Carrillo v. Anthony Independent School Dist.

• Decision Date: 11 April 1996
• Docket Number: No. 08-95-00202-CV,08-95-00202-CV
• Parties: 109 Ed. Law Rep. 1007 Patricia CARRILLO, Appellant, v. ANTHONY INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT, the Board of Trustees of Anthony Independent School District, and Jimmy Fickling, Appellees.
• Court: Texas Court of Appeals

Page 800

921 S.W.2d 800

109 Ed. Law Rep. 1007

Patricia CARRILLO, Appellant, v. ANTHONY INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT, the Board of Trustees

of Anthony Independent School District, and Jimmy

Fickling, Appellees.

No. 08-95-00202-CV.

Court of Appeals of Texas,

El Paso.

April 11, 1996.

Daniel R. Malone, Malone & Davie, El Paso, for appellant.

Larry Baskind, Henry C. Hosford, Baskind, Samaniego & Hosford, P.C., El Paso, for appellee.

Before BARAJAS, C.J., and McCLURE and CHEW, JJ.

OPINION

McCLURE, Justice.

This appeal arises from a summary judgment granted in favor of Appellees, Anthony Independent School District ("AISD"); the school district's board of trustees ("school board"); and Jimmy Fickling ("Fickling"), superintendent of AISD. Appellant, Patricia Carrillo ("Carrillo"), alleges that she was wrongfully terminated, and she sued Appellees for breach of contract and violation of her due process rights pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, the United States Constitution, and the Texas Constitution. We reverse and remand.

SUMMARY OF THE EVIDENCE

AISD hired Carrillo in December 1985 to teach English as a Second Language ("ESL") in its high school. Carrillo asserts that she entered the employment relationship with the understanding that her duties eventually would be extended to teaching Spanish as well as ESL. AISD argues that Carrillo was hired solely to teach ESL and that their contractual relationship was limited by this understanding. The summary judgment evidence reflects that Carrillo taught ESL at AISD for one and one-half years and that she had no other assignments during that period. In March 1986, Carrillo passed the Texas Examination for Current Administrators and Teachers ("TECAT"), which is a prerequisite to certification as a teacher in Texas. Despite certification earned through passage of the TECAT, an individual employed to teach certain specific subjects must complete additional requirements for certification, including passage of the Examination for the Certification of Educators in Texas ("EXCET"). ESL is one of those subject areas requiring that a teacher pass both the TECAT and the EXCET.

AISD entered into a probationary contract with Carrillo to teach during the 1986-1987 school year. Throughout this time, ESL continued to be her sole teaching assignment. Because Carrillo was not certified to teach ESL, she was granted a temporary classroom assignment permit by the Texas Education Agency ("TEA") which allowed her to teach ESL for one year while she completed her remaining requirements for certification. These requirements were contained in a deficiency plan issued to Carrillo by Sul Ross State University. Although Carrillo diligently completed some of the requirements, she was not able to pass the EXCET. As a result, she did not complete her deficiency plan and her temporary permit lapsed at the end of the 1986-1987 school year. Her inability to present valid certification to teach ESL during the 1987-1988 school year is the center of the controversy before us. Carrillo maintains that her failure to certify in ESL is not dispositive of the contractual and due process issues. Appellees assert that certification was a condition precedent and that without valid certification, the contract is void.

Carrillo first learned of the EXCET requirement from the principal of Anthony High School, Manuel Aguilar ("Aguilar"), in February 1987. She took and failed the test at that time. Aguilar advised her that she could retake the exam the next time it was offered. After the 1986-1987 school year, but prior to the time the next EXCET was given, AISD entered into another probationary contract with Carrillo for the 1987-1988 school year. This contract was to run from August 25, 1987 through June 2, 1988. On June 13, 1987, Carrillo retook the EXCET. She received the results of that exam in July, but did not report them to either Aguilar or Fickling. Sometime in early August 1987, Aguilar's secretary called Carrillo to learn her results on the EXCET. Carrillo informed her that she had failed. Aguilar then told Fickling of the result. Fickling called the TEA and spoke with Dr. Nolan Wood, who in turn advised Fickling that Carrillo was unemployable.

Fickling then asked Aguilar to schedule a meeting with Carrillo, which was ultimately arranged for the Monday on which the teachers were to report to work for the school year. Aguilar informed Carrillo that she was not qualified to teach ESL, but that she might be able to teach Spanish until she passed the EXCET. Aguilar and Carrillo then walked over to Fickling's office. Fickling informed Carrillo that she was not qualified to teach and that she would not be able to carry any assignments with AISD. He did not offer her an assignment to teach Spanish or business administration, the only subject areas in which she was certified to teach, because veteran teachers already filled those positions. Fickling handed Carrillo a form entitled "Termination or Exit Report of School Employee" and conditioned the release of her last paycheck upon her signing this document. Carrillo refused to sign it, taking it instead to an attorney. She later signed the form under protest ¹ and collected her last paycheck.

Shortly thereafter, Carrillo began teaching elementary Spanish in the Ysleta Independent School District. This job, however, paid less and was considerably farther from her Canutillo residence than AISD. She sued for the difference in pay, mileage, other incidental expenses, emotional distress, and attorney's fees. Both Carrillo and Appellees filed motions for summary judgment and the trial court granted Appellees' motion. On appeal, Carrillo brings forward twelve points of error. The first eight complain of the trial court's granting summary judgment. The remaining four assert that Carrillo is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

The standard of review on appeal of a summary judgment is whether the successful movant at the trial level carried the burden of showing that no genuine issue of material fact existed and that a judgment should be granted as a matter of law. Lear Siegler, Inc. v. Perez, 819 S.W.2d 470, 471 (Tex.1991); Nixon v. Mr. Property Management Co., Inc., 690 S.W.2d 546, 548 (Tex.1985); Cortez v. Liberty Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 885 S.W.2d 466, 469 (Tex.App.--El Paso 1994, writ denied). Thus, the question on appeal is not whether the summary judgment proof raises fact issues as to required elements of the plaintiff's cause or claim, but whether the summary judgment proof establishes, as a matter of law, that no genuine issue of material fact as to one or more elements of plaintiff's cause or claim exists. Gibbs v. General Motors, Corp., 450 S.W.2d 827, 828 (Tex.1970). In resolving the issue of whether the movant has carried this burden, all evidence favorable to the non-movant must be taken as true and all reasonable inferences, including any doubts, must be resolved in the non-movants favor. Nixon, 690 S.W.2d at 548-49; DeLuna v. Guynes Printing Co. of Texas, Inc., 884 S.W.2d 206, 208 (Tex.App.--El Paso 1994, writ denied). When the defendant is the movant and when summary judgment evidence disproving at least one essential element of each of the plaintiff's causes of action is submitted, summary judgment should be granted. Perez, 819 S.W.2d at 471; Bradley v. Quality Serv. Tank Lines, 659 S.W.2d 33, 34 (Tex.1983); Cortez, 885 S.W.2d at 469. When the summary judgment does not state the grounds upon which it was granted, the judgment will be affirmed if any of the theories advanced in the summary judgment motion are meritorious. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co. v. S.S., 858 S.W.2d 374, 380 (Tex.1993); Rogers v. Ricane Enter., Inc., 772 S.W.2d 76, 79 (Tex.1989); Hernandez v. Kasco Ventures, Inc., 832 S.W.2d 629, 632 (Tex.App.--El Paso 1992, no writ). However, a summary judgment will be affirmed only upon the grounds specifically stated in the motion. McConnell v. Southside Independent School District, 858 S.W.2d 337, 339 (Tex.1993).

EXHAUSTION OF ADMINISTRATIVE REMEDIES

Before addressing the substantive breach of contract and due process claims, we must consider whether the trial court had jurisdiction. Contemporaneous with the filing of their summary judgment motion, Appellees amended their original answer to include a plea to the trial court's jurisdiction asserting that the trial court lacked subject matter jurisdiction until Carrillo exhausted her administrative remedies. As a general rule, a teacher complaining of wrongful discharge must exhaust all available administrative remedies if the subject matter involves questions of fact. See Barrientos v. Ysleta Indep. School Dist., 881 S.W.2d 159, 160-61 (Tex.App.--El Paso 1994, no writ); Roberts v. Hartley Indep. School Dist., 877 S.W.2d 506, 507 (Tex.App.--Amarillo 1994, writ denied); Mitchison v. Houston Indep. School Dist., 803 S.W.2d 769, 771-72 (Tex.App.--Houston [14th Dist.] 1991, writ denied). An exception to this general rule applies when the plaintiff asserts federal law claims, and recourse may be sought in a court of law. Mitchison, 803 S.W.2d at 773. Carrillo asserted both a federal and state constitutional due process claim and a claim pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Therefore, exhaustion of administrative remedies was not a prerequisite to seeking relief in a court of law. See Patsy v. Board of Regents, 457 U.S. 496, 500-01, 102 S.Ct. 2557, 2560, 73 L.Ed.2d 172, 177-78 (1982) (stating categorically that exhaustion of administrative remedies, whether federal or state, is not a prerequisite to an action under Section 1983).

AISD nevertheless asserts that the claims should be bifurcated. Conceding that the federal claims may be brought in a court in the first instance, it argues that the breach of contract claim must be channeled through the administrative process. Although several courts, including this one, have held that the termination of a teacher involves...