1 BEFORE THE TEACHER STANDARDS AND PRACTICES COMMISSION
' 2 OF THE STATE OF OREGON
3
4 In the Matter of the Educator ) DEFAULT ORDER OF
5 License of ) REPRIMAN D
6 KAREN J MOORE )
7
8
9 On January 8, 2015, the Teacher Standards and Practices Commission (Commission)
10 issued a Notice of Opportunity for Hearing to Karen J Moore (Moore) in which the
ll Commission charged her with Gross Neglect of Duty. The Notice was sent via U.S. First
12 Class Mail and U.S. Certified Mail Receipt 7014 0150 oooo 6070 0465 to the address on file
13 with the Commission. The Notice designated the Commission file as the record for purposes
14 of proving a prima facie case. The Certified Mail receipt was returned to the Commission
15 “signed” on January 2o, 2015. The first class mail was not returned to the Commission. The
16 Notice of Opportunity of Hearing, dated January 8, 2015, and signed by Victoria
l7 Chamberlain, Executive Director, stated:
18 “IF A REQUEST FOR HEARING IS NOT RECEIVED WITHIN THIS 21-DAY
l9 PERIOD, YOUR RIGHT TO A HEARING SHALL BE CONSIDERED WAIVED
.20 UNLESS YOUR FAILURE TO REQUEST A HEARING WAS BEYOND YOUR
2l REASONABLE CONTROL. IF YOU DO NOT REQUEST A HEARING OR IF YOU
22 FAIL TO APPEAR AT A HEARING, THE COMMISSION WILL ADOPT AN ORDER
23 OF DEFAULT WHICH MAY INCLUDE THE REVOCATION OR SUSPENSION OF
24 YOUR LICENSE OR OTHER DISCIPLINE.”
25
26 Moore did not requested a hearing. The Commission, therefore, finds Moore to be in default
27 and enters the following findings of fact, conclusions of law, and final order, based on the
28 files and records of the Commission concerning this matter.
29 FINDINGS OF FACT
30 1. Moore has been licensed by the Commission since August 4, 2006. Moore previously
31 held an Initial II Teaching License, with endorsements in Language Arts (HS, ML)
32 and Multiple Subjects (MIDLVL), valid from July 11, 2010, through July 10, 2013.
Tr ord- 1'va \fl/ r-v-ur
33 During all relevant times, Moore was employed by the fierth-Glaelea-mas School
34 District. ‘p
Tran-val . ‘WM-#1" r-q-l 5'
35 2. On February 27, 2012, the Commission received a report from the Nerbh-Glaekemas School
' 36 District alleging Moore violated professional standards and practices. On May 29, 2012, the
PAGE 1-DEFAULT ORDER OF REPRIMAND- KAREN J MOORE

45 ‘V
T MPH/um 8A
l Commission received a second report from glen-h-Gleekaaaes School District, indicating
' 2 additional violations of professional standards and practices. Subsequent investigation
3 determined the following:
4 a. On December 16, 2011, Moore permitted students, once they had completed their
5 presentations, to not attend Moore’s class. These students were allowed to go anywhere,
6 unsupervised and unaccounted for. Moore failed to take and report accurate attendance
7 regarding these students, and Moore allowed two students t0 leave campus to get coffee.
8 When questioned by district officials, Moore misrepresented information. When
9 confronted with discrepancies in Moore's version of events, Moore repeatedly changed
10 her account of the incidents. On January 25, 2012, the district issued Moore a Letter of
1 1 Reprimand and an unpaid, two day suspension.
12 b. On April 20, 2012, Moore was issued a second Letter of Reprimand with a five day,
13 unpaid suspension. This reprimand was issued to Moore for behavior occurring on or
14 about March 2012. Investigation determined that Moore retaliated against students in
15 her 4‘h Block Class for their alleged poor behavior with a substitute teacher. This
. 16 retaliation included changing testing timelines and requiring students to take the test
17 sooner than expected while stating “I’m going to watch you all fail”. Moore allowed the
l8 students who were not present on the date of the substitute teacher to leave the room
19 and follow the original lesson plan; the remainder of the class was required to take the
20 test. Moore failed to verify that those students who claimed to have been absent on the
21 day of the substitute teacher were in fact absent. On a later date, Moore allowed the
22 students who had been required to take the test early t0 participate in the original lesson
23 plan and retake the test. This resulted in a waste of instructional time and classroom
24 ineffectiveness. Moore was equally upset with her 3rd Block Class regarding their alleged
25 behavior with the substitute teacher and told the class that they needed to “Fess up to
26 their behavior”. After waiting approximately 1o minutes, Moore threatened the students
27 of this class with taking 10 points off their essay scores unless they confessed. After
28 approximately five more minutes, Moore then threatened the students with detention if
29 they did not cooperate. Moore told the class that “you were plain pissed off’ and
.30 explained that she could get into trouble for poor substitute teacher reports. During the
PAGE 2-DEFAULT ORDER OF REPRIMAND— KAREN J MOORE

1 course of this investigation, school officials learned that Moore coached one of her
. 2 student aides in drafting a statement in support of Moore regarding the investigation.
3 This included Moore suggesting talking points to the aide, reviewing her draft
4 statement, and giving her written feedback.
5 c. On May 10, 2012, the district issued Moore a third Letter of Reprimand and a two day,
6 unpaid suspension for failing to follow district policies. This included Moore using
7 inappropriate language, including the word “fuck”, in a private conversation with a
8 student. Moore admitted to saying “Give me a fucking break” and “He thinks he is so
9 fucking smart” in reference to another student. Moore used words such as “bitched
10 about”, “jackass”, and “dumbass” in class. Moore made statements to the class such as
ll “Shut up or I am going to throw something at you”, I don’t care what you think", and
l2 “He is kind of a smart-ass like you are”; t0 name a few. Moore wrote the word “Crap” on
13 one student’s assignment after discussing the assignment with the student, and the
14 student told Moore that his work was crap. A majority of students in Moore’s classroom
15 complained that Moore used profanity in the classroom, threatened to hit them or throw
' 16 something at them, and that Moore consistently yelled at the classroom in an intense
17 manner. The school administration advised that Moore’s unprofessional classroom
18 behavior had caused a significant impact on the school’s administration as they had to
19 address the volume of students who were requesting to be transferred out of Moore’s
20 classroom due to her behavior causing the students confusion and frustration.
21
22 CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
23 Karen J Moore engaged in unprofessional conduct as described above. This conduct
24 constitutes Gross Neglect of Duty in violation of ORS 342.175(1)(b); OAR 584-020-
25 oo40(4)(n) as it incorporates OAR 584-020-0010(1) (Recognize the worth and dignity 0f
26 all persons and respect for each individual), OAR 584-020-0010(5) (Use professional
27 judgment), OAR 584-020-0025(2)(a) (Establishing and maintaining classroom
28 management that is conductive to learning), OAR 584-020-0025(2)(e) (Using district
29 lawful and reasonable rules and regulations), OAR 584-020-0030(2)(b) (Skill in
'30 communicating with administrators, students, stafl, parents, and other patrons); and OAR
PAGE 3-DEFAULT ORDER OF REPRIMAND- KAREN J MOORE

1 584-020-oo4o(4)(o) as it incorporates OAR 584-020-0035(1)(c)(D) (Honoring
. 2 appropriate adult boundaries with students in conduct and conversations at all times).
3
4 The Commission’s authority to impose discipline in this matter is based upon ORS
5 342.175.
6 FINAL ORDER
7 The Commission hereby issues a Public Reprimand upon Karen J Moore’s Educator
8 licensure.
9
10 Ht
11 IT rs so ORDERED THIS l 10 “day of March, 2015.
12 CnnnmciadJ MW Ll: 991$- lp/
13 TEACHER STANDARDS AND PRACTICES COMMISSION
14 By: _ ._—____
15 Victoria Chamberlain, Executive Director
16
l7 NOTICE OF APPEAL OR RIGHTS
18
19 YOU ARE ENTITLED TO JUDICIAL REVIEW OF THIS ORDER. JUDICIAL REVIEW
2O MAY BE OBTAINED BY FILING A PETITION FOR REVIEW WITHIN 60 DAYS FROM
21 THE SERVICE OF THIS ORDER. JUDICIAL REVIEW IS PURSUANT TO THE
22 PROVISIONS OF ORS 183.482 TO THE OREGON COURT OF APPEALS.
PAGE 4-DEFAULT ORDER OF REPRIMAND- KAREN J MOORE

' CERTIFICATE OF MAILING
I hereby certify that I served the foregoing notice of final order, certified by me as such, by
mailing U.S. First Class Mail and U.S. Certified Mail-Return Receipt Requested, addressed to:
Karen J Moore
304 W 4th Ave., Apt 42
l‘, Post Falls, ID 83854-6962
i -
Dated this (d day of March, 2015.
By: ” 7,7; . ' {L1 '
Pa g ddell
Investigative Assistant
' PAGE 1— CERTIFICATE OF MAILING— KAREN J MOORE