What triggers the Professional Discipline System?
Professional discipline proceedings are initiated by the filing of a complaint against an educator by any interested party. The complaints must be verified under oath and must specify the misconduct. Educator Misconduct Complaints are filed with the Department of Education, which reviews each complaint for timeliness and legal sufficiency. Appropriate complaints are investigated and the Department determines whether to file a Notice of Charges with the PSPC. The Professional Discipline Act also requires local school entities to file mandatory reports with the Department on any educator indicted or convicted of a crime of moral turpitude or a crime listed in section 111(e) of the Public School Code, any educator who is dismissed for cause, and any educator who the school entity believes to have committed sexual abuse or exploitation or physical abuse.
