Commission ratifies agreed order suspending educator's license for contract breach

The commission ratified a single agreed order May 3 concerning educator license number 2300003. Office of Educators staff described that the Jackson Public School District filed an Appendix C alleging a breach of contract by Michael Capels, that the respondent admitted violating Standard 10 of the Mississippi educator code of ethics and standards of conduct, and that the agreed order calls for the respondent's license to be relinquished, suspended, or surrendered from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025.

Scott Deone of the Office of Educators presented the agreed order and summarized the facts alleged by the district and the respondent's admission. The agreed order references Mississippi Code Annotated 37-3-2-12(a) as grounds for the disciplinary range covering suspension of a teacher or administrator license. The commission moved to ratify the agreed order; a motion and second were recorded and the commission ratified the order by voice vote.

The order specifies that the respondent will be eligible to petition for reinstatement at the conclusion of the suspension and that reinstatement requires a petition filed with the Office of Educators and does not require an additional hearing, per the terms in the agreed order.

The commission recorded no dissent on the ratification during the meeting.