Board decides to wait until next month before deciding on request for leave
Members of the Rogers City Area Schools Board of Education will wait a month before acting on Bryan Mills? request for a leave of absence. The time period will give district officials and teacher union leadership to come up with a better option that will make it possible for Mills to return from California after a year and resume his teaching duties in Rogers City. In the meantime, he has taken a teaching position in another school district.
Mills, who taught middle school English and choir and also served as the drama club advisor, is in California caring for his father, who is in declining health, and his stepmother, who has cancer. On July 15, Mills submitted a letter requesting a leave of absence for one year so he can be close to them. In checking with staff at the central office, interim superintendent Paul Mancine said contractually a leave has never been given to someone who had already attained employment.
MANCINE SAID the purpose of the leave provision doesn?t fit this situation. In addition, if the leave were granted, it would set precedent. ?This is based on my interpretation of past practices?and my recommendation is not grant the leave because I believe it may open up a can of worms,? said Mancine. President Mike Marx opened up the floor for a motion after the recommendation by Mancine was made.
Instead of following the interim superintendent?s recommendation, Dick Hanson asked fellow board members to consider waiting one month to make a final decision. ?The reason I ask about tabling this for a month is I had a conversation with Mr. Mills and I believe he made a mistake,? said Hanson. ?He went to California not to get a job. He went to California to take care of his father and his stepmother. One of them has terminal cancer. By doing that, he knew he had to get a job, and low and behold he did get a job.? Hanson believes Mills should have requested a one-year family leave of absence. His request was just for a leave of absence.
PRINCIPAL DEB JONES already has the teachers in place to fill the positions held by Mills for
The month will allow the board time to explore the legalities of the situation. The provisions of the family medical leave would not allow Mills to continue working fulltime in California, said business manager Don Schaedig.
?MEDICAL LEAVE is designed for a caregiver to be with the people that need the care,? Schaedig said. Mancine challenged Mills and the union to come up with a way to contractually honor his request to return to Rogers City after the year. ?Barring that, we?ll wait a month and do it again,? said Mancine. If the wording in Mills request doesn?t change, he said the recommendation to not allow the leave will be the same. ?By acting on this, we are in good faith showing, let?s try and do what is right for the kids and what is right for the town,? said Hanson. ?Bryan has a lot of assets and we all know that.?