Situation Analysis: Under 21

Matt Soucheck is nearly 50 years old, is certified as both a social studies teacher and as a school principal. He has been in the school district over twenty-five years and is now principal of one of the district’s largest high schools. He was fingerprinted when he first started teaching in the school district. About ten years later he was fingerprinted by the local town police department when he started doing some summer volunteer work with the police department. There were no negative results for him either of these two times. Imagine his surprise when a recent routine fingerprint check showed an arrest record in a neighboring county. The assistant superintendent sent him a letter telling him to provide, within thirty days, the following: an explanation as to why he did not declare the arrest on his employment application, a written explanation of the circumstances, and certified copies of the arrest records. It took him a while to remember his arrest.

When Mr. Soucheck was twenty years old, he borrowed a friend’s fake driver’s license to obtain entrance to a nightclub and buy alcohol. He was caught, arrested, and charged with possession of alcohol as a minor and with possession of a fraudulent driver’s license. He posted bond and court records showed that he pled guilty.

In his explanation to the assistant superintendent, Mr. Soucheck wrote that at the time of his arrest, the family lawyer had told him that the alcohol charge was dropped and that there would be no prosecution. Furthermore, the lawyer had told him that the incident was "non-reportable" for college or job applications because it would be "erased." Apparently the county had not expunged the arrest records.

Meanwhile, he was reported to the Office of Professional Practices Services because he had not reported his criminal history when submitting documents regarding his certification application and subsequent renewal.

Reflect on the following questions:

1. Which principles were possibly violated?

2. What should the Education Practices Commission (EPC) do?

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