School investigation put students first

MFL MarMac administrators didn't monkey around when allegations surfaced that the district's high school vocal teacher was behaving inappropriately with students.

At every step, their response was clear, decisive and kept the focus where it ought to be: on student safety.

It shows that handling teacher misconduct cases doesn't have to be as complicated as some school officials would have us believe, and it should be a lesson to school leaders across the state.

Parents and community members are understandably scared and angry when teachers are accused of improper contact with students. But districts that handle those allegations in an open and professional way can actually build trust - sending a clear message that they won't tolerate bad actors or pass them along to other schools.

Richard Nance, 58, of Cresco, was arrested last week on charges of supplying alcohol to a minor, violation of gun conveyance law and open container.

Police say they saw him give alcohol to a student during a sting operation, which they set up after school officials told them there were allegations that Nance was behaving inappropriately with students.

The police took it from there, and once the arrest was made, school officials gave Nance notice that he was going to be fired. When he offered his resignation instead, the district accepted it, but not in any hush-hush, backroom deal:

“There were no negotiations, no deals, no severance pay, no agreements for recommendations, no anything - nor will there be,” MFL MarMac Superintendent Dale Crozier wrote in a statement.

School leaders plan to file a complaint with the Iowa Board of Educational Examiners and ask to have Nance's teaching license permanently revoked - if they determine that's the proper action.

How do we know all this? Because instead of trying to hush a potentially embarrassing situation, school officials made critical information available to teachers, parents and community members through public statements.

1, 2, 3 - easy. No lingering rumors, and no question about the district's tolerance of misconduct, or where officials' priorities lie when students are potentially at risk.

Ideally, students never would come into contact with questionable teachers. But we don't live in an ideal world.

So the question comes down to how officials react to allegations of teacher misconduct.

MFL Mar Mac did it the right way.

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jennifer.hemmingsen@gazcomm.com