U46 puts human resources chief officer on paid leave

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Updated: March 15, 2012 8:14AM

ELGIN — The chief human resources officer of School District U46 has been placed on paid administrative leave.

Debbie Zelinski was placed on administrative leave on Friday, Feb. 3, U46 Chief of Staff Tony Sanders confirmed Monday.

Sanders said Zelinski will receive her full pay during the leave, and “there is not set length for the administrative leave.” The chief human resources officer’s annual salary is about $153,000, before benefits and pension, according to the U46 website.

Sanders said he “can’t divulge the reasons for her leave of absence because of personnel restrictions,” but “I can assure you there was nothing criminal.”

The School District U46 Board of Education Policies “spell out many areas that result in employee action,” Sanders said.

Those board policies, posted on the U46 website, say a district employee can be relieved from his or her duties, with pay, “during an investigation into allegations of misconduct whenever the employee’s continued presence in his/her position would not be in the best interests of the district, or during the pendency of an appeal to the board of education.”