Panel overturns Lexington elementary school teacher firing. Superintendent is suing.

Fayette Superintendent Manny Caulk has, in a rare move, filed a lawsuit contesting the ruling of a tribunal that overturned his firing of a Yates Elementary School teacher.

The lawsuit Caulk filed in Fayette Circuit Court earlier this month is against teacher Maggie Bastolla and Kentucky Education Commissioner Wayne Lewis who oversees the state tribunal process.

Documents that provided additional details about the case have been sealed.

Bastolla was terminated in September 2018 and a three-member tribunal overturned the firing after a December hearing, the lawsuit said.

The tribunal found that the sole charge against the teacher was conduct unbecoming of a teacher, not abuse or neglect, the suit states. Specifics of what led to the initial termination were not included in the court record.

But court documents said several people who testified at the tribunal supported the firing.

Members of the three-person panel, or tribunal, are selected by Kentucky Department of Education officials. It consists of a teacher, who may be retired; an administrator, who may be retired; and one lay person. None of the members resides in the district which took action against the employee. All tribunal members are trained by the Kentucky Department of Education. A hearing officer presides over the hearing.

Legislation has been introduced in the 2019 General Assembly to change the tribunal process, including how the tribunal could affect the superintendent’s decision.

John G. McNeill, an attorney, who represents Caulk, did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Bastolla’s attorney, J. Follace Fields II, said Monday that “we agree with the tribunals ruling who disagreed with the allegations by the school district.”

“The whole point is that the teacher gets to present their side of the story and the tribunal listens to all sides and decides what did or didn’t happen,” Fields said.

Documents with the agenda for the Oct. 22 school board meeting said Bastolla’s assignment was “exceptional child learning and behavior” at Yates Elementary and that a decision was made to terminate her on September 4.

This story was originally published January 28, 2019 at 2:23 PM.