was locked and that Mr. Jenkins was setting up the meeting in the cafeteria, where he could have teachers sit on stage with him to lend him support. Lacy confronted Mr. Jenkins and told him that the meeting would take place in the media center as planned. Mr. Jenkins shook his finger at Ms. Lacy and told her that she was making a big mistake. When Ms. Lacy was calling the meeting to order, Mr. Jenkins called out of turn and said, "I motion to move this meeting to the cafeteria." Ms. Lacy called Mr. Jenkins out of order. There was a large turn-out for the SAC meeting, and it was agreed that each speaker would be limited to two minutes. When Mr. Jenkins began to make his presentation for the Safety and Discipline Committee, Ms. Lacy felt that he was unprepared and was improvising. Several times Mr. Jenkins spoke and went over his two-minute limit. When he did, Ms. Lacy would cut him off and go on to the next speaker. After this happened three times, Susie Ruder, a teacher at Pasedena Lakes, sent a note to Ms. Lacy, telling Ms. Lacy that she felt Ms. Lacy was being rude to Mr. Jenkins. After Ms. Lacy received the note, she gave Mr. Jenkins more time to speak. The day after the meeting, Mr. Jenkins ran into Ms. Hogan and Cathy Greenspan, a reading resource specialist at Pasedena Lakes, on the school campus. Mr. Jenkins shook Ms. Hogan's hand and commented that the SAC meeting had been a good meeting. Approximately ten minutes later, Mr. Jenkins went to Ms. Wilson's office. He was wearing shorts, a shirt, and a fanny pack. His purpose for the visit was to discuss sending flyers to parents advising them of the decision of SAC to require parents to obtain a visitor's pass to come on the school campus. Ms. Wilson told him that the passes had been ordered but had not arrived and that she did not want the flyers to be sent until the passes had arrived. Mr. Jenkins shifted the conversation and told Ms. Wilson that she was responsible for the rumor mill around school and accused her of changing a letter that had been written by the Safety and Discipline Committee in October to advise the parents of the November 9 SAC meeting. Mr. Jenkins said the letter that went home to the parents was not the letter the Safety and Discipline Committee had agreed upon. Ms. Wilson did not know about the changes to the letter and called Ms. Hogan to come into the office to discuss the letter. Ms. Hogan brought in the disc on which the letter had been saved, and they viewed it on the computer. Mr. Jenkins again shifted the conversation to the November 9 meeting and held Ms. Wilson responsible for the rudeness he felt Ms. Lacy displayed at the SAC meeting. Mr. Jenkins then shifted the discussion again and wanted the South Area Office to look into what Ms. Wilson's role was on SAC. Mr. Jenkins started to yell and point his finger in Ms. Wilson's face. His face got red, and his voice became louder. He told Ms. Wilson that she would be in charge of damage control. Ms. Hogan told him not to point his finger at Ms. Wilson. Mr. Jenkins turned to Ms. Hogan and said, "I've got an attorney, I've got the union, and I've got a gun." Both Ms. Wilson and Ms. Hogan asked Mr. Jenkins what he said. He replied that he did not know what he said and that he had been interrupted. Either Ms. Wilson or Ms. Hogan told him that he had said, "I've got a gun." Mr. Jenkins became flustered and walked out of the office. Both Ms. Wilson and Ms. Hogan were shocked by Mr. Jenkins' outburst. Neither woman could tell whether Mr. Jenkins actually had a gun in his fanny pack. A conference room was located next to Ms. Wilson's office. Cathy Greenspan, Donna Blank, and Barbara Perkins were in the conference room when Mr. Jenkins was meeting with Ms. Wilson and Ms. Hogan. Both Ms. Blank and Ms. Perkins heard Mr. Jenkins say the word, "gun." Ms. Greenspan heard Mr. Jenkins say, "I've got a gun." After Mr. Jenkins left the administration office, Ms. Hogan called the Special Investigative Unit (SIU), which is the school police, and requested assistance. Investigator Evelyn McCabe came to the school. Ms. Hogan was afraid of what Mr. Jenkins might do and locked herself in her office until Inspector McCabe arrived. Mr. Jenkins returned to the administration office with Sydna Satterfield, a teacher at Pasedena Lakes and a friend of Mr. Jenkins. Mr. Jenkins, Ms. Satterfield, Investigator McCabe, Ms. Wilson, and Ms. Hogan went into to Ms. Wilson's office. A few minutes later Susie Ruder, another teacher and friend of Mr. Jenkins, joined them. Mr. Jenkins denied saying that he had a gun and then stated that he did not know what he said. He threw his keys on Ms. Wilson's desk and asked to be transferred to an "F" school. He walked out of the office but returned and said that he wanted an investigation. Ms. Wilson told him to think about whether he wanted an investigation or wanted to work out things. She advised him that she was willing to work with him on their problems. Mr. Jenkins said he did not know what he said, but apologized for whatever he had said. Mr. Jenkins and Ms. Wilson hugged, and they agreed to try to work together. That evening and the next morning, Ms. Wilson received calls from staff members who feared for their safety and the safety of their children as a result of the incident with Mr. Jenkins. Ms. Wilson began to think about what had happened and the complaints from staff. She also saw an article in the newspaper concerning a colleague who had not contacted authorities concerning an incident that had happened at his school and had tried to resolve the situation by himself. She felt she had to get assistance. Ms. Wilson called Bruce Wagar, who is in charge of professional standards. He advised her to file a complaint with SIU, which resulted in an investigation. As part of the investigation, Mr. Jenkins underwent a psychological evaluation in April 2000 by Dr. Joel Kimmel. The evaluation report stated: Personality tests and behavioral observations indicate that Mr. Jenkins is a frustrated individual who believes he is being prevented from doing his job. His responses to the personality tests indicate that he tends to define his identity based upon his position and derives a lot of satisfaction from his job. He enjoys working with students and motivating them to achieve their potential. He likes the status and recognition he receives from his position and may have a lonely life outside his job. He also appears to be somewhat incompetent, or inefficient. When frustrated, he can escalate and demand his way. However, there are no signs of any violent behaviors in any of his responses suggesting that he probably will not act out when frustrated. He does believe in the benefit of talking things out. However, he does want to do things his way and may not respect others if they disagree with him. He also does appear to have some boundary issues in terms of not understanding where his authority ends and being able to accept the authority of others. His greatest fear is that of failure and losing his job which could represent a failure for him. His provisional diagnosis would be Adjustment Disorder with Mixed Emotional Features (DSM IV 309.28). It is highly recommended that Mr. Jenkins participate in sensitivity training and interpersonal relationship programs in order to develop his capacity to tolerate others' viewpoints as well as decrease his frustration. A stress reduction program would also be helpful in improving his ability to control his frustration and developing more patience. Meetings between he [sic], his principal, and a counselor may be of assistance in improving their relationship. Mr. Jenkins has demonstrated inappropriate behavior on different occasions involving his students. He showed his paycheck to a first grade class and asked them if that was not a lot of money. Another time, he read an article from a newspaper to a kindergarten swim safety class about a student who had drowned and told the class that they could drown. Mr. Jenkins left his physical education class outdoors unattended when their regular classroom teacher failed to pick them up on time. On November 17, 1999, Ms. Wilson inadvertently referred to Mr. Jenkins during a morning announcement as Thomas Wilson rather than Thomas Jenkins. Mr. Jenkins and his wife composed a letter to show how one word could be misconstrued. The letter, which Mr. Jenkins referred to as a private joke, stated that Mr. Jenkins thinks that Ms. Wilson fantasizes about him being her husband, that she wants his body, that Ms. Wilson was a "horny lady," and that she might lose control and have sex with him. Mr. Jenkins' wife shared the letter, which Mr. Jenkins called a "nothing" letter, with other employees of Pasedena Lakes. Both teachers and parents testified that they were fearful of Mr. Jenkins based on his past conduct and that he had created a hostile work environment.
Recommendation Based on the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED that a Final Order be entered finding that Thomas Jenkins violated Subsections 231.28(1)(c), (f), and (i), Florida Statutes (1999), and Rule 6B-1.001(1), (2), and (3), Rule 6B-1.006(3)(a), and (e), Rule 6B-1.006(4)(a), and Rules 6B-1.006(5)(d),(e) and (o), Florida Administrative Code; finding that Thomas Jenkins did not violate Rule 6B-1.006(3)(b) and (f), Rule 6B-1.006(4)(b), and Rule 6B- 1.006(5) (a), (c), and (f), Florida Administrative Code; suspending Thomas Jenkins' teaching certificate for 60 days followed by a probation period of three years; requiring that Thomas Jenkins take courses in professional responsibility, improving interpersonal communication skills, and sensitivity training; requiring Thomas Jenkins to have periodic psychological evaluations prior to and after returning to work; and requiring Thomas Jenkins to have a fitness-for-duty examination. DONE AND ENTERED this 30th day of March, 2001, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. SUSAN B. KIRKLAND Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 SUNCOM 278-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6847 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 30th day of March, 2001. COPIES FURNISHED: Randy A. Fleischer, Esquire 4801 University Drive, Suite 3070 Davie, Florida 33328 Kathleen M. Richards, Executive Director Education Practices Commission Department of Education 325 West Gaines Street, Room 224E Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0400 Charles T. Whitelock, Esquire Whitelock & Associates, P.A. 300 Southeast 13th Street Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33316 James A. Robinson, General Counsel Department of Education The Capitol, Suite 1701 Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0400 Dr. Frank L. Till, Jr., Superintendent Broward County School Board 600 Southeast Third Avenue Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301-3125
