Dismissed Princeton Principal's Donaldson Hearing Confirmed For May 15

PRINCETON, NJ — Ousted Princeton High School Principal Frank Chmiel will have the opportunity to challenge his dismissal at an opening hearing on May 15.

The school district has confirmed that the Donaldson hearing will take place next Monday at 6 p.m. at the Princeton Middle School cafeteria. The proceedings will also be live-streamed on PPS' YouTube channel.

The public comment section will begin at 6 p.m. and the hearing will start at 7 p.m.

Chmiel and his attorneys will have the opportunity to convince the Board of Education that they made an incorrect determination by not offering to renew his employment.

Chmiel was placed on administrative leave on March 17 and the district does not seem keen to renew his contract. Since then, parents and students have protested the school district’s decision.

What is a Donaldson hearing? Here's a refresher:

When an employee receives a notice that they will not be offered a new contract, within 15 days of notification, they can request in writing a statement of the reasons for the decision, according to the New Jersey School Boards Association (NJSBA).

The board must provide the statement of reasons for nonrenewal within 30 days of receiving the request, the NJSBA says.

“Within 10 calendar days of receiving the board's statement of reasons, the employee may request in writing an informal appearance before the board of education. The board must schedule the informal appearance within 30 calendar days from the time the employee received the board of education’s statement of reasons,” according to NJSBA.

The Donaldson hearing is not an “adversarial proceeding,” the NJSBA said. The purpose of the hearing is to permit the staff member to convince the board to offer reemployment.

“In a situation where employee was deemed nonrenewed because the superintendent had not recommended renewal, the board has the ability to overrule the superintendent’s recommendation after the Donaldson hearing. This is the only situation in which an employee can be appointed without the recommendation of the chief school administrator,” according to the NJSBA.

If the Board does override the Superintendent’s recommendation, the motion to offer a contract to the employee must pass by a recorded roll call majority vote.
However, the Board is not obligated to take a vote after the Donaldson hearing. If the board does not vote, then the recommendation not to renew will stand, according to the NJSBA.

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