For the Second Time, Lawmakers Failed to Fix California’s Warning System for Teacher Misconduct

Anna Vignet/KQED A last-ditch legislative attempt to help California school districts keep problematic teachers out of the classroom has collapsed following opposition from unions and the state teacher licensing agency that a proposed searchable database would violate privacy and subject educators to unfair treatment. The proposed database, introduced by a Democratic member of the State Assembly in June, would have allowed schools to see if applicants for public school teaching positions had been reported to the state after they were fired or resigned over claims of misconduct. The California Federation of Teachers pushed back, warning that teachers could land in the database even if schools had not determined they committed serious misconduct. “We would support legislation that targets substantiated reports of egregious misconduct,” said Tristan Brown, a lobbyist with the California Federation of Teachers. “We live in a state with Silicon Valley.