2.4.26 – Texas Scorecard

“Texas Appoints First Inspector General for Educator Misconduct”

By Erin Anderson

Excerpts from this article:

https://texasscorecard.com/state/texas-appoints-first-inspector-general-for-educator-misconduct/

Texas has its first Inspector General for Educator Misconduct, and he is laser-focused on fixing the problem.

Attorney Levi Fuller was appointed to the newly created position within the Texas Education Agency on Wednesday, the TEA announced.

Fuller takes on a new enforcement role aimed at better responding to a flood of educator misconduct allegations reported in recent years.

“I can tell you that one of the big things, and the reason why this job was created, was because of the sexual assault allegations in classrooms,” Fuller told Texas Scorecard during an interview Wednesday.

When asked why he wanted the job, Fuller said, “I’m a public-school dad. When the commissioner [TX. Com. of Education Mike Morath] reached out to me and mentioned this project, the way he described it was, ‘I need a crusader that’s going to go through and get rid of the bad actors in school,’ and that was the selling point.”

The goal is, how do we address this problem? 

How do we get rid of bad actors in schools who are hurting our kids? 

How do we get the kids back in the schools in a safe environment and learning?

“The overall picture is, fix the problem, fix the problem, whatever we’ve got to do to fix the problem,” said Fuller.

 

GETTING STARTED

Fuller said he’s hitting the ground running and already diving into case files as he finishes moving into his new office, but he’ll need a little time to “see how the processes work, to see what we can fix and what makes the most sense.”

He will work with a team of about 15 attorneys and legal assistants once his office is fully staffed, but he said he has enough [staff] now “to get going.”

Fuller said they will be assessing all the systems that are currently in place and reviewing relevant information, including a report by Texas Education 911 titled State-Sponsored Child Abuse that analyzed thousands of educator misconduct reports submitted to the TEA over a three-year period.

“They’ve got a lot of really good recommendations in there,” he said. 

“We’re going to be incorporating everything we can from that report.”

“So what people can anticipate over the next year is seeing a lot of changes in that regard,” said Fuller. 

“They’re going to see some structural changes within the TEA. They’re going to see some modifications in the transparency department, and we’re just going to engage from there and move forward, take feedback, and learn as we go.”

“We also want to do things thoughtfully and expediently,” he added. 

“So if it’s something that we can tweak on our end internally to TEA, it’s better to just do it that way rather than wait for the next legislative session.”

Asked whether he planned to prioritize certain types of misconduct complaints, Fuller said his office will “look at every single complaint that comes in,” including through the TEA’s Parent Complaint Navigator.

“Senate Bill 571 has given us a lot of tools to expedite the process to get some of these bad actors out of the schools, but there’s also the Educators’ Code of Ethics,” he said.

“We’re going to be looking at each individual instance and seeing if it’s a violation of the law and making sure that the violations of law go to law enforcement immediately,” said Fuller. 

“But if it doesn’t rise to the level of a criminal offense, but it’s still against the Code of Ethics, we’re still going to look at it on our end.”

He said one of his main goals is to coordinate with law enforcement to ensure that evidence is preserved in criminal cases and students aren’t subjected to more trauma during investigations.

“I want to make sure that we are talking to law enforcement, and that law enforcement is talking to us,” said Fuller…

He added that SB 571 changed the reporting requirements, “so at the moment they go in for fingerprinting, we’re notified, and then the process begins to put them temporarily on the Do Not Hire Registry pending investigation.”

Asked about recent controversies over teachers and students engaging in various forms of ideological activism at school, Fuller responded, “I’ll just say this: schools have to be free from political bias.”

“…If it’s not approved by the state, it needs to stay out of the classrooms.”

 

JOB DESCRIPTION

As Inspector General, Fuller will “closely oversee” the enforcement of Educator Misconduct policies and processes within TEA, according to the agency.

Fuller will work with TEA’s Educator Investigation Division to coordinate decision-making for educator misconduct investigations, including decisions related to certification sanctions, placement on the Do Not Hire Registry, settlements, and case closures.

The job also entails providing regular policy and process recommendations to the State Board for Educator Certification, the commissioner of education, the Office of the Governor, and members of the Texas Legislature.

…Fuller said Commissioner Mike Morath asked him to consider applying for the position, and he did, competing with other applicants and continuing to research the issues as he awaited Morath’s decision.

Fuller’s background as a judge advocate (1) who helped revamp the Army’s response to sexual assault allegations, (2) a prosecutor in the Texas attorney general’s office, and (3) chief of staff to a Texas lawmaker made him well qualified for the role.

 

PARENTS AND ADVOCATES RESPOND

…many parents see this as a first move toward holding educators and administrators accountable for “misconduct” in the form of crimes and ethical breaches committed against students inside taxpayer-funded schools.

One hopeful parent is Corey Booth, a Rockwall mom whose story about how officials responded to her 4-year-old’s complaint of abuse by his teacher went viral and helped ensure passage of legislation to protect children at school.

…Booth posted to social media. “God is on the move to protect our children.”

“…we applaud the Commissioner’s selection of the highly qualified Levi Fuller to lead it,” Texas Education 911 wrote in a statement. 

“We are optimistic that Inspector General Fuller’s analyses and evaluations of cases, systems, and IG authorities will result in big wins for Texas.”

Another part of Fuller’s job description is regularly updating the media and parents.

“I just want to reiterate that this is going to be an open door,” added Fuller. 

“I want your readers to know that we’re going to be taking feedback and adjusting as we go.”

“That is something that’s going to be a very top priority for me. Where can we adjust and get better?”