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<p>KINGSTON &#8212; Fear of first graders overdosing on fentanyl simply by holding an addicted teacher&#8217;s hand. Unexpected connections made by municipal police doubling as school resource officers. The painful, unspoken addictions and even deaths of school board member relatives who took drugs and couldn&#8217;t quit.</p><p>It&#8217;s all spelled out through an in-depth narrative in a proposed decision regarding a teacher union grievance with the Wyoming Valley West School District, centered on the fentanyl overdose of a first grade teacher at State Street Elementary. The 14-page decision sketches how addictions to new, powerful drugs are rewriting the rules well beyond the walls of rehab centers.</p><p>In the end, Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board Hearing Examiner Jack E. Marino&#8217;s &#8220;proposed decision and order&#8221; dismisses the grievance, which alleged the district retaliated against a teacher who filed a grievance by extending a previous suspension. Marino found the union did not present adequate evidence to back its claim, and that testimony supported the district&#8217;s position even if it seemed to go against past practices.</p><p>According to the &#8220;Finding of facts&#8221; laid out by Marino:</p><p>&#8226; The teacher, Robert Panowicz, taught first grade and coached district swimming and water polo. He overdosed on fentanyl on Saturday, Sept. 8, 2018, and was taken to an area hospital. He did not report to work that Monday.</p><p>&#8226; Larksville Police Juvenile Detective Matthew Stitzer also served as a school resource officer at State Street. Stitzer learned from another SRO at the high school about a weekend incident with a State Street teacher, and looked into police incident reports. He discovered Larksville police had been dispatched to the home of Panowicz for an overdose of fentanyl. As an officer he was aware of the extensive precautions take with fentanyl overdose cases because the drug can be absorbed through the skin and inhaled by first responders.</p><p>&#8226; Panowicz returned to work Sept. 11, Tuesday. On Wednesday Stitzer met with State Street Elementary Principal Jacob Sholtis and advised him about concerns regarding the risk of fentanyl among children, warning breathing particles could be fatal to them. Sholtis was also contacted by Superintendent Irv DeRemer who had heard about the incident from high school staff. DeRemer told Sholtis that, if the overdose was confirmed, Panowicz should be removed from class and coaching until the district contacted him.</p><p>&#8226; Sholtis and Panowicz met, with union representative Linda Houck on speaker phone. He confirmed the overdose. The district offered support in treatment, and Panowicz agreed to inpatient treatment with the district helping to secure health insurance coverage. He checked into Huntington Creek Recovery Center on Sept. 14, using sick days while in treatment.</p><p>Problems began when Huntington Creek called Houck after 21 days to say insurance would not pay for more rehab time, and certified Panowicz successfully completed treatment that same day. The district was suspect of the timing, and sought written certification from a doctor before allowing him to return to work. District officials and school board members familiar with addiction were also concerned 21 days of treatment was insufficient for fentanyl abuse recovery.</p><p>On Oct. 9, Panowicz had a meeting at the treatment center to set up a five-month aftercare program and drug testing. He came to work Oct. 10 for a full day and Oct. 11 for part of the day. Also on Oct. 11, Houck met with DeRemer and others, including then-District Solicitor Charles Coslett. Houck was informed of the school board&#8217;s concerns with Panowicz, and that the district wanted a second opinion from an independent medical examiner. A Huntington Creek doctor signed off on the certification of treatment Oct. 11. DeRemer and Coslett met with Panowicz and Houck Oct. 12 and let him return to work the rest of that day.</p><p>The school board called a special meeting Oct. 15 because members were unconvinced the treatment was sufficient, and because of personal experiences.</p><p>Board Member Dave Usavage related that he had two younger brothers who became addicts, went through treatment repeatedly yet still died from overdoses. Usavage also recounted his days as a first grade and kindergarten teacher, noting &#8220;How children of that age like to hold the teacher&#8217;s hand, especially at recess, which catches on with other children and soon everyone is holding hands.&#8221;</p><p>Board Member Brian Dubaskas talked of a niece with drug issues that prompted him to research fentanyl, learning &#8220;that as little as 2 milligrams, comparable to a couple grains of salt, is so powerful that it can be absorbed through the skin and could kill a person on contact.&#8221; Dubaskas also said his niece overdosed several times, and that the son of a teacher did the same, dying from fentanyl despite visits to two different rehab centers.</p><p>&#8220;The school board members expressed a lot of emotion about Mr. Panowicz&#8217;s recovery from fentanyl abuse,&#8221; Marino wrote. &#8220;Several board members have grandchildren in the District&#8217;s elementary schools. They were concerned that 21 days of inpatient treatment was insufficient.</p><p>A letter dated Oct. 15 and given to Panowicz on Oct. 16 voiced those concerns and notified him he must stay out of class for 60 school days. It stressed the move was not punitive, and that he could use sick and personal days. Panowicz refused to sign the letter. Marino notes the 60 days was not a maximum, and return to work was contingent on compliance with aftercare instructions.</p><p>Also on Oct. 16, Houck notified DeRemer of the grievance, delivered to the district the next day. Coslett was out of town and sent a letter to the union Oct. 18 saying Panowicz would be kept out of the classroom without pay &#8220;until the matters raised by the events of Sept. 8, 2018, are satisfactorily resolved.&#8221;</p><p>Marino dismisses the grievance for multiple reasons, arguing the union did not present sufficient evidence to show the district and school board failed to comply with the contract or the law. He found no evidence of animus on the board&#8217;s behalf, noting board members repeatedly stressed their concern both for Panowicz&#8217; recovery and the safety of students. And he noted that extending Panowicz&#8217;s leave and requesting an IME evaluation were both discussed with Houck on Oct. 11, before the grievance was filed, so that the Oct. 18 letter could not be construed as punishment for filing the grievance.</p><p>Marino also rejects a union argument that the district treated Panowicz &#8220;very differently (and more harshly) than the other union members who, in the past, had substance abuse issues and were allowed back to work when they finished a residential treatment program.&#8221; He notes &#8220;the record does not establish this point of fact,&#8221; but delves deeper.</p><p>&#8220;Moreover, there simply is no comparison between Mr. Panowicz&#8217;s substance abuse problem with fentanyl and other employees who may have abused alcohol, and the District justifiably treated Mr. Panowicz differently for using fentanyl where the record is clear that, to the administrators&#8217; knowledge, no other employee had ever been involved with that substance before.&#8221;</p><p>If no exceptions are filed with PLRB, the order becomes final 20 days after it was issued Dec. 5. The report is available online at the <a href="https://www.dli.pa.gov/Individuals/Labor-Management-Relations/plrb/proposed/2019/Documents/Wyoming-Valley-West-SD-PERA-C-18-327-E.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">PLRB proposed orders site</a>.</p><style>
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<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Mark Guydish</p><p>mguydish@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Mark Guydish at 570-991-6112 or on Twitter @TLMarkGuydish</p></shirttailMeta></div>

WVW teacher grievance sheds light on fentanyl fears in grade school