Teacher awaits fate of Gateway case review in GA

[Wildyears3@aol.com]

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: 1/8/03 ]Teacher awaits fate of Gateway case 
review 
License revocation may still be sought over James Hope's online posting of 
questions to demonstrate test flaws By <A HREF="mailto:adodd@ajc.com";>D. AILEEN DODD</A> 
Atlanta Journal-Constitution Staff Writer 
    Jenni Girtman / AJC 
Centerville Elementary School teacher James Hope spends time with his 
daughter, Annie, 11. Hope will find out Thursday whether the state teacher 
certification agency will appeal a judge's ruling clearing him of wrongdoing. 

    
    • <A HREF="http://www.accessatlanta.com/ajc/metro/gwinnett/";>Gwinnett community page</A>
    
        
    
    
The same year James Hope was named Centerville Elementary's Teacher of the 
Year for his passion as an educator, Gwinnett County Schools gave him another 
moniker -- suspect.
And that label has stuck to the fourth-grade teacher for nearly three years.
Hope will find out Thursday whether the fight for his job ends or goes 
another round.
The Georgia Professional Standards Commission will decide at its Thursday 
meeting whether to appeal a Superior Court judge's ruling that cleared Hope 
of professional wrongdoing. 
An unabashed activist against standardized testing, Hope became an outspoken 
critic of the Gwinnett County Schools' Gateway test, which helps determine a 
student's promotion.
"I am a member of the Concerned Parents of Gwinnett and was the only teacher 
involved in the public fight against the Gateway,'' Hope said. "To [the 
school system], it was like being a member of the Communist Party."
In 2000, when a copy of the $6 million Gateway test was stolen and mailed to 
the media, Hope became more than a critic who had posted six test questions 
on a Web site to demonstrate the test's flaws. He became a suspect.
When Hope finally was ruled out as a suspect in the theft, he was accused of 
professional misconduct, and his teaching license was jeopardized. The school 
system filed a complaint with the Professional Standards Commission, which 
recommended that the teacher lose his license. An administrative law judge 
later decided Hope's teaching license should be suspended for only six months.
Hope filed an appeal and was cleared of wrongdoing by Superior Court Judge 
Gail Tusan, who said Hope's posting of Gateway questions after the test 
eliminated any claims he helped students cheat. She also said Hope should be 
free "to actively participate in the public debate regarding the test and 
share with concerned parties the benefit of his hands-on experience." 
"We are both disappointed and disagree with the ruling," said Sloan Roach, 
spokeswoman for Gwinnett County Schools. School officials will attend the 
Professional Standards Commission meeting Thursday to hear the review of the 
judge's ruling. 
The commission could appeal the ruling to the state Court of Appeals.
But the Georgia Association of Educators believes the commission will concede.
"As far as we are concerned, it's over now,'' said Terry Thomas, Hope's 
lawyer and the associate director of the Georgia Association of Educators. 
"If they decide to appeal, they have the burden of proof."
This month, the association will pitch a plan to state legislators to enact a 
law to protect whistle-blowers like Hope. 
"Any other citizen has a right to speak out on these things without fear of 
retaliation," Thomas said. 
Meanwhile, school police continue to investigate the posting of the Gateway 
questions.
"Theoretically, there is a criminal investigation pending,'' said District 
Attorney Danny Porter. But he added, "I haven't received any information from 
the school system in about two years. The school police haven't turned over 
any final reports for me to review, and I've never actually set up a file.''
Although no charges have been filed against Hope, school police still pose a 
threat to the teacher. Porter said school police could try to make a case 
against Hope for publicizing trade secrets and proprietary information. But 
Thomas believes Gwinnett Schools will resort to the criminal case only if the 
professional assault falls flat.
"Gwinnett County wants to make an example of this fellow because he 
embarrassed them,'' Thomas said. "They are going to use whatever leverage 
they have to see that the outcome is in their favor."
Hope returns to his fourth-graders today after winter break. He longs for the 
day when he can feel secure that the job he loves is safe.
"They have been harassing me on the taxpayer's dime,'' he said. "This has 
turned into a war.''