Teacher professional conduct and superintendent disciplinary decisions

Decisions by School Superintendents

Improper Attitude and Unprofessional Conduct of Teachers

To educate a person in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society - President Theodore Roosevelt.

That teaching is at one and the same time an intellectual as well as a moral endeavor, is an idea that is well entrenched in the minds of men since centuries past. The sayings of great teachers of ancient times bear ample testimony to this premise, which continues to hold sway across nations and vastly differing civilizations over the years.

In the sense that it takes care of the general well being of young students entrusted to the care of an educational institution and ensures that they are treated fairly and accorded the respect they are due as persons, teaching is most certainly a moral activity. It is concerned with building and maintaining relationships of trust with pupils and colleagues in schools and with others in the wider community. Teachers ought therefore to have those qualities and forms of personal and professional conduct that are consistent with their calling.

The words and actions of a teacher can assume moral expression and can influence a young individual during his scholastic years, which are the most impressionable stage in his life. In society's view, the teacher is in turn parent, educational state agent, police state agent, social welfare agent, employee and, finally, omni-competent educator. By this token, a teacher must of necessity be able to fit these roles and must maintain the standards of ethics that are set out for teachers and educators alike.

It is taken for granted that the school - and by extension its teachers - make the well being of young people entrusted to their care central to their very existence. It follows that the school's ethics philosophy should be so inextricably woven into the fabric of its existence as to be reflected in the everyday activities of the school.

Where then, does the problem lie? As in any setting where there is considerable interaction between human beings, schools are also at risk of falling short of ethical standards. Most schools and colleges across the U.S. have therefore a clearly defined code of conduct for their teachers and other employees, the intent of which is to address just such a deficiency.

Code of Conduct and Code of Ethics

Many organizations develop a code of conduct, which prescribes a set of guidelines for their employees. However such a code may be silent or unclear in certain instances, when a code of ethics may be found to be more appropriate. Such a code of ethics would serve to ensure long-term commitment to important values, because it demands something more than mere compliance. It calls for people to exercise judgment and take responsibility for decisions they make. It is clear that regulations cannot alone cover every case and that situations will sometimes arise where a choice would have to be made between competing or conflicting values. To this end, teachers must be helped to reflect upon and internalize ethical standards, which includes understanding the purposes of the regulations and a commitment to those purposes.

School administrators can contribute to an ethical school culture by leading by example, particularly in their relations with the other members of the school community. Such relationships should be characterized by mutual respect, trust and consideration.

Historical Perspective on Code of Conduct for Teachers and Changes in Code of Conduct for teachers over Time

The teacher's role has grown in complexity and sophistication over the last fifty years. The role of the teacher was fundamental and clearly defined in the 50's, but the educator of today has a variety of roles, each one more complex than and sometimes in conflict with the others. Teachers' terms of service were governed by certain well-defined regulations, which reflected the values and expectations of the local community. In the early part of the twentieth century, teachers were required to abide by a code of conduct that was quite strict, especially for female teachers. "In some communities, a teacher's contract became null and void if he or she married, left town without the permission of the chairman of the board of trustees, stayed out after 8 p.m., wore bright colors, or smoked."

In some schools in Canada, teachers were instructed to scrub the classroom floor at least once a week and to clean the blackboards daily. Such regulations seem to indicate a desire to place the teacher on a high moral plane. While it is clear that community values have changed over the last fifty years, the idea that teachers should be held to a higher level of ethical and moral conduct than other members of society still prevails today.

The old order changeth. There has been a sea change in the role and responsibilities of teachers over the past few decades. Constantly rising demands from parents and from members of the public have made the job of a school administrator none too easy. Expectations range from improvements in curriculum and better methods of teaching, to guaranteeing school safety. All of these issues must and do engage the attention of educators today. An educator must not only have an abiding interest in and commitment to the goals and values of the teaching profession, but must also rise to meet expectations in a way that is commensurate with the extent of trust placed in teachers by parents, school systems and by society as a whole.

The history of education is replete with instances where people have been disappointed with the performance of educators. Today, those who are disappointed can have their voices heard and can exert pressure for change that can benefit everyone in the educational system.

Moral education is streaking back to the top of many education wish lists." In a recent survey of parents for U.S. News and World Report, "teaching children values and discipline" ranked as the No. 1 priority for education. Much more is now being expected of teachers to fulfill their obligations as role models. They have not only to teach morals, but also to model good behavior. Pressures are mounting for character education, and teachers are also increasingly being held accountable for their behavior.

That they should serve as role models for students is an axiom that is readily accepted by teachers. But in the present day context, when heightened accountability for teachers and educators is the demand from all quarters, the dividing line between the rights to freedom of speech and the standards of conduct that teachers have to maintain, seems to have narrowed down so much as to seem almost imperceptible. Many teachers today believe that the demands made upon them in the name of accountability for ethical standards infringe their constitutional rights as individuals.

As a role model, the teacher is expected to 'wear the mask as it were' and remain the picture of propriety even out of school hours. Complaints about the use of inappropriate language by teachers both on and off school grounds have been a cause for concern for school administrators in recent times. For example a teacher who confronted a student and his mother at the mall was brought to book for using inappropriate language in public.

In Collinsville, the teachers' union protested a new policy on obscene language that calls on teachers to serve as "positive role models" and "ambassadors for the school district." The union chafes at the "vague" policy especially because it's not clear if it applies after school hours.

In Santa Ana, Calif., teachers balked at having to wear suits and dresses after a tough dress code was put in place for students.

A gay teacher in Salt Lake City sued the school district after it removed her from coaching volleyball and told her not to talk about her "lifestyle."

In Florida, an unmarried teacher was reassigned after becoming pregnant.

In another situation, the Collinsville School Board fired a junior-high math teacher after the police found a group of 16- and 17-year-olds drinking at his apartment.

In some cases, the courts have supported schools that discipline teachers for conduct outside of school. The Indiana Court of Appeals, for instance, sustained the firing of a teacher who drank beer in front of students at a restaurant and then drove them home from a field trip.

Even though the teacher may be on his or her own time, misbehavior that can reflect on the ability to act as a role model is within the purview of the school district and doesn't violate free-speech and association rights," says Gwendolyn Gregory, deputy general counsel at the National School Boards Association.

The Arizona Board of Regents prescribes a set of standards of professional conduct for its faculty members. The Board reminds faculty that as teachers, it is their responsibility to encourage the free pursuit of learning in students. They should therefore hold before students as best they can, the scholarly standards of their discipline, make every reasonable effort to foster honest academic conduct and to assure that their evaluation of students reflects the students' true merit. Members of the faculty are also exhorted to recognize that students are individuals and are entitled to an atmosphere conducive to learning and to even-handed treatment in all respects of the teacher-student relationship.

Improper Attitude and Unprofessional Conduct

It is no use to preach to children if you do not act decently yourself - Theodore Roosevelt in a speech to Holy Name Society, Oyster Bay, August 16, 1903.

Most educational institutions develop a set of rules governing teacher behavior that reflect the district policy. They summarily ban the obvious: harassment and sexual contact with students.

Improper attitude or unprofessional conduct. Conduct that bases a person's employment, enrollment as a student, or participation in scholastic activities on that person's age, color, disability, sex, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status; employment or academic decisions made in retaliation for a person's unwillingness to submit to such conduct, or benefits or privileges provided as a result of such submission; or Conduct of any type, whether oral, written, graphic or physical, directed against a person because of his or her age, color, disability, sex, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, veteran status, and which also unreasonably interferes with the person's work or academic performance or participation in scholastic activities, or creates a working or learning environment that a reasonable person would find threatening or intimidating.

Harassment can take many forms like:

Ridiculing a person's religious beliefs; directing racial or ethnic slurs at someone.

Touching that goes beyond acceptable workplace or classroom interaction, in a way that a reasonable person would find it objectionable.

Repeated references to sex in lectures or class assignment when there is no relevance to the content of the course

Evaluating an employee or student more critically than performance warrants because the employee or student objected to a sexual advance.

Sending unwelcome e-mail containing sexual jokes.

Telling persons they are too old to understand new technology.

Mocking a person with a disability.

The importance of consistency in the interpretation of terminology

Teachers are admonished to avoid not only impropriety but also the appearance of impropriety in their actions towards students and colleagues. But what is improper to some teachers is not so to others -- or to their students.

Most teachers instinctively know right from wrong without needing it spelled out. But there is a gray area between the caring teacher who offers a pat on the shoulder and the teacher whose calculated motives and designs are those of a sexual predator. What makes the student-teacher relationship all the more confusing is that not all students or teachers are alike. Also, what makes one student uncomfortable seems normal to another. A Physical Education instructor may have a different relationship with students than a Science teacher does with his. An elementary teacher can offer more hugs than a teacher in junior high school. And finally, some teachers are warmer by nature than others. A teacher should be a nurturer and must be able to express caring without threatening students or allowing the relationship to grow beyond the boundaries of what is proper.

In 1998 there were two U.S. Supreme Court rulings according to which districts can be held liable for teachers who harass students. Cases in which teachers clearly abused the teacher-student relationship have been given so much publicity, as to render more acute the dilemma of teachers who are troubled by the thought of having to be constantly on their guard lest they step beyond the boundaries of what is appropriate.

The Utah Professional Practices Advisory Commission has suspended or revoked 139 educator licenses since 1992. Seventy-four of the cases involved some kind of sexual misconduct. Those cases ranged from sexual harassment or contact to having too-familiar relationships with students, such as talking about sex, writing letters with sexual connotations, making sexually charged remarks in class or inappropriately hugging and touching students. Teachers accused of such misconduct typically use the same defense: "I'm just a caring, loving teacher and you're keeping me from being that way. I'm trying to show approval, trying to show I care."

Parents do caution children against the dangers of talking to strangers in general and teach them to look out for people who might harm them. But sometimes, the unexpected happens when children come to harm from teachers or employees of their own school.

Cases of sexual misconduct by teachers have been known ever since the very existence of an institution named school, but it has remained a sensitive subject that is rarely talked about or publicly acknowledged in the past. Many instances go unnoticed until the situation balloons up to such grave proportions that action against the errant teacher cannot be postponed.

Accused teachers represent a small percentage of our nation's educators. But those who indulge in indecent behavior often cause harm to more than one child and the damage so caused can be devastating.

A national study of 1,600 students done in 1993 by the American Association of University Women found that 85% of 8th- through 11th-grade girls had experienced some form of sexual harassment.

1995 survey done by Connecticut officials found similar results and further revealed that 22% of harassment reports in that state involved touching, 1% rape and 1% attempted rape.

Both studies found that many students had reported harassment from teachers. The AAUW study showed 25% of harassment was from adults at school; the Connecticut researchers found 22% of all harassers were teachers or coaches.

Meanwhile, key court decisions are holding schools increasingly liable for protecting students from harassment that occurs in hallways and classrooms.

A 1992 Supreme Court decision in the case of a Georgia teacher who had sex with a 15-year-old student cleared the way for school districts to be sued for monetary damages and has prompted many states to require schools to address sexual harassment.

Accusations of sexual misconduct surface from time to time in schools across the nation. In a decision that sent ripples across the country, the California Supreme Court ruled that school districts could be sued for "negligent references" or failing to report harassment allegations to a new school district. That case involved a teacher who molested a student and later received a job recommendation that made no mention of the allegations.

That type of quiet, out-of-sight handling of a problem is common," said an official who had worked for the Massachusetts Department of Education for several years and has testified as an expert witness in several sexual harassment cases.

Such incidents are referred to in common parlance as "the mobile molester syndrome,"

Many incidents of this nature are carefully swept under the carpet in an attempt to relegate them to the status of a bad nightmare to be forgotten about as soon as possible.

There is no clear policy on what needs to be done in such circumstances in most educational institutions, and school administrators often face the dilemma of whether or not to take the issue a step further and inform a potential new employer of the allegations. However, school superintendents do have an obligation to let prospective employers know about the questionable behavior of a former employee, from a purely ethical point-of-view.

According to Massachusetts Department of Education spokesman Rick Atkins, the state does not require a school district to inform another of allegations against a teacher. "The situation really dictates what has to happen," he said. "There is no blanket policy."

Joseph Doherty, an Avonworth School District teacher, was cleared of criminal charges but resigned under pressure after being accused of sexually assaulting a student in 1997. He was able to get a teaching job in Maryland this year even though Avonworth school officials had sent his case to the state Department of Education for review.

Dennis L. Bair, a music teacher in Burgettstown Area School District, Washington County, was convicted in June 1997 on two counts of indecent assault of a female student. However, he was allowed to surrender his license last year rather than have it revoked. That action effectively sealed his records and could enable him to teach again outside the state.

Gary Serlo taught elementary school in Westmoreland County in the early 1970s before being sent to a Greensburg prison in 1974 for child molestation. His license to teach in Pennsylvania wasn't revoked until last year, though, when he was convicted of molesting three boys in his new school district in New York. Because of an incomplete background check, school officials who hired Serlo never knew that he had served prison time for molestation.

Larry Mihalko, an elementary school teacher in Gateway School District, was charged earlier this year with indecent assault and other crimes. The charges stem from allegations brought by former students.

The Post-Gazette has examined 727 cases across the U.S. In which an educator has lost his or her license for sex offenses during the past five years, and has found some disturbing trends. Among them:

The number of teachers who have lost their licenses because of sex offenses has increased nearly 80% since 1994.

Several of those who lost their licenses were caught only after they had been molesting students for many years.

Passing the trash. More often than not, school superintendents resort to the tactic of quietly easing the offending teacher out of their school, and actually even assist them in securing employment elsewhere. Such a practice is well-known among educators and they refer to it as "passing the trash."

The approach of individual states towards identifying and weeding out offenders varies. Some states do not perform any background checks on people applying for positions as teachers, and their schools may sometimes have to pay the price for this laxity in approach.

A more alarming aspect is that teachers against whom there are allegations have recourse to appeal procedures, and they get to retain their teaching certificate while the appellate procedure is in progress. This process can take up to three years, during which time the offending teacher is free to seek employment in another school located in a different state. This continues until the appeals have run out.

The lack of clear cut policy or regulations on such a sensitive issue means that such offending behavior often goes unnoticed, and the miscreant moves from one institution to another leaving behind him a trail of young people devastated by his victimization.

In Pennsylvania, 38 teachers lost their certificates for sex-related offenses from 1997 through 1998, compared to 21 in the two years before that. But even the growing numbers don't reflect the actual toll, experts say.

The problem is not so much the number of offending teachers; it's the number of students a single bad teacher can victimize.

The Post-Gazette also found that it commonly takes two to three years, and sometimes longer, before education officials catch up to a license revocation made in another state. This sometimes gives the person time to find a teaching job in another state -- at least until their past offenses emerge.

In 1996, an Oregon agency that oversees teacher certification separately revoked the licenses of two teachers who were accused of making sexual advances toward students. The incidents had occurred as much as 12 years earlier, when the two men were teaching in different school districts in California. As California officials moved to take away their licenses, the two landed jobs in Oregon by falsely stating on their application that they were not under investigation.

Officials in Oregon learned of the first case when a parent in the teacher's former district tracked his whereabouts, then tipped Oregon officials. They found out about the second teacher when a reporter at a California paper called to ask about his teaching status.

Too often, a bad teacher is quietly relieved of his or her job, only to show up in another unsuspecting school.

Hofstra University professor Charol Shakeshaft, in a national survey of 225 school superintendents in 1994, found that 221 teachers accused of sexual abuse quietly resigned or retired from their district. Of those, superintendents were aware of 22 teachers who then were hired in other districts. While they didn't know the whereabouts of the rest, the superintendents conceded that many of those teachers could be employed in other schools "and that it would be easy for them to get other teaching jobs," Shakeshaft said.

In a 1991 survey of 65 superintendents in North Carolina, a Winston-Salem University professor found 26 cases of sex-related offenses by teachers over the past three years. In 12 cases, the teacher was fired or forced to resign, according to the researcher, Dr. Dan Wishnictsky. In the other cases, the teachers were simply reprimanded. Only one case was marked "charges not proven."

The Professional Standards Commission (PSC) of Georgia has a set of standards for teacher conduct. For instance, failure to report the criminal act when it occurs constitutes a breach of Standard 9 - Failure to Make a Required Report - and may result in serious disciplinary action. In many cases when an educator reports a recent single misdemeanor or conviction, the PSC may order that the educator's conduct and performance be monitored for a short period of time. Monitoring consists of quarterly contact with the educator and his/her employer to ensure that further unethical activity has not occurred. Monitoring may also include periodic criminal history checks.

When false allegations are made. Moral standards are thus higher for educators than for the average person, and an educator's reputation could be his best defense against false allegations. Some of the ways to avoid being falsely implicated would be for teachers to stay away from purely social relationships with students and to distance themselves from students who appear older than their real age. Inappropriate behavior of a student should be reported by a teacher so as to establish his bonafides and to guard against false allegations by the student that might surface later.

Impact of community values on Code of Conduct

The teacher should become intimately acquainted with the conditions of the local community, physical, historical, economic, occupational, etc., in order to utilize them as educational resources - John Dewey

The community is the source of the values that govern ethical and responsible behavior, whether of students or of teachers. It includes all citizens of the towns that use the local schools. The idea of providing a safe and friendly atmosphere for the young is a central theme of community standards and values. Children are therefore entitled to a learning environment that is conducive for them to function ethically, responsibly and successfully in the complex world we share.

Roland Barth envisions schools as communities of learners, places "where students and adults alike are engaged as active learners in matters of special importance to them and where everyone is thereby encouraging everyone else's learning" (1990, p. 9). Learning communities can also be viewed as "communities of inquirers," where "expert" and "learner" have become artificial distinctions and "everyone is asked to venture into the realm of curiosity together." These communities "value the collective process of discovery and people within them value living with their questions. These communities are sustained by a continued commitment to share this journey of exploration with one another on matters people care deeply about" (Ryan, 1995, p. 280).

In the context of the school environment, the aims of a collaborative endeavor between the school and the community should be to provide high-quality education and student care programs and services, to promote cooperation among agencies and professions concerned with the welfare of young children, their families, and their teachers, to work through education, research and advocacy toward an environmentally safe world in which all children receive adequate health care, food, and shelter, are nurtured, and live free from violence.

A sustaining relationship between schools and their communities, and a climate in which schools work effectively with parents, agencies and businesses to form sustainable partnerships, are the key factors that ensure the well being of students, their families, and their communities. There is well-researched evidence on the positive impacts that community values have both on student achievement and on the ethics philosophy that is imbibed by the school.

Rising concerns over school violence led the New York State Legislature to adopt Project SAVE legislation during the year 2000. It called for school districts to work with parents, teachers, students and members of the community in developing standards for student behavior and crisis management plans by July 1, 2001."

Recent studies reveal that schools that show consistently high performance have a vision of teaching and learning. There is concrete evidence of superior student achievement when schools work in tandem with the communities they serve, holding that vision in common with their communities.

Educators and parents are constantly seeking more effective ways in which to provide a safe environment for learning to children. To this end it is essential that communities come together to identify those values that matter to them, and then translate those values into standards of behavior for teachers, educators and all those connected to the education of young children. Emphasis needs to be placed on core values, such as honesty, fairness, freedom, tolerance, responsibility, compassion and respect for life.

When each school district and community initiates the process of defining its own core values, the students, teachers and other members of the community will develop a sense of ownership with respect to local codes of conduct. Arising from such an endeavor will be communities, schools, and students committed to practicing them wholeheartedly.

A plausible set of guidelines aimed at instilling community values could be to:

Identify community members.

Discuss and identify values and expectations for behavior.

Obtain from each member a list of values that he believes to be the most essential from an ethical point-of-view.

Narrow the choices down to a final list that represents a consensus view.

Set several behavioral standards for each value.

Envision and document how these standards should translate into a real, live, running school.

Develop an action plan for ways to put the values into action.

Examples of successful school-community collaboration. "Fort Fairfield had wanted to work on character education since 1994. When UNUM agreed to support such an initiative, they were the first to sign onto the project. Community members and teachers each attended a one-day facilitated seminar. A follow-up session for teachers was held in September 1996. A total of twenty community members and twenty teachers took part in the program. Both groups agreed on the following list of core values: honesty, responsibility, respect, compassion, justice, and cooperation. One lead teacher was identified in the elementary school and one in the high school. These two teachers continue to lead the values work in the schools to this day.

The Orono community first got excited about character education after hearing an evening presentation by Dr. Rushworth Kidder.

Following that evening, the community asked the Institute for Global Ethics to engage three groups in the process: a group of community members, the class of 1998, and all middle school teachers. With the advent of the UNUM-funded project, another group of twenty participants engaged in the process, as did all forty high school teachers. Common values selected on all five lists included respect and responsibility. Honesty was on four lists. Fairness, caring, and tolerance were common to three lists. Since that time, the values process and ethical decision-making framework have been integrated into the ninth grade curriculum and into Orono's service learning program."

Which option would promote the common good?

Which option would enable the deepening or development of those virtues or character traits that we value as individuals, as a profession as a society?

Ethical Responsibilities of School Leaders

Although schools are institutions dedicated to the moral development and well being of children, students have virtually no choice on what actually transpires in school. In so far as school superintendents are accountable to uphold the aims and endeavors of an ethical institution - such as the promotion of social norms - their conduct must be deliberately moral. They have to often make choices that favor one moral value over another.

Aside from the ethical dilemmas school leaders face in the course of their everyday activities, there are deeper issues that arise from time to time and he has to exercise his authority in an ethical way when confronted by them. For instance, the policy framework that governs the administration of a school may well have hidden ethical implications that were not envisaged at the time it was drawn up. These may surface from time to time when new situations develop where ethical questions arise. As leaders, principals have a special responsibility to exercise authority in an ethical way.

Ethical Dilemmas faced by school superintendents

As defined by Rushworth Kidder (1995), an ethical dilemma is not a choice between right and wrong, but a choice between two rights. For example, considering a bribe would be a "moral temptation"; deciding whether scarce resources should go to a gifted curriculum or a dropout-prevention program would constitute a dilemma.

Ethical dilemmas arise when cherished values conflict. A principal who values both teacher autonomy and student achievement will face a dilemma when teachers want to enact a policy that lowers expectations.

School leaders are public officials with obligations to many people who often have competing values or interests and therefore this kind of conflict is heightened. Should a school superintendent allow an offending teacher leave quietly without reporting him, in order to uphold the image of the school? Should parents be informed if a counselor learns that their daughter is considering an abortion? Should the principal support a teacher who has made a questionable grading decision?

Some studies suggest that obligations to superiors put special pressure on ethical decision-making. Members of the teaching staff usually the path of least resistance by deferring to superiors or taking refuge in official policies when faced with ethical dilemmas.

Resolving Ethical Dilemmas

The decision making process that is based on ethical standards is a complex one, and there is no prescribed recipe for success in arriving at the right ethical decisions.

Leaders can be guided in their effort to examine more closely the questions posed by ethics or morality, by the more widely accepted moral rules such as those that tell us to Do unto others what you would have them do unto you" and "Always tell the truth." Honesty is often rated as the highest ethical quality or virtue that a good leader can possess. Owning responsibility when things go wrong rather than to pass the blame on to another is another of the virtues of an ethical leader. Great teachers of centuries past have always asserted that virtue must become a habit. It cannot be worn as a cloak when the occasion demands it, to be taken off again at will. Just as a sportsman acquires skill in the game with continuous practice, so also must virtue be practiced for one to become virtuous.

Creating Ethical Institutions

An ethical school is one where the people within it care about each other's well being and seek to promote that well being. In such a setting, ethics is seen as something that is positive, something to be consciously promoted in the human relationships within the community. Each person within the school community is seen as a fully rounded individual and so also are children. Not only should they be treated respectfully and caringly but also they should be taught to treat everyone else respectfully and caringly. Leaders in an ethical school are therefore guided by a concern to build up their particular school as a caring community where every person is valued and helped to contribute to the well being of the whole school community.

Relationships between teachers, parents and student should be characterized by mutual trust, respect and concern based on an understanding and awareness of each other as a real and unique person.

To be an ethical school leader, then, is not a matter of following a few simple rules. The leader's responsibility is complex and multi-dimensional, rooted less in technical expertise than in simple human integrity. He has to himself lead an ethical life and bring about a climate in which the everyday activities of the school reflect ethical values.

Organization culture through shared values and vision

Developing a vision for the organization is the starting point from which an effective leader begins his task of giving shape to the future destiny of the organization. It goes without saying that in this endeavor, all the stakeholders need to be involved and can make their contribution towards developing shared organizational values.

Shared vision, communication, relationships, community, guidance and character are the important facets of effective leadership. Shared values underscore an organization built on the foundation of trust, which in turn implies reliability, accountability and predictability. School-based shared decision making will be ill prepared to meet the challenges of the future without such a foundation built through the development of a shared commitment to ideas, issues, goals, and management processes, and effective communication of the vision to all the stakeholders facilitates the process of shaping the culture of the organization.

School-community collaboration is one of the ways to achieve this kind of synthesis. The shared values and beliefs of the organization get internalized and pave the way for healthy growth in the right direction. Key values such as treating people with dignity and respect, fairness, justice, honesty, integrity and equality and service above self are reinforced. Individuals stay connected because they care deeply about one another and about a shared set of ideas and ideals. Stated more elaborately, shared values reflect democratic principles and positive behavior that result from widespread commitment to a shared vision and set of goals. Individual members in a collaborative environment feel free to make decisions consistent with the community's vision and goals. Finally, cooperation and a mutuality of interests replace competition and self- aggrandizement.

Conclusion

School is a place where the young develop and apply the skills, knowledge and habits necessary to be successful in a changing society. Educators have a responsibility for the moral and intellectual development of students entrusted to their care and must therefore provide for them a nurturing, safe, and respectful environment.

An educator's words and actions must reflect the ethical values that the institution professes to uphold, and he must be seen to be an ethical leader consistently, in every situation that arises. To this end, he must advocate for those policies that are in the best interests of students and educate others in a tactful and positive way about appropriate education. In an ethical institution, the benefits of functioning in consonance with the local community are well appreciated, and initiatives are taken to establish such a collaborative culture in which members of the school and community share responsibility for leadership, decision-making and communication. This responsibility develops and sustains partnerships among students, families, the school and the community. All members of this culture demonstrate mutual respect, positive attitudes, flexibility and open-mindedness, and this culture is sustained through shared vision, values and resources that guide daily decisions.