Pubdate: Tue, 24 Apr 2001
Source: Des Moines Register (IA)
Copyright: 2001 The Des Moines Register.
Contact:  http://www.dmregister.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/123
Author: Staci Hupp

TEACHER'S FIRING IS RULED UNFAIR

A Carroll teacher who was fired last fall after being charged with drug 
possession has the right to return to her job this week, an arbitrator ruled.

Yvonne Fielder and her son, Jason, were charged after authorities found a 
marijuana joint in a jewelry box and drug paraphernalia during a search of 
Fielder's home Aug. 16. Fielder's son later claimed the drug materials 
belonged to him and pleaded guilty.

Fielder, an award-winning speech and drama teacher, begins her trial today 
in Carroll County District Court.

The Carroll school board fired 26-year teacher Fielder in September, saying 
she showed "unprofessional conduct and poor leadership."

Dozens of students and parents who had carried balloons and placards in 
support of Fielder during school board hearings called the decision unfair. 
An arbitrator from Illinois agreed last week, said Dave Shinkle, Fielder's 
Des Moines attorney.

The school board's decision wasn't supported by "competent evidence," 
according to a ruling provided by Shinkle. The board "acted in violation of 
the rights of the teacher," the ruling said.

School officials will appeal the ruling, said Superintendent Steve Schulz. 
The case will move to district court, where a decision could take up to 
eight months. State law allows schools to punish employees who are accused 
of crimes.

Fielder, 48, said her return to Carroll High School, where she had taught 
for 16 years, hinges on the outcome of her trial and the school board's 
appeal. She has been scouting job opportunities, "but at this time I'm 
pretty much unemployable," she said Monday.

In August, police found a marijuana joint, pipes, photographs of people 
smoking marijuana and a videotape showing how to make the illegal drug 
ecstasy in Fielder's home, court records show.

Fielder said she found the marijuana joint after her son's graduation party 
two years earlier. She tucked it away and planned to confront him but 
forgot, Shinkle said.

Jason Fielder, 20, admitted he hid the other drug materials after moving in 
with his mother a few days before the arrests. He is expected to testify at 
his mother's trial, attorneys said.

If convicted, Fielder faces up to $1,000 in fines, up to six months in jail 
and the loss of her driver's license for six months, County Attorney John 
Werden said. 
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom