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Legal & Employment Guidance

Teacher Tenure & Due Process Protections for Educators

Tenure status often provides the broadest protections for teachers at the K-12 level and for professors at the higher education level.
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Published: April 4, 2023

Tenure status often provides the broadest protections for teachers at the K-12 level and for professors at the higher education level.

At the K-12 level, tenure laws prevent a school district from dismissing a tenured teacher without good reason.

These protections are not available to all educators—tenure is generally limited to teachers, and only teachers who have worked in the school district for a certain number of years are eligible. In addition, tenured teachers generally cannot transfer these protections to a new district if they change schools.

A few states, as detailed below, have largely eliminated tenure protections. The following describes how state tenure laws work for K-12 educators.

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This page is intended to provide general information. For specific advice, you should always contact your local union or attorney. 

References

  • 1 Summary information in this section is based on an NEA survey of tenure statutes in all states and D.C.
  • 2 In March 2023, Arkansas repealed its Fair Dismissal Act, which provided due process protections to teachers. The repeal (Act 237) eliminates “just and reasonable cause” protection for tenured teachers. Educators are still entitled to (1) notice of a recommendation for termination from the superintendent and (2) an opportunity for a hearing before the school board concerning the recommendation for termination. School districts cannot provide additional rights to employees.
  • 3 Sch. Dist. No. 1 v. Masters, 413 P.3d 723 (Colo. 2018); Johnson v. Sch. Dist. No. 1, 413 P.3d 711 (Colo. 2018).
  • 4 Day v. Floyd Cty. Bd. of Educ., 775 S.E.2d 622 (Ga. App. 2015). However, Fulton County Superior Court has ruled that the waiver provision is unconstitutional as applied to educators in the Fannin County School System who earned tenure protections before the system became a charter system. Barnes v. Bearden, No. 2018-cv-301254 (Feb. 1, 2023).
  • 5 Some states offer a shorter probationary period for teachers transferring from other districts within the state.
  • 6 E.g., Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 391.820(6) (requiring “a designation of ‘highly effective’ or ‘effective’ on each of [the teacher’s] performance evaluations for 2 consecutive school years” in addition to probationary period and notice of reemployment).
  • 7 E.g., N.J. Stat. Ann. § 18A:28-5(b) (requiring completion of a mentorship program during the initial year of employment as a prerequisite for tenure eligibility); S.C. Code Ann. § 59-26-40(B) (requiring that each school district provide probationary teachers with a formalized induction program developed in accordance with state regulations).
  • 8 H.B. 4522, 124th Gen. Assemb. (S.C. 2021); Kate McGee, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick proposes ending university tenure to combat critical race theory teachings, Texas Tribune (Feb. 18, 2022), https://www.texastribune.org/2022/02/18/dan-patrick-texas-tenure-critical-race-theory/.
  • 9 Georgia Board of Regents Policy Section 8.3.5.1, Board of Regents Policy Manual, University System of Georgia, https://www.usg.edu/policymanual/; Miss. Stat. 37-101-15 (2022), https://codes.findlaw.com/ms/title-37-education/ms-code-sect-37-101-15/ (removal for malfeasance, inefficiency, or contumacious conduct); Neb. Stat. 85-601 (2023), https://nebraskalegislature.gov/laws/statutes.php?statute=85-601 (removal for any act or action not sanctioned by law to prevent the faculty, administrative officers, employees, or students in such institution from engaging in their normal duties in connection with the operation of the institution or pursuing their studies at such institution); Arkansas Board of Trustees Policy, Board Policy 405.1 Appointments, Promotion, Tenure, Non-Reappointment, and Dismissal of Faculty, https://uasys.edu/board-policy/405-1-appointments-promotion-tenure-non-reappointment-and-dismissal-of-faculty/
  • 10 Texas Senate Bill 18, as amended, effective Sept. 1, 2023, https://legiscan.com/TX/text/SB18/id/2820070/Texas-2023-SB18-Enrolled.html
  • 11 FLA. STAT. ANN. 1001.706(6)(b), http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=1000-1099/1001/Sections/1001.706.html; Georgia Board of Regents policy Section 8.3.5.4, Board of Regents Policy Manual, University System of Georgia, https://www.usg.edu/policymanual/; Utah HB 438 (effective July 1, 2024) https://legiscan.com/UT/text/HB0438/2024, amending 53B-2-106.1.
  • 12 Indiana Senate Bill 202, enacted March 13, 2024, https://legiscan.com/IN/text/SB0202/2024
  • 13 Leonard v. Converse Cty. Sch. Dist. No. 2, 788 P.2d 1119 (Wyo. 1990).
  • 14 Rodriguez v. Int’l Leadership Charter Sch., No. 08 Civ. 1012(PAC), 2009 WL 860622 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 30, 2009); Stahura Uhl v. Iroquois Cent. Sch. Dist., 836 F. Supp. 2d 132 (W.D.N.Y. 2011).
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