Approving a separation agreement with one of its teachers was the right move for the Jamestown Public Schools District.

As was detailed in The Sunday Post-Journal after reporter Jordan Patterson filed a Freedom of Information Law request for the document, the district is paying teacher Scott Lumia $15,160.46 in one lump sum, the equivalent of two months of his salary from Dec. 4, 2018, through Jan. 31, 2019. It is certainly understandable that taxpayers don’t want to see a teacher accused of wrongdoing receive any payout from the district, but the alternative was even worse for taxpayers.

Consider that the process to remove a tenured teacher, called a 3020a process, requires placing a teacher on paid leave for a process that takes far longer than two months. The separation agreement between the district and Lumia also does not include health care benefits while also holding the district harmless against any further suites, charges, complaints, demands or actions by Lumia in the future; stipulating Lumia can’t apply for a job in the school district in the future; and won’t enter district property unless a written request is approved by the district superintendent.

It is also worth knowing that the state Office of School Personnel Review and Accountability requires complaints against teachers, administrators or school workers be filed once a school superintendent has knowledge that a “certificate holder has been convicted of a crime or has committed an act that raises a reasonable question about the individual’s moral character.” The filing requires an investigation by a professional conduct officer who makes a recommendation to proceed with a formal hearing to the state Professional Standards and Practices Board. The board can then decide if the teacher’s moral character is or is not adequate to permit certification and make a conclusion. Penalties include limitations on a teacher’s license, suspension or revocation of a teacher’s license or a fine. By law, such a Part 83 filing must have already taken place in this instance.

All told, the Jamestown Public Schools’ District did what it had to do to protect children and taxpayers. The agreement it negotiated is a good one.