North Carolina teachers win tenure case in Court of Appeals

By JONATHAN DREW
Associated Press

RALEIGH, NC (AP) — The North Carolina Court of Appeals has ruled that lawmakers violated the Constitution in passing a law that would take away job protections for veteran teachers.

However, in an opinion Tuesday, the appeals court also said newer teachers couldn’t challenge part of the 2013 law preventing them from earning protected status in the future.

Click here to read the full opinion

Legislators wanted to move away from a system in which teachers were protected from firing or demotion after earning “career status” following four years of probation. The law would have moved teachers into employment contracts of a specific number of years by 2018.

The teachers who challenged the law argued it violated constitutional rights protecting contracts and preventing governments from taking a person’s property.

The appeals court’s opinion affirms a lower court ruling.

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