By Cathy Higgins
BAY MINETTE, Ala. — As if holiday gift giving wasn’t complicated enough, Baldwin County students will have to add the question of ethics to their list of things to consider when shopping for their teacher this holiday season.
During its special legislation last year, the Alabama Legislature passed a special ethics-reform bill that affects what teachers can and cannot accept as holiday gifts.
“The new law says public employees cannot accept ‘anything of value,’” Baldwin County Public Schools Spokesman Terry Wilhite said via email.
He pointed out, however, that the law fails to define what is and is not considered “value.”
“The new law was very vague,” Wilhite said.
However, Baldwin Legislative Constituent Services Director Stephen E. Pryor attempted to clarify what teachers can accept as gifts.
“Alabama’s new Code of Ethics does not prohibit any public employee — including a teacher — from accepting a reasonable, modest, common-sense gift of insignificant value,” he said via email. “So while a teacher should be wary of accepting a student’s gift of a large gift card to a local restaurant, she should gladly accept a coffee mug, a fruit basket, a Christmas ornament, a scented candle or any other similar item that has, as the Code of Ethics states, ‘little intrinsic value.’”
While that helps, nothing is officially defined by the state as to what is and isn’t an acceptable gift. But that is likely to change soon.
“It’s our understanding that the Alabama Ethics Commission will meet in mid-December to take up this issue,” Wilhite said.
Although the law is new, Wilhite pointed out that holiday gifts haven’t been a problem in Baldwin County schools.
“Parents and students have given Christmas gifts since the days of the one-room school house,” he said. “We cannot recall a single time when there was a problem involving gifts to employees. It is a way for parents and the community to thank teachers who often pull money out of their own pockets to buy supplies for the classroom.”
Nonetheless, school officials are holding off on determining which gifts teachers can accept this year.
“AASB (Alabama Association of School Boards) has instructed us to withhold giving advice to employees until the Ethics Commission is able to meet to clarify matters,” Wilhite said.
