Letter from Hamilton County School District Office sparks controversy
A letter from the district office basically told teachers to either purchase insurance or pay for repairs or replacement with their own money when those school-issued devices are damaged or stolen.
"The insurance is not required. They don’t have to buy it. It’s totally up to them," said Assistant School Superintendent Lee McDade.
He went on to tell News 12 the Worth Ave. Group has partnered with the Hamilton County Department of Education to offer a discounted insurance that would protect teachers from having to personally pay hundreds of dollars to repair or replace electronic devices that were damaged.
"We’ve had teachers leave them out in the rain, their dogs have damaged it, their children have damaged it and so forth," McDade said.
Hamilton County Education Association President Dan Liner told News 12 that he has already spoken to teachers who are concerned about the choice they have to make.
"There’s a great deal of irony in requiring teachers to purchase personal insurance for a device they don’t even own," Liner said.
Sources within Apison Elementary told News 12 that several teachers were so upset by the ultimatum that they offered to turn in their devices to the front office, but were told to hold on to them for now.
Liner told News 12 that he was aware of the concerns by teachers at Apison Elementary. He also questioned why the district sent out the letter to teachers after they already received their devices.
"When teachers were actually assigned these devices, they should have been aware of a board policy at that point," Liner said.
McDade told News 12 that teachers who take home their devices have always been financially responsible if the devices are damaged or stolen. He believes the teachers who are complaining never read the district policy manual that talks about equipment management.
"It’s always been Hamilton County policy that when you’re given equipment, you’re responsible for the safe upkeep of that equipment. If you’re neglectful or if there’s negligence on your part; whether it’s me, the superintendent, or anyone else, we’re responsible for paying for that," McDade said.
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