Portland principals won't be allowed to say if or why their teachers are on paid leave under the new Portland teacher's contract.

That is a change from recent practice, when parents were sometimes sent notices if a teacher or coach was put on leave while an incident was reviewed or an allegation checked out. In such messages, the incidents or allegations were typically mentioned in vague terms or not at all.

The new contract language, slated to be enacted by a school board vote Thursday, would prohibit school and program administrators from saying a teacher is on administrative leave.

District spokesman Dave Northfield said, "The District is balancing the need for transparency with protecting the due process rights of our staff."

Paid leave had become a hot button issue in Oregon's largest school district since revelations that leaves can drag on for long periods. In stories at Willamette Week and the Portland Tribune, journalist Beth Slovic exposed that at least two employees were on leave at full pay for years.

One was paid despite the fact he served jail time for repeat drunk driving convictions during some of his absence.

The proposed new teacher contract says: "In the case where violence, child endangerment or criminal behavior is alleged, the administrator can inform those who need to know that the professional educator is not at the school. In all cases, when asked directly about the professional educator's whereabouts, the administrator may respond that the professional educator is not at the school."

However, those guidelines only apply to school-level administrators and others, such as spokespeople, are not as limited Northfield said.

In the past, the district informed parents when it put teachers or administrators on leave and even gave reporters lists of all employees it had placed on paid leave. Those lists help pinpoint cases in which employees linger on leave for years.

But the district shifted its stance last year and now views that information as confidential. When Slovic requested to see the list of employees on paid leave in fall 2016, the district refused. The Multnomah County district attorney subsequently ordered the district to hand over the list, but still it refused.

Instead, Portland Public Schools sued Slovic and a parent who had also requested the list. District officials have said the lawsuit is intended to get further "clarity" from the court system about what is releasable. District leaders say making public who is on paid leave is unfair to employees as it could cause people to jump to false conclusions about why they are on leave.

Public records in general have been a point of tension between the union and the district.

Records show Noah Barish, an attorney representing the Portland Association of Teachers, threatened to sue the district for giving the Portland Tribune records about former special education teacher Andrew Oshea, as the Portland Tribune first reported Tuesday. As the Tribune reported, Oshea remained on paid leave for two years as the district sluggishly tried to determine what to do. The highest-ranking special education official in the district felt Oshea was a danger to students.

Barish argued since Oshea was still being investigated by the district, the district had a duty to protect his privacy and keep all records about his leave secret.

The new contract also notes that the district reserves the right to bargain on the school board's new public records policy. Board members have said they intend for the new policy to give the public more access to records more quickly.

The district agreed to hold off on a new public records policy until after it reached a contract deal with teachers, according to emails.

Portland Association of Teachers President Suzanne Cohen would not comment on the union's desire to bargain over the new policy.

Peruse the contract here.

— Bethany Barnes



Got a tip about Portland Public Schools? Email Bethany: bbarnes@oregonian.com