"This goes back to training in our universities, our hiring practices and ongoing discussions with professional groups," said State School Board President Richard Sadler.

At the University of Utah, education students attend multiple seminars to reinforce professional practices. More recent topics include racy cell-phone answering messages, raunchy photos posted on MySpace and e-mail addresses laced with sexual innuendo.

The U. also requires students to take an education law class before receiving their teaching license.

"We certainly make students aware," said Mary Burbank, U. director of secondary education.

Many of Utah's school districts, including Jordan, Davis and Granite, offer ethics instructions for new teachers. The workshops address technology pitfalls as well as inappropriate touching and professional dress.

Davis District teachers are given a list of specific issues that could endanger their employment, such as giving or accepting certain gifts that would suggest an inappropriate relationship.

Granite District has a "Great Beginnings" series of training for new educators.

"We spend a lot of time discussing what a professional relationship is and what it isn't, especially for young teachers," said Mike Fraser, director of Granite's human resources.

Generation gap

Telling your class about Saturday night's wild party or details about your love life isn't a good idea for teachers, education officials say.

"A lot of things kids do while in college are really not appropriate when they enter the professional environment of a classroom," said Laura Black, of the Jordan Education Association.

"We need to remind them where the boundaries are," Black said.

Many school district human resources directors are now checking potential teachers' Web pages on sites like MySpace and Facebook before hiring them, Fraser said.

"A teacher's standards are higher than the general public's. They are a role model for children," he said. "We tell them their Web page should be something their grandmother would be proud of."

State School Board member Debra Roberts said she worries that new, young teachers of this generation aren't understanding the barriers as well as they should.

"You have an 18-year-old student and a 25-year-old teacher and sometimes they forget what the professional level is," Roberts said. "It's good to be reminded."

Teaching again

Despite bad behavior, teachers can regain their licenses.

About half of those whose licenses are suspended for six months or more, or revoked for years, attempt to get them back.

About 90 percent of those requests are granted, but not before undergoing a rigorous screening process. Teachers have to show extensive and long-term counseling, make restitution and satisfy all court requirements, which could be probation or court fees. But "there are no guarantees," Lear said.

As teachers come and go, state board members continue to analyze the issue of teacher ethics and ponder how the state can be more proactive in deterring negative incidents.

"We look at teachers as professionals. We hope they will act as professionals," Mackey said. "But you do get these rogue teachers who will do things that are so egregious. I don't know what the answer is."

---

E-mail: astewart@desnews.com