By MaryAlice Meli
New Castle News
August 26, 2008 10:43 am
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The Pennsylvania State Education Association intends to file a grievance protesting the suspension of Ellwood City kindergarten teacher Ann Bartolomeo.
The Ellwood City Area School Board Wednesday denied Bartolomeo�s request for an unpaid leave of absence and, instead suspended her without pay.
The suspension is retroactive to Aug. 9, the date on which Bartolomeo voluntarily surrendered her teaching certificate to the state Board of Education while it investigates a complaint against her.
The board is expected to rule on her suspension Sept. 23 after a reinstatement hearing Sept. 22 before the state board �s Professional Standards and Practices Commission.
Todd Park, PSEA legal field manager, said the association�s action opposes the Ellwood board�s position that it could not grant Bartolomeo�s request for a leave since, without certification, she no longer is an employee.
�The association will be filing a grievance on the decision to suspend Ann and/or deny her the leave,� Park said. �We�re going to request that the grievance be held in abeyance, pending the decision by the Professional Standards and Practices Commission.�
However, he said yesterday that he had just spoken with district solicitor, John DeCaro Jr., who assured him that if Bartolomeo is recertified by Sept. 23, she will be reinstated to her kindergarten teaching position at Perry Elementary.
�It�s a very positive sign that the district will reinstate her if she gets her certificate back,� Park said.
Judge Richard A. Lewis of the Dauphin County Court of Common Pleas on Thursday ordered that Bartolomeo be released from her sentence of 12 months probation after six months.
She had paid the $3,000 in fines and $738.50 in court costs.
After Wednesday�s meeting, Frank Aloi, district superintendent, said an anonymous complaint had been filed with the state board about Bartolomeo�s having faced criminal charges and having pleaded no contest to lying to a grand jury.
The criminal charges alleged that Bartolomeo and her daughter, Alissa Lemmon, accepted $27,000 in state earnings for work they could not prove they did for Bartolomeo�s brother, former state Rep. Frank LaGrotta. He had hired them after losing the 2006 primary election to remove constituents� private information such as social security numbers from stored records.
Under the state�s Professional Educators Discipline Act, the Professional Standards and Practices Commission is comprised of 13 members appointed by the governor to three-year terms. The commission meets six times a year. The Act requires the members to include seven teachers, including one educational specialist; three public school administrators, one administrator of a teacher preparation program and two members of the general public, one of whom must be a school director.
Park said Bartolomeo, who underwent foot surgery a week ago, is covered by the district�s health insurance until the end of August, since teachers earn 12 months of coverage from the preceding year�s work. Beyond that, he said, Bartolomeo may continue health coverage at her own cost under COBRA, a federal program that allows employees to receive health insurance benefits at group rates.
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Photos
Ann Bartolomeo