School Safety & Professional Practices
School Safety Legislation (MCL 380.1230a) Certificate Suspension and Revocation (MCL 380.1535a)
Stephanie Whiteside
School District Consultant
Objective • Gain understanding of criminal background
checks for all employees
• Obtain current law/rules on proper reporting
of felonies, convictions, and misdemeanors
• Understand how specific offenses impact an
educator’s certificate
Professional Standards and Practices
School Safety Legislation
• All K–12 employees who are regularly and continuously
employed must undergo a criminal history check which
includes fingerprinting. • The legislation does permit the sharing of criminal
background check results if the individual is making
application to multiple districts during the same time
period, or is employed by multiple districts, or when an
employee has moved from one district to a new district
with no interruption of service. This is more
commonly found with Substitute Teaching Permits.
3 Professional Standards and Practices
School Safety Legislation
• If the district does not have or refuses to share the
information, the individual must undergo
fingerprinting.
• Once the individual has been identified as a school
employee any subsequent arrests, arraignments, or
convictions will be reported to the Michigan
Department of Education (MDE) by the Michigan
State Police Criminal Justice Information Center in
Rap Back notifications. MDE then notifies the school
district of convictions. 4 Professional Standards and Practices
School Safety Legislation
Any questions or concerns regarding the criminal history
background checks, obtaining a school employee index
number, or challenges to information on the report,
should be directed to: the Michigan State Police Criminal
Justice Information Center by calling the following
number: (517) 322-5531. 5 Professional Standards and Practices
School Safety Legislation
If a school employee has been convicted of a “listed”
offense (a conviction requiring the name of the
individual to be listed on the Sex Offenders Registry),
the employee must immediately be dismissed and, in
accordance with the legal standard set by legislation,
shall not work for a Michigan K–12 school in any
capacity.
6 Listed Offenses
(Requires Immediate Termination of K–12
Employment)
Offenses
•Accosting, enticing, or soliciting a child for immoral purposes
•Involvement in child sexually abusive activity or material
Listed Offenses (continued)
• A third or subsequent violation of any
combination of engaging in obscene
or indecent conduct in public,
indecent exposure, or a local
ordinance substantially corresponding
to either offense
• First, second, third, or fourth degree
Criminal Sexual Conduct (CSC)
Listed Offenses (continued)
• Assault with intent to commit CSC
• If the victim is less than 18 years of
age, the crime of gross indecency
(except for a juvenile disposition or
adjudication), kidnapping, sodomy, or
soliciting another for prostitution
Listed Offenses (continued)
• Leading, enticing, or carrying away a
child under 14 years of age
• Pandering • Any other violation of a state law or
local ordinance constituting a sexual
offense against an individual less than
18 years of age
Listed Offenses (continued)
• An offense committed by a sexually
delinquent person
• An attempt or conspiracy to commit
one of the aforementioned offenses Professional Standards and Practices
School Safety Legislation
• If a school employee has been convicted of a felony,
any felony, the superintendent and the school board
must agree, in writing, to continue the employment of,
or the hiring of, the individual. • If the school employee has been convicted of a
misdemeanor, then the school will be notified by MDE
but no action is required. • The school may choose to institute a policy regarding
misdemeanor convictions by employees.
12 Professional Standards and Practices
School Safety Legislation
Schools are required to report to MDE if they become
aware of an employee who has been convicted of a
felony or an enumerated offense. An enumerated
offense is one that is specifically mentioned in the
statute.
13 Professional Standards and Practices
School Safety Legislation
All school employees are required to
disclosed arraignment for offenses listed
in Section 1535a to both the employer
and the MDE within three (3) business
days of arraignment. 14 MCL 380.1535a Enumerated
Offenses
• Any Felony
• Felonious assault on a child; child
abuse in any degree; an attempt to
commit child abuse in any degree
• Cruelty, torture, or indecent exposure
involving a child
Enumerated Misdemeanors
(continued)
• Delivery of a narcotic to a minor or
student or within 1,000 feet of school
property (333.7410)
• Knowingly allowing a minor to
consume or possess alcohol or a
controlled substance at a social
gathering (750.141a)
Enumerated Misdemeanors
(continued)
• Accosting, enticing, or soliciting a
child for an immoral purpose
(750.145a)
• Larceny from a vacant dwelling
(750.359)
• Breaking and entering (750.115)
Enumerated Misdemeanors
(continued)
• Assault; Assault and Battery (750.81)
• Assault; infliction of serious injury
(750.81a)
Enumerated Misdemeanors (continued)
• Selling or furnishing alcoholic liquor
to a person less than 21 years of age
(436.33)
Professional Standards and Practices
School Safety Legislation
The legislation does permit the sharing of criminal
background check results if the individual is making
application to multiple districts during the same time
period, or is employed by multiple districts, or when an
employee has moved from one district to a new district
with no interruption of service.
Professional Standards and Practices
School Safety Legislation
Please note, in MCL 380.1230a, an additional criminal
history check is not required of the employee as long as
the individual remains employed with no separation
from service or continues to work under contract. If
the employee is laid off or placed on leave and returns
to active employment with the same employer within
one year a9er being laid off or on leave or if the
employee transfers to another district and remains
continuously employed, the employee does not have to
undergo an additional criminal history check.
21 Professional Standards and Practices
Suspension and Revocation of
Teaching Certificates
• The Michigan School Code, Section 380.1535(a) gives
authority to the State Superintendent to suspend or
revoke a teaching certificate when a conviction for a
felony or certain enumerated misdemeanors can be
shown to have an adverse effect on the person’s
present fitness to teach in an elementary or
secondary school, public or nonpublic.
22 Suspension and Revocation of
Teaching Certificates
23 •
If the conviction is for an offense enumerated in Section 1535a
(1) of the Revised School Code, the teacher will be scheduled
for an informal compliance conference to discuss the
conviction and its impact on their ability to obtain or retain
their Michigan teaching certificate. The certificate will retain
its current validity status during the entire process. •
If the conviction is for an offense enumerated in Section 1535a
(2) of the Revised School Code, the offense is deemed serious
enough to warrant the immediate suspension of the
certificate. The teacher will have the opportunity to challenge
the suspension but not while the certificate is valid. In the case
of a summary suspension, the teacher is notified the certificate
is suspended thus rendering the teacher ineligible to be
assigned to a classroom. Immediate Summary Suspension
MCL 380.1535a(2)
• Manufacturing/Delivering controlled
substance (7401(2)(a)(i))
• Possession of a controlled substance
(7403(2)(a)(i))
• Attempt to murder (750.91)
Summary Suspension Offenses
(continued)
• Recruiting, inducing, soliciting or
coercing minor to commit a felony
(333.7416)
• Assault with intent to commit murder
(750.83)
Summary Suspension Offenses
(continued)
• Assault with intent to rob and steal
armed (750.89)
• First degree murder (750.316)
• Second degree murder (750.317)
Summary Suspension Offenses
(continued)
• Armed robbery aggravated assault
(750.529)
• Misdemeanor Delivery of a narcotic
to a minor or student or within 1,000
feel of school property (333.7410)
Suspension and Revocation of
Teaching Certificates
• The suspension or revocation hearing is an
action by MDE against an individual’s teaching
certificate (a property right).
• The action by the superintendent and the school
board to continue employment is an employer
decision.
• The employer cannot suspend or revoke a
teaching certificate but can take action that may
have an adverse effect on employment.
28 Unprofessional Conduct Disclosure
• Schools are required to obtain a disclosure
of unprofessional conduct statement for
all new employees. • All new employees must sign a statement
releasing the previous employer from
liability for disclosing past unprofessional
conduct.
29 You Decide
It is time for you, the participant,
to decide the correct course of action
that will be taken…
Question/Answer
• Are there any questions?
Professional Standards and
Practices
Contact Information
Stephanie Whiteside
School District Consultant
(517) 335-1167 office
(517) 373-0542 fax
WhitesideS@michigan.gov