ST. CHARLES COUNTY • Bryan Spencer, who has taught in the Francis Howell School District for 22 years, embarks on a new career next month as a state legislator.
So he sought a leave of absence from the St. Charles County district to keep his job options open when his legislative tenure ends.
But the School Board said no.
Now Spencer, a Republican from Wentzville, County GOP Chairman Jon Bennett and state Rep. Mark Parkinson, R-St. Charles County, say that’s unfair. They point out that the board has regularly approved unpaid leaves of absence for two leaders in a teachers union usually allied with Democrats.
“I’m asking for the same treatment those people received,” said Spencer, who will be sworn in as a state representative Jan. 9.
School Board President Marty Hodits defended the rejection and said politics played no role in the board’s 5-2 decision.
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But Parkinson says it appears politics was involved. “All we can expect is consistency despite the aspirant’s political leanings,” he said.
Hodits said the union officials’ situation is different because in their union roles, they still spend their full time on education and are often interacting with the district. They are Chris Guinther, state president of the teachers group — the Missouri National Education Association — and Anita Miller, who heads its Francis Howell affiliate.
“Where Mr. Spencer will be at, he will not be advocating” for the schools full time, Hodits said.
Spencer and his GOP allies say he expects to spend a large percentage of his work in the Legislature on education issues because of his background.
Spencer said he already has been appointed to a House appropriations committee on education spending. He hopes to be named to another education panel as well.
Hodits added that the board felt that Spencer is essentially leaving teaching for another occupation.
“The decision was do you let somebody test-drive a new job as long as they want and disrupt the education of students and then allow them back into the classroom” later, Hodits said.
The state constitution bars legislators from simultaneously holding most other government employment.
Hodits said district policy allows leaves of absence for a variety of reasons. One example, he said, is for teachers whose spouses move outside the St. Louis area for job reasons on a temporary basis. The board has to approve each leave.
State term limits allow House members, who serve part time, to hold as many as four two-year terms.
Spencer said a leave wouldn’t guarantee him the exact job he has now but that in a district as large as Howell, “there’s always someone retiring” and creating vacancies.
Most recently he has taught special education at Francis Howell North High School but said he also can teach social sciences.
Mike Hoehn, a board member in support of Spencer’s request, said he believed it would be similar to the leaves for the teachers union leaders’ arrangements.
GOP Chairman Bennett, a former House member and former Howell board member, said denial of the leave may hurt school district initiatives in the GOP-dominated Legislature.
“It would be wise on the part of the school district to make sure they have a support base in the Legislature,” Bennett said.
Spencer said he first asked in September — after winning the August GOP primary — for a leave to cover his initial two-year term should he win the November general election. He said he asked that it be renewable for future terms.
He said after the board rejected the request, he submitted a second letter seeking reconsideration that mentioned the leaves for the teachers union leaders. That was turned down last month, he said.
Hodits said another reason for the board’s decision was Spencer’s failure to discuss the leave idea when he began his House race.
Spencer said Rep.-elect Michael Butler, a St. Louis Democrat also elected for the first time last month, told him he didn’t seek a leave of absence from his job as a teacher in St. Louis city schools. Butler could not be reached for comment.
Guinther, the MNEA president, said the board has given her leaves of absence from her teaching job since 2001. They began when she became MNEA vice president, she said.
Guinther said the MNEA helped Spencer, a union member, write his request for a leave. However, she said the organization didn’t take a position on whether the board should approve it.
Missouri State Rep. Bryan Spencer
