City gets tough with teachers on dress, actions
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Reader commentsMANCHESTER – The Board of School Committee is cracking down on teachers.
The board yesterday told teachers and administrators to spruce up their work attire by passing a new dress code that bans jeans, shorts, flip-flops and some sneakers.
It then agreed to give Superintendent of Schools Tom Brennan more leeway when deciding whether to suspend a teacher without pay for bad behavior.
The committee was meeting to discuss the student Code of Conduct, but that was quickly put aside for a later date and the focus turned to staff issues.
Mayor Ted Gatsas brought staff suspensions to the board after he talked to Brennan earlier in the week about his decision to suspend a Hillside Middle School teacher followingr her arrest for drunken driving, filing a false report and conduct after an accident.
Manchester resident Seanna O'Neill, 45, was put on paid leave May 3, the third Hillside teacher in recent weeks to face sanctions for drugs and alcohol.
Sometimes the district's legal counsel will recommend against suspending without pay because it could be seen as a direct punishment and complicate efforts to fire the staff member later, Brennan said.
Support concerns
"If he feels strongly enough on an issue that he suspends without pay, even if an attorney told him not to do it, this board should support him," Gatsas said.
Committee member Sarah Ambrogi asked the board to support the superintendent