By Gillian Graham
Staff Writer

Biddeford School Committee members want more information from school officials about a leave of absence taken by a teacher investigated by the Maine Department of Education.
Several school committee members say they never voted on a leave of absence for Barbara Fortier and they want more information about the situation from school officials. The committee normally votes on leaves of absence requested by district employees.
Fortier, an eighth-grade science teacher, is on leave this year to attend graduate school.
Biddeford’s eighth-grade science and technology scores on Maine Educational Assessment test were thrown out by the  state because confidential information was provided to students before the exam, said department spokesman David Connerty-Marin. Fortier signed a confidentiality agreement before she took part in a review of MEA questions.
Mayor Joanne Twomey, chairman of the school committee, said the committee did not vote on a leave of absence for Fortier.
“We have not voted on any leave of absence,” she said.
School committee members Cynthia McSorley and Laura Seaver both confirmed they never voted on Fortier’s leave of absence.
“We’ve never had a public vote on that,” Seaver said. “I don’t think any of us are clear at this point what was done.”
Seaver said she is frustrated that the committee is so unsure of what is going on. She said members should “absolutely” be clear on what is happening. Twomey is working to gather accurate information for the committee, she said.
Howard Reben, Barbara Fortier’s attorney, said his client requested an unpaid leave of absence to attend graduate school at the University of New England. She continues to be treated as an employee and the school department pays a share of her health insurance premium, he said.
Superintendent Sarah-Jane Poli last week said teachers request leaves of absence through her office. She then makes a recommendation to the school committee, which may approve or decline the absence. Poli said employees on leave may maintain their health coverage by paying the full cost of the insurance premium through COBRA insurance.
Poli declined to comment on Fortier’s employment status and related benefits, citing confidentiality concerns.
Assistant Superintendent Jeff Porter said teachers seeking sabbatical or professional, sick or medical leave must submit requests to Poli prior to their absence. He said a small committee of district staff – not the school committee – approves sabbaticals.  No teachers are on sabbatical this year.
The school committee approves professional, sick and medical leaves, he said.
Porter said administrative and negotiated leaves are approved only by the superintendent. Under an administrative leave, the superintendent places a teacher on leave, he said. The protocol is similar with negotiated leaves, but those negotiations involve attorneys for the district and employee, he said.
Administrative leaves usually involve personnel matters that have been brought to the superintendent’s attention, Porter said. They usually are used in disciplinary situations but do not mean a teacher is guilty or will be disciplined at the end of the leave, he said.
Porter said most employees on administrative leaves retain their pay because they usually are subjects of an ongoing investigation.
“[Administrative leave] is just to remove the employee from the district for a while,” he said. “Sometimes that’s the best way to handle it.”
Porter said taking an employee out of the district is often the best way to ensure a “thorough and fair investigation” is conducted. He said the practice is standard in most schools.
Porter declined to comment on what kind of leave Fortier is on because it is a personnel matter.
Fortier’s attorney said he was involved in requesting Fortier’s leave because he was speaking with the district’s counsel about another matter.
“I don’t think there was any negotiation,” Reben said. “We asked for a leave of absence to go back to graduate school.”
Reben said he does not know the exact date his client requested the leave, but said it was likely during the summer. He said the leave was approved by Poli.
Reben said no disciplinary action has been taken against Fortier by the district or state. He said the department of education has an ongoing investigation into the situation. Based on the questions asked of him, he said it appears education officials are trying to determine if there is enough of a correlation between a game Fortier prepared to help students study for the MEA tests and information ultimately presented on the exam.
Reben said he and Fortier both maintain there was “absolutely” no breach of confidentiality. She is still certified to teach in Maine and plans to return to teaching next year, he said.
Porter said the school district is continuing its investigation into the situation surrounding the MEA scores.
Poli did not return calls seeking additional comment on the situation before the Courier’s press deadline Tuesday.