Yuen v. Board of Ed. of School Dist. No. U-46, Kane et al. Counties

• Citation: 222 N.E.2d 570,77 Ill.App.2d 353
• Decision Date: 22 December 1966
• Docket Number: KANE,No. U--46,Gen. No. 66--6,A,U--46
• Parties: Frank YUEN, Appellee, v. BOARD OF EDUCATION OF SCHOOL DISTRICT NO.ET AL. COUNTIES, Illinois, Ashley Arnold, Theodore H. Akemann, Richard C. Powers, Elwood B. Thomas, Donald R. Barber, Charles H. Witham, Richard Stettner, constituting the Board of Education of School Districtppellants.
• Court: United States Appellate Court of Illinois

Page 570

222 N.E.2d 570

77 Ill.App.2d 353

Frank YUEN, Appellee, v. BOARD OF EDUCATION OF SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. U--46, KANE ET AL. COUNTIES, Illinois, Ashley Arnold, Theodore H. Akemann Richard C. Powers, Elwood B. Thomas, Donald R. Barber Charles H. Witham, Richard Stettner, constituting the Board of Education of School District No. U--46, Appellants.

Gen. No. 66--6.

Appellate Court of Illinois, Second District.

Dec. 22, 1966.

Carbary, Carbary & Chapski, Elgin, for appellant.

Eugene T. Devitt, Chicago, for appellee.

THOMAS J. MORAN, Presiding Justice.

Plaintiff-Appellee Frank Yuen was a tenured teacher with the defendant-appellant School District No. 46. His duties were teaching physical education in the various elementary schools of the school system. He was also vice-president of the Elgin Teachers Association.

Following a series of incidents upon complaints, the Board of Education on June 15, 1964, passed a resolution dismissing Frank Yuen from employment as a teacher as of November 2, 1964. A copy of the resolution and a bill of particulars were forwarded to Yuen by registered mail. Yuen thereupon requested a public hearing and a lengthy hearing was conducted by the Board of Education under the Teacher's Tenure Act, Chap. 122, Sec. 24--12, Ill.Rev.Stats. (1963). At the conclusion of the hearing the Board of Education passed a resolution and order confirming Yuen's dismissal.

Yuen filed a complaint for review under the Administrative Review Act in the Circuit Court for the Sixteenth Judicial Circuit, Kane County, Illinois. The Circuit Court reversed the Board of Education, reinstated Yuen as a teacher and entered judgment in his favor in the amount of $7500.00. This appeal follows:

The certain charges of misconduct upon which the dismissal hearing was held were as follows:

1. On January 11, 1964, said teacher was assigned to coordinate the Seventh Grade basketball game at Larsen Junior High School and help the High School Referee when needed. However, he was in the Multi-Purpose Room meeting with members of the E.T.A.

2. On May 11, 1964, said teacher failed to appear at a track meet, Abbott and Ellis Schools.

3. Said teacher used certain typewriting equipment in the Physical Education Department after being requested not to use the same.

4. On April 16, 1964, said teacher was absent from his duties despite his requests to the Superintendent of Schools and this Board and their denial of the same.

5. On April 25, 1963, said teacher embarrassed and humiliated Mrs. Edith Morgan, another teacher, by raising his voice against her in the presence of other teachers.

6. That on the afternoon of March 23, 1964, said teacher was absent from his duties at the Streamwood Elementary School without properly notifying his superiors.

Yuen either denied or offered evidence for the purpose of excusing each of the charges. We feel it necessary to consider only one of these charges; that of his being absent from his duties on April 16, 1964, despite his requests to the Superintendent of Schools and the Board of Education and their denial of the same.

It appears that on March 16, 1964, Yuen submitted a request to his superior to be absent on April 16 and 17, 1964, so that he could attend the Illinois School Problems Commission hearing in DeKalb on April 16 and the National Department of Classroom Teachers meeting at Rockford on April 16 and 17. This request was denied because the meetings were not related to physical education and there was no substitute teacher in the system who could take over his duties for the day.

On April 10, he addressed a letter to the Superintendent and Board of Education again requesting absence to attend the School Problems Commission. On April 15, he was advised that his request was again denied. Notwithstanding this ruling Yuen left his work and attended the DeKalb Seminar.

The evidence showed that Yuen's duties as physical education teacher took him to each school once every three weeks. As the result of his violation of the ruling of the Board of Education between 160 and 175 children were denied the benefit of his teaching that day. This misconduct on his part, regardless of any other violations with which he was charged, is sufficient to sustain the dismissal.

Under the Illinois School Code, Chap. 122, Sec. 10--22.4, Ill.Rev.Stats., (1963), the School Board has the power:

'To dismiss a teacher for incompetency, cruelty, negligence, immorality or other sufficient cause and to dismiss any teacher, whenever, in its opinion, he is not qualified to teach, or whenever in its opinion, the interests of the schools require it * * *.'

As stated in Meridith v. Board of Education, etc., 7 Ill.App.2d 477, at page 486, 130 N.E.2d 5, at page 10 (1955):

'The best interest of the schools of the district is the guiding star of the board of education and for the courts to interfere with the exercise of the powers of the board in that respect is unwarranted assumption of authority and can only be justified in cases where the board has acted maliciously, capriciously and arbitrarily.'

See also Scott v. Board of Education, 20...