Board asked to reconsider non-renewal of teacher conract

Chuck Kajer, Managing Editor

The New Prague Area School Board was asked to reconsider the non-renewal of a teacher's contract during its meeting Monday, Aug. 6.

Steve Lang, president of New Prague Education Minnesota (NPEM), the bargaining unit for teachers in the district, spoke to the board during the open forum and asked the members to reinstate Heather King, who was an Early Child Special Education teacher based out of Falcon Ridge Elementary School. ECSE teachers provide special education services to children ages 3 to 6.

King has worked in the New Prague district for the past three years. Teachers in their first three years with a district who had not previously been tenured are considered probationary teachers, and state law and district policy require that those teachers be evaluated three times a year to identify areas in which they need to improve.

The crux of the matter