Revocation of teaching certificate too extreme a penalty for two misdemeanor convictions.

The Professional Standards Commission (PSC) sought to revoke Petitioner’s teaching certificate after Petitioner was convicted of misdemeanor marijuana possession on two occasions, and thereafter failed to report these convictions within the required ninety days. However, as the convictions were misdemeanors and Petitioner’s failure to report them was unintentional, revocation of his certificate was unwarranted. Further, the PSC failed to establish that revocation was appropriate absent a showing that Petitioner’s actions impaired his ability to function professionally or endangered the students in his care.  Accordingly, the PSC’s proposed sanction was modified to a thirty-day suspension and a reprimand.