Governor Announces School Discipline Plan to Protect Teachers

Statement

Governor announces school discipline plan to protect teachers

Governor Mitch Daniels today announced his intention to seek legal protection for teachers and school staff who act in good faith to maintain discipline and order in their classrooms.

"Students can't learn and teachers can't teach in classrooms where kids are disruptive. Some teachers are afraid to restore order when needed because they fear legal harassment. It's unacceptable that a teacher would have that hesitation," Daniels said. "Ultimately, we need parents to recognize that firm school discipline is in every child's interest, and support teachers in doing whatever is necessary to maintain it. But for now, we need action to see that no student's education is damaged by the bad behavior of anyone around him."

The governor said he would ask the 2009 Indiana General Assembly to pass a law providing legal immunity for teachers who act in good faith to preserve order in their classrooms or other school settings. In addition, he said he would work with the next Indiana Attorney General to help in this effort by using the office's statutory authority to defend any teacher who becomes the target of unreasonable litigation.

Daniels said teachers should feel comfortable maintaining discipline in their classrooms. Though many cases do not result in litigation, teachers have said they frequently worry about taking action in difficult circumstances because they fear lawsuits.

For example, in one Central Indiana school, a student filed a notice of tort claim and a complaint for injuries against a gym teacher who required the student to do push-ups for an infraction. In the Indianapolis area, a student filed claims against school personnel after teachers tried to separate two students involved in a fight, and in northern Indiana, a student sued the school and a principal for attempting to restrain the student when he was separated during a fight.

"In schools today, teachers are protected from litigation when they hand out medicine, but there are no protections for them when they try to prevent disruptive students from disturbing others who are trying to learn," said the governor.

A number of states have implemented laws that are more protective of teachers than current Indiana law. Those are being reviewed to determine which have been the most effective and if they might serve as a good model for Indiana.

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