{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-70-70-6-101","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 70, § 70-6-101","heading":"Teachers - Contract","body":"\n\nA. Except as provided in subsection E of this section, no\n\nperson shall be permitted to teach in any school district of the\n\nstate without a written contract, except as provided herein for\n\nsubstitute teachers and except teachers of classes in adult\n\neducation. Except as provided in subsection J of this section, the\n\nboard of education of each school district, wherein school is\n\nexpected to be conducted for the ensuing year, shall employ and\n\ncontract in writing with qualified teachers for and in the name of\n\nthe district. One copy of the contract shall be filed with the\n\nclerk of the board of education and one copy shall be retained by\n\nthe teacher.\n\nB. Except as otherwise provided by subsections J and K of this\n\nsection and any other law, no board of education shall have\n\nauthority to enter into any written contract with a teacher who does\n\nnot hold an Oklahoma criminal history record check as required by\n\nSection 6-190 of this title and who does not hold a valid\n\ncertificate issued or recognized by the State Board of Education\n\nauthorizing the teacher to teach the grades or subject matter for\n\nwhich the teacher is employed. Any board of education paying or\n\nauthorizing the payment of the salary of any teacher not holding a\n\ncertificate, as required herein, shall be adjudged to be guilty of a\n\nfraudulent expenditure of public funds and members voting for such\n\npayment shall be held jointly responsible for the return of the\n\namount of any public monies thus expended, upon suit brought by the\n\ndistrict attorney or by any interested citizen in the district where\n\nsuch funds have been expended.\n\nC. It shall be the duty of the superintendent of schools under\n\nwhose supervision teachers have been contracted to teach to certify\n\nto the treasurer of the contracting district the names of the\n\nteachers holding valid certificates and student teachers with whom\n\ncontracts have been made and the names of substitute teachers\n\nemployed in accordance with law. The treasurer shall not register\n\nany warrant issued in payment of salary to any teacher whose name is\n\nnot included in such list and shall be liable on the official bond\n\nfor the treasurer for the amount of any warrant registered in\n\nviolation of the provisions of this section.\n\nD. Whenever any person shall enter into a contract with any\n\nschool district in Oklahoma to teach in such school district the\n\ncontract shall be binding on the teacher and on the board of\n\neducation until the teacher legally has been discharged from the\n\nteaching position or released by the board of education from the\n\ncontract. Except as provided in Section 5-106A of this title, until\n\nsuch teacher has been thus discharged or released, the teacher shall\n\nnot have authority to enter into a contract with any other board of\n\neducation in Oklahoma for the same time covered by the original\n\ncontract. If upon written complaint by the board of education in a\n\ndistrict any teacher is reported to have failed to obey the terms of\n\nthe contract previously made and to have entered into a contract\n\nwith another board of education without having been released from\n\nthe former contract except as provided in Section 5-106A of this\n\ntitle, the teacher, upon being found guilty of such charge at a\n\nhearing held before the State Board of Education, shall have such\n\nteacher’s certificate suspended for the remainder of the term for\n\nwhich the contract was made.\n\nE. A board of education shall have authority to enter into\n\nwritten contracts with teachers for the ensuing fiscal year prior to\n\nthe beginning of such year. If, prior to the first Monday in June,\n\na board of education has not entered into a written contract with a\n\nregularly employed teacher or notified the teacher in writing by\n\nregistered or certified mail that a recommendation has been made not\n\nto reemploy the teacher for the ensuing fiscal year, and if, by\nn contracts with teachers for the ensuing fiscal year prior to\n\nthe beginning of such year. If, prior to the first Monday in June,\n\na board of education has not entered into a written contract with a\n\nregularly employed teacher or notified the teacher in writing by\n\nregistered or certified mail that a recommendation has been made not\n\nto reemploy the teacher for the ensuing fiscal year, and if, by\n\nfifteen (15) days after the first Monday in June, such teacher has\n\nnot notified the board of education in writing by registered or\n\ncertified mail that such teacher does not desire to be reemployed in\n\nsuch school district for the ensuing year, such teacher shall be\n\nconsidered as employed on a continuing contract basis and on the\n\nsame salary schedule used for other teachers in the school district\n\nfor the ensuing fiscal year, and such employment and continuing\n\ncontract shall be binding on the teacher and on the school district.\n\nF. Whenever a school district is engaged in contract\n\nnegotiations with teachers employed by that school district after\n\nthe school year has begun and the teachers are employed on a\n\ncontinuing contract basis, the school district shall, beginning at\n\nthe first of the school year, pay the teachers any state-mandated\n\nsalary increases and salary schedule increases to which each teacher\n\nis otherwise entitled.\n\nG. No school district or any member of the board of education\n\nof a district shall be liable for the payment of compensation to a\n\nteacher or administrator under the provisions of any contract for\n\nthe ensuing year, if it becomes necessary to close the school\n\nbecause of insufficient attendance, disorganization, annexation,\n\nconsolidation, or by dispensing with the school according to law,\n\nprovided, such cause is known or action is taken prior to July 1 of\n\nsuch ensuing year.\n\nH. No school district or any member of a board of education\n\nshall be liable for the payment of compensation to any teacher or\n\nadministrator for the unexpired term of any contract if the school\n\nbuilding to which the teacher or administrator has been assigned is\n\ndestroyed by accident, storm, fire, or otherwise and it becomes\n\nnecessary to close the school because of inability to secure a\n\nsuitable building or buildings for continuation of school. Teachers\n\nand administrators shall be entitled to pay for any time lost when\n\nschool is closed on account of epidemics or otherwise when an order\n\nfor such closing has been issued by a health officer authorized by\n\nlaw to issue the order.\n\nI. A teacher may contract with more than one school district\n\nfor the same school year as provided in Section 5-106A of this\n\ntitle.\n\nJ. A board of education shall have authority to enter into\n\nwritten contracts for the ensuing fiscal year prior to the beginning\n\nof the year with persons who are not certified to teach by the State\n\nBoard of Education as long as the person is actively in the process\n\nof securing certification. The person shall not be allowed to teach\n\nin a classroom until the person has met or completed all of the\n\nrequirements for certification as provided for in Section 6-190 of\n\nthis title. If the person has not obtained valid certification by\n\nthe first day of the ensuing school year, the contract shall be\n\nterminated.\n\nK. A board of education of a school district shall have the\n\nauthority to enter into written contracts for employment for the\n\nensuing fiscal year with persons who are student teachers as defined\n\nin Section 1-116 of this title while such persons are still student\n\nteachers. A student teacher shall not be allowed to teach in a\n\nclassroom during the ensuing fiscal year until meeting or completing\n\nall of the requirements for certification as provided for in Section\n\n6-190 of this title. If the student teacher has not obtained valid\n\ncertification by the first day of the ensuing school year, the\n\ncontract shall be terminated. A board of education of a school\nteachers. A student teacher shall not be allowed to teach in a\n\nclassroom during the ensuing fiscal year until meeting or completing\n\nall of the requirements for certification as provided for in Section\n\n6-190 of this title. If the student teacher has not obtained valid\n\ncertification by the first day of the ensuing school year, the\n\ncontract shall be terminated. A board of education of a school\n\ndistrict shall have the authority to commit to payment of a stipend\n\nor signing bonus to a student teacher as defined in Section 1-116 of\n\nthis title while that person is still a student teacher, if that\n\nperson has entered into a written contract for employment for the\n\nensuing fiscal year. A board of education shall make any such\n\nstudent teacher stipend or signing bonus conditional on such person\n\nfulfilling the first year of his or her contract for the ensuing\n\nfiscal year. Any stipend or signing bonus paid under the terms of\n\nthis subsection shall not be considered compensation for purposes of\n\nteacher retirement or the minimum salary schedule.\n\nL. A teacher whose certificate was suspended by the State Board\n\nof Education pursuant to Section 3-104 of this title and Sections\n\n314 and 314.1 of Title 75 of the Oklahoma Statutes shall be placed\n\non suspension pursuant to the provisions of Section 6-101.29 of this\n\ntitle while proceedings for revocation or other action are pending\n\nbefore the State Board of Education. The provisions of this\n\nsubsection shall not preclude the initiation of due process\n\nprocedures in accordance with Section 6-101.20 et. seq of this\n\ntitle.","path":["OK Code","Title 70"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os70.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"e26b4d644988165d4d859904725ed72b67684c284d3f7407e79107a2f73b1e4a","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-70-70-510.3","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-70-70-6-101.1"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}