ADVERSE EMPLOYMENT ACTIONS AND PUBLIC SCHOOL ...

persistent negligence and egregious negligence. Persistent negligence usually centered on record
keeping or the continued failure to remedy a performance issue that had been documented on
more than one occasion. Egregious negligence surrounded incidents where the administrator
failed to address a situation that turned extreme at some point and warranted employment action
by the school system. Persistent negligence of minor issues or the egregious neglect of one
incident, the failure of the administrator to address a situation was a significant issue that led to
adverse employment actions and ultimately litigation.
Second, the categorization of unsatisfactory performance was one where an administrator
had failed to rectify some issue with their job performance that may or may or may not have
been specified in the legal case. The distinction between this issue and negligence was that the
school system had not charged the behavior as negligence; therefore, the researcher identified the
issue as unsatisfactory performance. The points of issue identified as unsatisfactory performance
were poor organization and leadership qualities. That issue expanded to incidents where the
administrator became involved in physical and/or verbal altercations with staff and/or students.
This inability to control behavior and demeanor created the strong possibility for adverse
employment action. Also, the failure to correct areas of concern that had been formally addressed
by a school district also led to adverse actions and qualification as unsatisfactory performance.
Administrators in these situations did not survive litigation because they had been warned but
failed to correct problems.
Third, interpersonal strife was a significant factor to the research study. Without surprise,
it showed up in the category of failed leadership. Interpersonal strife will be discussed in its own
section.
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