| Advisory opinion request as to whether Faith Joseph may be promoted to principal of L.W. Higgins High School within the Jefferson Parish School System (JPSS) while her husband, Isaac Joseph, serves as the Superintendent of JPSS. |
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Faith Joseph, who has been employed as the principal of Henry Ford Middle School since 2007, would like to apply to become the principal of L.W. Higgins High School within JPSS. JPSS considers the transfer of a principal from one school to another to be a lateral move. However, La. R.S. 17:444 provides that the transfer would be considered a promotion because the high school principal position pays a higher salary. Isaac Joseph became the Superintendent of JPSS on May 1, 2015. The Ethics Board previously approved a disqualification plan in BD 2015-1007 indicating that Faith Joseph may continue her employment as the Principal of Henry Ford Middle School provided that her husband, Superintendent Isaac Joseph, does not participate in any personnel matters regarding her before the school board.
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La. R.S. 42:1112B(1) states that no public servant shall participate in a transaction involving the governmental entity in which, to his actual knowledge, any member of his immediate family has a substantial economic interest.
La. R.S. 42:1119B prohibits an immediate family member of a member of a governing authority or the chief executive of a governmental entity from being employed by the governmental entity.
La. R.S. 42:1119C(2) provides a limited exception to the general nepotism prohibition and allows the continued employment and normal promotional advancement of a public employee when a member of the public employee's immediate family becomes the agency head of the public employee's agency, provided that such public employee has been employed in the agency for a period of at least one year prior to the member of the public employee's immediate family becoming the agency head.
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Adopt the proposed advisory opinion.
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| Assigned Attorney: |
Jennifer Land |
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