Anderson v. Evans

660 F.2d 153 (6th Cir. 1981)

Facts:

Evelyn Anderson, a white tenured school teacher in Haywood County, Tennessee, was terminated for "conduct unbecoming a teacher" and "inefficiency". She had taught in the predominantly black school system for several years and was assigned to teach in an elementary school whose student body was all black. Following the robbery and assault of her daughter by black youths, she was accused of making remarks to the school's principal and assistant principal to the effect that she "hated" all black people and cared nothing about them. She forced the termination of a black aide assigned to her. Her evaluations indicated a deterioration in her teaching ability through the year, and she was eventually dismissed.

Issue:

Does the firing of a teacher for alleged racial remarks and poor job performance, under these circumstances, violate her rights to expression and due process?

Decision:

No.

Reasoning:

Disposing of the due process argument with a finding that the charges against Mrs. Anderson were clear and that she was given a hearing, the court upheld the school's action, even though it effectively limited her speech. Acknowledging the Pickering and Mt. Healthy decisions, the U.S. Court of Appeals discerned a two-step analysis when a public employee alleges retaliation for the exercise of her freedom of speech: if the employer's action effectively limits the employee's speech, then "a balance must be struck between the interest of the employee as an individual and the public interest served by the employer". (Unlike Pickering, this case is one where the employee's actions and remarks cast serious doubt about her judgment and competence as a teacher. "The circumstances of this case gave the school board an interest in limiting Mrs. Anderson's freedom of expression which it could not have claimed with respect to the general public." In a strong dissent, one judge argued that the balancing test had not been applied properly in the trial court.

Return to Education Law Page

Fleur-de-lis Designs
1607 Agawela Ave
Knoxville, Tennessee 37919
tel 865-540-9990 fax 865-540-9989