New Jersey-2024-A3267-Introduced

An Act concerning the employment rights of certain public school employees and supplementing chapter 27 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. (1) A head coach of an athletic activity at a public high school who is also a tenured employee of the school district, or is an out-of-district employee, shall receive an employment contract with the board of education for a term of three years for that particular athletic activity .

(2) An assistant coach of an athletic activity at a public high school who is also a tenured employee of the school district shall receive an employment contract with the board of education for a term of two years for that particular athletic activity.

b. At the conclusion of the term of the initial contract or of any subsequent contract, the coach shall be deemed reappointed for another contracted term unless the board of education notifies the coach in writing that he will not be reappointed at the end of the current term, in which event his employment as a coach shall cease at the expiration of that term, provided that such notification is given 90 days prior to the expiration of the first or any subsequent contract.

2. a. A coach of an athletic activity at a public high school shall be dismissed or reduced in compensation during the term of the coach's contract only for just cause, and may not be dismissed for arbitrary, capricious, or unlawful reasons.

b. A coach of an athletic activity at a public high school who is dismissed or reduced in compensation shall receive written notice of the basis for the dismissal or reduction in compensation within five days after the decision is made by the school district official but prior to any action being taken by the board of education. In the case of a coach of an athletic activity at a public high school who is also a tenured employee of the school district, if the dismissal is based on a poor annual evaluation, the coach shall be provided one year in which to correct and overcome any identified deficiencies with appropriate district support.

c. A coach of an athletic activity at a public high school who is dismissed or reduced in compensation shall be entitled to request in writing a hearing before the board of education after receiving the written notice of the basis for the dismissal or reduction in compensation pursuant to subsection b. of this section. The hearing shall take place within 10 days of the coach's written request for a hearing unless a different date is mutually agreed upon. A coach shall be entitled to representation by counsel, to present witnesses, and to ask questions and cross examine any of the school district officials who participated in making the decision on the termination or reduction in compensation. Any testimony shall be taken under oath, and the hearing shall take place in executive session with a court reporter present. The cost of the services of the court reporter shall be paid by the school district.

d. At the regularly scheduled meeting of the board of education that follows either the receipt by the coach of the written notice of the basis for dismissal or reduction in compensation pursuant to subsection b. of this section or, if requested the hearing held pursuant to subsection c. of this section, as applicable, the board shall issue a written decision to affirm, reject, or modify the decision of the school district official who made the determination on the dismissal or reduction in compensation.

e. A decision made by a board of education pursuant to subsection d. of this section may be appealed to the Commissioner of Education no later than 90 days following receipt of the board's written decision. A complaint may be filed with the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights within 180 days of the occurrence of any incident based on membership in a protected group as enumerated in the "Law Against Discrimination," P.L.1945, c.169 (C.10:5-1 et seq.).

f. Nothing in this section shall be construed to grant tenure to a coach of an athletic activity, interfere with the provisions of a collective bargaining agreement, or affect any other right or remedy that may be available to a school district or coach of an athletic activity pursuant to law, either civil or criminal, or create or alter any tort liability.

3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall first be applicable to the first full school year following the date of enactment.

STATEMENT

This bill provides that a head coach of an athletic activity at a public high school who is also a tenured employee of the school district or is an out-of-district employee, must receive an employment contract for a three-year term, and an assistant coach must receive a two-year contract. At the conclusion of the term of the contract, the coach will be deemed reappointed for the appropriate term, unless the board notifies the coach in writing, at least 90 days before the expiration of the term of the contract, that he will not be reappointed at the end of the term.

The bill also provides that an athletic coach at a public high school may be dismissed or reduced in compensation during the term of a contract only for just cause and may not be dismissed for arbitrary, capricious, or unlawful reasons. In the case of a coach who is also a tenured employee of the district, the bill provides that if the coach's dismissal is based on a poor annual evaluation, the coach must be provided one year in which to correct and overcome any identified deficiencies with appropriate district support.

A coach who is dismissed or reduced in compensation must receive a written notice for the basis of the action within five days after the decision is made by a school district official, but prior to any action being taken by the board of education. The coach will be entitled to request a hearing after receiving the written notice. The hearing must take place within 10 days of the coach's request for the hearing unless a different date is mutually agreed upon. The coach will be entitled to representation by counsel, to present witnesses, and to ask questions and cross examine any of the school district officials who participated in making the decision on termination or reduction in compensation. The testimony will be taken under oath, and the hearing will be held in executive session with a court reporter present. The costs associated with the court reporter will be paid by the school district.

At the regularly scheduled meeting of the board of education that follows either the receipt by the coach of the written notice of the basis for dismissal or reduction in compensation, or the hearing if the coach requests a hearing, the board will issue a written decision to affirm, reject, or modify the decision of the school district officials. The decision made by the board may be appealed to the Commissioner of Education no later than 90 days following receipt of the board's decision.