It is the responsibility of the Board of Education to provide appropriate staffing levels for the implementation of the educational program of the District and the operation of the schools and to do so efficiently and economically.

The Board reserves the right to reduce positions and to suspend the contracts of staff members pursuant to such reduction whenever reasons of decreased enrollment of students, return to duty of regular professional staff members after leaves of absence, suspension of schools or territorial changes affecting the District, abolishment of positions, or financial reasons so warrant. In lieu of suspending an entire contract, the Board may suspend the contract of a staff member in part and provide a level of compensation commensurate with the percentage of work performed.

In making any such reduction, the Board will suspend contracts in accordance with the recommendation of the Superintendent who shall, within each teaching field affected, give preference first to teachers on continuing contract and then to teachers who have greater seniority.

Continuing contract teachers whose contracts are suspended shall have a right to restoration of employment in order of seniority of service in the District if and when teaching positions become vacant or are created for which any such teachers are or become qualified. No continuing contract teacher whose contract has been suspended will forfeit such right to restoration by reason of having declined recall to a position that is less than full-time or, if the teacher was not employed full-time prior to the suspension of his/her contract, to a position requiring a lesser percentage of employment than s/he previously held with the District.

For covered employees, such reduction shall be in accordance with the terms of the negotiated, collectively-bargained agreement(s) entered into prior to September 29, 2005. Reductions occurring under collective bargaining agreements entered into by the District after September 29, 2005, will be in accordance with the terms of the collective bargaining agreement(s), but only to the extent that such terms do not conflict with the requirements of R.C. 3319.17 as described above.

R.C. 3319.17