Boyce v. Alexis I. duPont School District

• Decision Date: 23 March 1972
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. 4141.
• Parties: Frederic H. BOYCE, Plaintiff, v. ALEXIS I. duPONT SCHOOL DISTRICT et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Delaware

341 F. Supp. 672

Frederic H. BOYCE, Plaintiff, v. ALEXIS I. duPONT SCHOOL DISTRICT et al., Defendants.

Civ. A. No. 4141.

United States District Court, D. Delaware.

March 23, 1972.

L. Coleman Dorsey, and Sheldon N. Sandler, Wilmington, Del., for plaintiff.

William E. Wiggin, Wilmington, Del., for defendants.

OPINION

STEEL, District Judge:

This is a civil rights action brought under 28 U.S.C. § 1343(3) and (4) and § 1983 by a former teacher at the Alexis I. duPont High School against various school officials¹ for their failure to employ him after his one-year contract of employment for the school year 1970-71 had expired. Plaintiff came to Delaware in December of 1968 and taught in the Newark School District from January of 1969 to June of 1970. During the 1970-71 school year, plaintiff was employed by the defendant school district.² Plaintiff's work was favorable because of his dedication, intelligence and his capacity to generate enthusiasm and confidence in his pupils.

On March 7, 1971 plaintiff received a letter from the Board of Education of the district which notified him that the Board intended to terminate his services at the end of the current year and stated as the reason "the elimination of the course World of Work which you have been teaching". Plaintiff wrote defendants on March 23, 1971 and requested a hearing. This was refused by letter dated March 26, 1971.

Plaintiff alleges that the stated reason for the non-renewal of his contract was in violation of his right to substantive due process under the Fourteenth Amendment since it was without basis in fact, and arbitrary and unreasoned. Plaintiff further alleges that the real reason for the defendants' decision was to retaliate for plaintiff having criticized certain aspects of the World of Work program to persons having no relationship with the school. This basis of refusal, plaintiff alleges, violated his substantive rights to free speech guaranteed by the First and Fourteenth Amendments. Finally, plaintiff alleges that the refusal of the Board to accord him a hearing before finally determining not to employ him was in derogation of his procedural due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment.

Pendent jurisdiction is a basis for plaintiff's further claim that defendants breached a promise which they made to him when he was employed that if the World of Work program was discontinued at the end of 1970-71 he would, nonetheless, be employed elsewhere in the district.

The complaint seeks, among other things, an order directing the defendants to give plaintiff a "due process" hearing, to tender plaintiff a contract for the school year 1971-72³ and to respond in damages for their alleged violation of plaintiff's civil rights and for their breach of his contract.

The matter is before the Court upon plaintiff's motion for partial summary judgment asserting that he is entitled to a hearing before the school board, and upon defendants' cross motion for summary judgment requesting dismissal of the complaint. The record consists of the unverified amended complaint, unverified answer, answers of defendants to interrogatories, deposition of Sidney B. Collison and affidavits.

Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment

The motion of defendants to dismiss the complaint should be granted as to the School District and all individual defendants in their non-official capacities for the reasons stated in Conway v. Alfred I. duPont School District, 333 F.Supp. 1217 (D.Del.1971).

In the Conway case the action was also dismissed insofar as it sought damages against the individual defendants in their official capacities. This was because the complaint failed to allege that the defendants' failure to renew the plaintiff's contract was motivated by bad faith. The complaint in the instant case contains no expressed charge that defendants acted with mala fides. The complaint does allege, however, that the reason assigned by defendants for non-renewal of plaintiff's contract was without basis in fact, was arbitrary and unreasonable, and was in retaliation for plaintiff's criticism of the World of Work course. These allegations, if true, will tend to support a finding of bad faith on the part of defendants. Since, for reasons about to be stated, the case will have to be tried, no decision will be made at this time whether the defendants in their official capacities can be held liable in damages. Whether their decision not to employ plaintiff for 1971-72 was made in bad faith must await the trial.

Relevant fact issues are present which necessitate a denial of defendants' motion in all respects other than those previously stated.

A material fact issue exists as to whether plaintiff's criticism of the World of Work program was the real reason why defendants refused to renew plaintiff's contract or whether their action was due to the fact that the World of Work program was being phased out. A sharp conflict in the evidence exists on the issue.⁴

In deciding defendants' motion, plaintiff's version of the facts must be accepted as true. These established that defendants' action was arbitrary, unsupported by substantial evidence and in retaliation for his exercise of constitutionally protected First Amendment substantive rights. Even though a teacher is without tenure, he is entitled to relief under the Civil Rights Act when his contract has not been renewed because of a violation of substantive constitutional rights. McLaughlin v. Tilendis, 398 F.2d 287, 289 (7th Cir. 1968); Johnson v. Branch, 364 F.2d 177, 180 (4th Cir. 1966); Drown v. Portsmouth School District, 435 F.2d 1182, 1183 (1st Cir. 1970); Freeman v. Gould Special School District, 405 F.2d 1153 (8th Cir. 1969); Roth v. Board of Regents, 310 F.Supp. 972, 976 (W.D.Wis.1970), aff'd 446 F.2d 806 (7th Cir. 1971), cert. granted, 404 U.S. 909, 92 S.Ct. 227, 30 L.Ed. 2d 181; Orr v. Trinter, 444 F.2d 128 (6th Cir. 1971); Ferguson v. Thomas, 430 F.2d 852 (5th Cir. 1970).

In Gouge v. Joint School District, 310 F.Supp. 984 (W.D.Wis.1970), where a non-tenured school teacher's contract was refused renewal, the court denied a motion for summary judgment by defendants saying at 992:

"I conclude that summary judgment of dismissal is inappropriate because there is a genuine issue of material fact both as to identifying the reasons upon which the Board acted in each case, and as to whether there was any basis in fact for any of the reasons in either case."

Plaintiff's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment

This motion is limited to a determination whether the Board of Education of the District should be mandated to give plaintiff a hearing on its decision not to reemploy him.

The following facts are beyond controversy.

It was during plaintiff's first year of teaching in the Alexis I. duPont School District that the Board advised plaintiff of its intention not to reemploy him. Plaintiff was then without tenure. 14 Del.C. § 1403.⁵ Nonetheless, section 1410 entitled plaintiff to be advised in writing by May 1st of defendants' intention not to reemploy him and to be given reasons therefor.⁶ As stated, this notice was given, and a hearing requested by plaintiff was denied. Thereafter, on May 10, 1971, plaintiff, through his attorney, wrote to the attorney for the school board, denied that plaintiff was being "dismissed" because of the discontinuance of the World of Work program which he was giving, and asserted that the real reason was because of critical statements which plaintiff had made regarding the course. The letter continued:

"The refusal to renew Mr. Boyce's contract, if based on the consideration he claims, would violate his federally guaranteed constitutional right to freedom of speech. The outright refusal to permit Mr. Boyce an opportunity to back up his contentions at a hearing would seem to be in violation of minimal due process rights to which he is entitled aside from any consideration of the state tenure law. I would appreciate it if you would consider this matter and advise me as to whether Mr. Boyce will be granted a hearing or an opportunity to meet with the district management to discuss the situation."

The evidence is in conflict over the real reason for the defendants not reemploying plaintiff. The fact that there is a conflict, however, is not in dispute. Since this is the only fact which is relevant and it is uncontroverted, the granting or denying of plaintiff's motion turns on the legal question whether as a matter of procedural due process defendants are required to accord plaintiff a hearing.

It has been held that a non-tenured school teacher whose contract has not been renewed has no procedural due process right to a hearing before a school board where he does not claim that the board has violated a constitutionally protected substantive right. Thaw v. Board of Public Instruction, 432 F.2d 98 (5th Cir. 1970); Orr v. Trinter, supra; Drown v. Portsmouth School District, 435 F.2d 1182 (1st Cir. 1970).

The case at bar, however, is not controlled by these decisions. Here plaintiff claims that the defendants' failure to reemploy him violated his substantive constitutional rights. Where this is so and a teacher has "an expectancy of reemployment"⁷ it has been held that procedural due process can be satisfied only by the granting of an administrative hearing. Lucas v. Chapman, 430 F.2d 945 (5th Cir. 1970). While the phrase "expectancy of reemployment" has been applied to specific factual situations, it is a slippery one to which no precise definition has been assigned. Lucas found that plaintiff's "long employment eleven years in the system in a continuing relationship through the use of renewals of short-term contracts was sufficient to give the plaintiff the necessary expectancy of reemployment that constituted a protectible interest." (p. 947). The adoption by school authorities of "regulations or standards of practice governing non-tenured employees" may create an expectation of...