SOUTH HADLEY — A high school teacher suspended for one month without pay for failing to disclose a financial conflict of interest is pushing back against the administration, saying they retaliated against her for union activism.
The South Hadley Education Association, a union representing teachers, vice principals and other district staff, is challenging a decision to place Stephanie Viens, a history teacher and chairwoman of the teachers’ union grievance committee, on leave to investigate her receiving compensation from the educational travel company EF Tours.
Last year, Viens organized a trip to Italy with 67 students through EF Tours, working as an advisor for South Hadley High School’s Cultural Exchange Club, a role she held for over a decade.
“Stephanie Viens received money directly from EF tours without knowledge or consent of the school,” said Fernand Dupere, an attorney representing the School Committee. “She had a financial incentive that was directly connected to the number of students that actually went.”
In a grievance filed with the state Department of Labor Relations on Oct. 30, 2017, the union alleges Viens was suspended in retaliation for her union activity, then further punished for challenging the investigation into her relationship with EF Tours.
“Ms. Viens did nothing to warrant the disproportionate disciplinary treatment she has received from the district,” the teachers’ union lawyer, Terence Coles, said in a statement. “The sanctions against her were intended to silence an outspoken teachers’ union activist, and we look forward to having all the evidence come forward at hearing.”
A review of the union’s complaint by the Department of Labor Relations, released on April 10, found probable cause that the School Committee had violated collective bargaining agreement laws, and that Principal Diana Bonneville violated the law by making threatening statements to union members regarding Viens’ suspension.
In a statement, the Education Association expressed its support for the DLR’s decision.
The school’s investigation concluded that Viens had violated state conflict of interest laws, and as punishment she was placed on a 30-day unpaid leave on Dec. 11. Her position as an advisor to the Cultural Exchange Club was revoked and she was banned from chaperoning any future school trips as well.
Separately, Viens, School Committee members and their legal representation will meet on May 2 with an arbitrator to try to settle the complaint that placing Viens on leave was excessive or inappropriate. They will decide whether to uphold the school’s punishment, reverse the school’s suspension and reimburse Viens, or find a compromise. A decision is expected three months from the arbitration date, Dupere said.
At the same time, the School Committee alleged Viens violated state conflict of interest laws in their written response to the DLR’s review. Both matters will be addressed in a court hearing before the Department of Labor Relations early next year.
Since 2006, Viens served as an advisor to the school’s Cultural Exchange club, using services offered by EF Tours to book trips, find accommodations and plan itineraries. Viens received stipends of $200 to $2,000 for each trip she organized based on the duration of travel and how many students attended, according to the Department of Labor Relations’s investigation.
The state conflict of interest law prevents public employees from accepting compensation for “any particular matter in which the same city or town is a party or has a direct and substantial interest.” Violation of the state law could result in the accused repaying the money received, a fine of up to $10,000 or potential imprisonment.
During her time with the club, Viens also completed conflict of interest trainings, according to the DLR. Viens could face further disciplinary action by the state for her alleged violation of conflict of interest laws.
Viens, Bonneville and five other school staff members served as chaperones for the April 2017 trip to Italy organized by Viens through EF Tours. While all chaperones had their trips to Italy paid for free of charge, they each paid Viens approximately $180 to $200 for gratuities and transportation.
Viens was the only one who received a stipend from EF Tours. None of the chaperones filed financial disclosure forms until Oct.18, the same day Viens was placed on leave, according to the DLR.
Viens received approximately $2,000 from EF Tours for the 2017 Italy trip, using approximately $1,000 for incidentals and gratuities she personally paid, according to the DLR. Each student paid EF Tours a fee between $2,000 to $3,000 to attend the trip.
After learning last September that Viens had been organizing trips through EF Tours for over a decade, the school placed her on paid administrative leave on Oct. 18 to investigate. Bonneville removed Veins from a professional development training and informed her of the decision. The nature of the dismissal, the union claims, was an intimidation tactic.
The Department of Labor Relations investigation documents two alleged conversations in which Bonneville threatened union members. On Oct. 19, 2017, Bonneville reportedly told Joseph Dragon, an employee and union member, that if Veins “chose to fight” the investigation and disciplinary action, she would be reported to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the State Ethics Commission.
In a separate conversation on Dec. 11, Bonneville allegedly told Paula Jean Provost, a school employee and union member, that Viens was throwing other employees “under the bus” by contesting the investigation.
Dupere denies all allegations that Bonneville or the School Committee tried to retaliate against or intimidate Viens.
As chairwoman of the union’s grievance committee since November 2016, Viens served as the point person for all union-related issues. Viens had spoken with Bonneville about unsatisfactory working conditions for paraprofessionals in the past, and had filed a complaint against the principal for allegedly disclosing confidential health information about another employee, according to the investigation.
Dupere denied that Bonneville disclosed confidential medical information about an employee, as those events happened outside the six-month statute of limitations.
This is the second public clash in recent years between the South Hadley Education Association and School Committee. In March 2014, the teachers’ union filed a complaint against Superintendent Nicholas Young for eliminating department head positions after the union requested they receive raises. Young said the decision had nothing to do with the union’s request and department head positions did not lose their jobs, rather, they were changed to “curriculum coordinators” teaching five classes instead of four with no change in salary.
Representatives from EF Tours could not be reached for comment.
Sarah Robertson can be reached at srobertson@gazettenet.com.