Tennessee § 49-5-406 - Employment application, offer and acceptance.

§ 49-5-406. Employment application, offer and acceptance.

Each local board of education or director of schools, as appropriate, shall require all persons applying for a position as a teacher as defined in § 49-5-501, or for any other position requiring proximity to school children, to file, in writing, in advance of employment, on forms supplied by the commissioner of education or on forms provided by the local board of education or director of schools, as appropriate, an application stating whether the applicant: Has been convicted of a misdemeanor or a felony in this state or in any other state; Has been dismissed for any of the causes enumerated in § 49-2-203 or § 49-5-511; and Has or will provide a copy of a written resignation to the most recent local board where the person was employed at least thirty (30) days prior to the beginning date of the person's employment with the board to which application is being made; provided, that the thirty-day notice may be waived by the local board or director of schools, as appropriate, from which the person is resigning employment. The employing local board or director of schools, as appropriate, may rely upon the information submitted in writing by the applicant relative to the applicant's contractual or resignation status as being valid and accurate to meet the requirements of this section. Knowingly falsifying information required by subdivision (a)(1) shall be sufficient grounds for termination of employment and shall also constitute a Class A misdemeanor that must be reported to the district attorney general for prosecution. The provisions of subdivision (a)(2)(A) shall be conspicuously displayed on forms supplied for implementation of subdivision (a)(1). Language conspicuously displayed on such forms shall also advise applicants that the accuracy of the information may be verified by fingerprint and criminal history records check conducted by the Tennessee bureau of investigation pursuant to § 49-5-413(a). Subdivision (a)(1) shall not be construed or implemented to compel disclosure of a parking or moving traffic violation if the maximum sanction provided by law for the violation does not include a period of confinement. Upon the initial employment of a teacher, the local board of education or the director of schools, as appropriate, shall notify the person, in writing, of the person's employment and the conditions of employment. Upon receipt of the employment notification, the person must accept or reject, in writing, the offer of employment: Within fourteen (14) calendar days, if the offer was made between April 1 and June 1, including offers of employment made on April 1, but excluding offers of employment made on June 1; or Within five (5) business days, if the offer was made between June 1 and April 1, including offers of employment made on June 1, but excluding offers of employment made on April 1. From the date of the written acceptance, the person is considered to be under employment with the local board of education or the director of schools, as appropriate, and is subject to all rights, privileges, and duties of this title. As used in this subsection (b), “business day” means a day other than a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday. For purposes of computing the time within which a person must respond to an employment notification under subdivision (b)(2)(B), the five-business-day period begins with the first business day after the date on which the person received the employment notification. Each local board of education or director of schools, as appropriate, shall provide a copy of subsections (a) and (b) to each teacher upon the person's initial employment or return from leave. Any person seeking employment in a state educational institution as a director of schools, principal, professor, teacher, tutor, instructor or any other person having in any way the custody and care of students of the public educational institutions of this state is required to make a full disclosure of any prior criminal record and any prior dismissals from employment for cause. A person who violates this subsection (d) commits a Class A misdemeanor. The person shall not be employed and, if employed despite a violation of this subsection (d), shall forfeit office. Acts 1969, ch. 130, § 1; 1973, ch. 178, § 1; T.C.A., §§ 49-1317, 49-1318; Acts 1989, ch. 591, §§ 1, 6; 1992, ch. 535, § 22; 1996, ch. 843, § 1; 2020, ch. 717, § 1. Compiler's Notes. Acts 2020, ch. 717, § 2 provided that the act, which amended this section, shall apply to offers of employment made on or after August 1, 2020. Amendments. The 2020 amendment rewrote (b) which read, “Upon the initial employment of a teacher, the local board or director of schools, as appropriate, shall notify the person, in writing, of the person's employment and the conditions of employment. Upon receipt of the employment notification, the person shall have fourteen (14) days within which to accept or reject, in writing, the offered employment. From the date of the written acceptance, the person is considered to be under employment with the local board or director of schools, as appropriate, and is subject to all rights, privileges and duties of this title.” Effective Dates. Acts 2020, ch. 717, § 2. August 1, 2020. Cross-References. Penalty for Class A misdemeanor, § 40-35-111 . Attorney General Opinions. Currently licensed public school teachers must attain “highly qualified” status according to Tennessee's No Child Left Behind Plan guidelines, OAG 05-065, 2005 Tenn. AG LEXIS 65 (4/27/05).