How should we handle teachers accused but not convicted?

Former Prospect High School choir director Jason Krigas sits in a downstate prison cell serving time for sexually assaulting students.

But until recently when the Daily Herald began asking questions about his status, Krigas remained a fully licensed teacher in the eyes of state education officials, even though he had been convicted more than a year ago.

In recent weeks, the Daily Herald analyzed state disciplinary actions against teachers, poring over lists of those whose licenses to teach had been revoked or suspended.

Krigas' name stood out as one of the most prominent of several cases involving teachers convicted of felony crimes ranging from criminal sexual abuse to cocaine possession in school who still were licensed to teach in Illinois. The situations point to a crack in the system that both a downstate lawmaker and the state school board hope to address with new legislation.

Make no mistake, Krigas is legally barred from ever teaching again. The Fox River Grove man was convicted 13 months ago of aggravated criminal sexual assault and was sentenced to three years in prison.

When he gets out, he'll be a convicted felon and a registered sex offender, both of which automatically disqualify him from teaching. Revoking his license was essentially a formality.

Still, the lapses that occur in the course of state officials' general practices leave open the possibility that a teacher convicted of a crime could work in another state, or even another county.

School officials say they get teachers out of the classroom at the first hint of criminal indiscretion, contact law enforcement and let investigations unfold from there. State law, indeed, requires school officials to report abuse.

"When we have a trigger incident of that nature or any nature, the first thing you are always looking for, always, is the protection, safety and security of students and staff," said Bill Dussling, a board member in Northwest Suburban High School District 214. "Where it goes from there is whatever course the case takes and wherever investigations lead."

At first glance, state law appears to give the state's education superintendent broad ability to yank a teacher's license "upon evidence of immorality, a condition of health detrimental to the welfare of pupils" and a variety of professional misconduct issues.

But state officials say an arrest traditionally has not been considered enough evidence to take action. They choose to wait for the criminal process to play out.

"In our system, one is innocent until proven guilty," State Board of Education general counsel Darren Reisburg said, noting the balance between a teacher's right to due process and a student's right to safety.

The Illinois Federation of Teachers contends one should not come at the expense of the other.

"Yes, we proceed with all due and deliberate speed, but we also have to take the time to make sure that thorough investigations are conducted and people aren't wrongly accused of crimes," spokeswoman Gail Purkey said.

Even so, many of the potentially troubling cases involve teachers who like Krigas have been convicted, not merely accused, of crimes.

Charles McBarron, director of communications for the Illinois Education Association, said reporting delays are troubling but noted teacher certification is a state function, not a union one.

"I believe that they are somewhat understaffed. I don't know if that's why this is not happening posthaste." McBarron said of the State Board of Education. "Obviously someone convicted (in such a case) has no business being in a classroom."

Under the current system, school districts are obligated to notify the state only when an employee is convicted of a crime.

As a result, education officials in Springfield may not know, for instance, if a suburban elementary teacher is charged with criminal sexual exploitation. Unless they do, steps cannot be taken to suspend the teacher's credentials while the criminal process unfolds.

So a teacher facing charges could apply for a new job in a different state or county, teaching license intact.

"It's not always the case the State Board of Education gets the information we need to automatically revoke a license before a conviction," Reisburg said. "We hope to, as soon as we can, try to deal with it legislatively."

The education agency recently created for the first time four hearing officer posts to oversee license suspension proceedings.

And in the wake of inquiries from the Daily Herald and other news organizations, agency officials recently alerted lawmakers of the need for an added $1.5Ȧmillion to address teacher certification issues.

This year alone, 18 teachers' licenses were either suspended or revoked across Illinois. In 2006, there were eight. Between 2000 and 2005, 54 teachers' credentials were pulled -- some temporarily and others permanently.

Of the 80 licenses suspended or revoked during the entire decade statewide, 21 came from teachers in the Northwest and West suburbs.

So while the state's focusing more people and money on the issue, should more be done?

Faced with similar circumstances, New Mexico officials decided last year to dramatically change their policies. They reversed their state's wait-and-see approach to disciplining teachers and now no longer require a guilty verdict before revoking a teacher's credentials. An arrest now is enough to warrant pulling an accused teacher's state license.

"We get right on it," said Don Moya, a New Mexico deputy secretary of education.

The shift came in response to cases like that of Ernest Frank Dominguez III. The former Santa Fe teacher was indicted on 43 sex charges involving students in 2001 and 2002. His case still is pending.

In 2004, five teacher licenses were revoked. In 2005, the number was eight. Last year, after the change, it shot to 17. There were 21,650 active teacher licenses in New Mexico during 2005-2006. So far this year, six teachers' licenses have been revoked.

One Illinois lawmaker recently suggested the state take radical action regarding allegations of abuse by teachers.

State Rep. Dan Brady, a Bloomington Republican, pushed to overhaul how schools share information about alleged wrongdoing by teachers and other employees. Brady introduced legislation that provided for sharing information about "well-grounded suspicions" of potential hires.

His move came in response to the case of Jon White, a teacher accused of abusing students first in Bloomington and then in Urbana. White's case remains pending.

Brady's legislation generated a great deal of attention but little movement, largely because of legal and constitutional concerns that Brady acknowledges.

"It's something that's controversial, I agree," Brady said. "But if it's your child that has been molested, I think the parents demand and expect someone to be standing up and saying, 'We've got to start taking a different approach.' "

The Illinois Education Association had problems with Brady's plan, most notably that someone's career could forever be jeopardized by rumors in the halls.

In response, the union proposed changing the legislation to say that if school officials filed a report with the state -- as they're required to do for any legitimate concern of abuse -- then that information could be shared if another district is considering hiring that teacher and calls to inquire about the work history.

However, the legislation remains stalled in the General Assembly.

And the state's education agency doesn't appear to be in a rush to change.

"I'm not aware of looking to be able to revoke something based solely on accusations," Vanover said.

Daily Herald staff writer Tara Malone contributed to this report.