William Allan Kritsonis, PhD (Revised Summer, 2009) William H. Parker Leadership Academy Hall of Honor In 2008, Dr. Kritsonis was inducted into the William H. Parker Leadership Academy Hall of Honor, Graduate School, Prairie View A&M University – The Texas A&M University System. He was nominated by doctoral and master’s degree students. Dr. Kritsonis Lectures at the University of Oxford, Oxford, England In 2005, Dr. Kritsonis was an Invited Visiting Lecturer at the Oxford Round Table at Oriel College in the University of Oxford, Oxford, England. His lecture was entitled the Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning. Dr. Kritsonis Recognized as Distinguished Alumnus In 2004, Dr. William Allan Kritsonis was recognized as the Central Washington University Alumni Association Distinguished Alumnus for the College of Education and Professional Studies. Dr. Kritsonis was nominated by alumni, former students, friends, faculty, and staff. Final selection was made by the Alumni Association Board of Directors. Recipients are CWU graduates of 20 years or more and are recognized for achievement in their professional field and have made a positive contribution to society. For the second consecutive year, U.S. News and World Report placed Central Washington University among the top elite public institutions in the west. CWU was 12th on the list in the 2006 On-Line Education of “America’s Best Colleges.” Educational Background Dr. William Allan Kritsonis earned his BA in 1969 from Central Washington University, Ellensburg, Washington. In 1971, he earned his M.Ed. from Seattle Pacific University. In 1976, he earned his PhD from the University of Iowa. In 1981, he was a Visiting Scholar at Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, and in 1987 was a Visiting Scholar at Stanford University, Palo Alto, California. Doctor of Humane Letters In June 2008, Dr. Kritsonis received the Doctor of Humane Letters, School of Graduate Studies from Southern Christian University. The ceremony was held at the Hilton Hotel in New Orleans, Louisiana. Professional Experience Dr. Kritsonis began his career as a teacher. He has served education as a principal, superintendent of schools, director of student teaching and field experiences, invited guest professor, author, consultant, editor-in-chief, and publisher. Dr. Kritsonis has earned tenure as a professor at the highest academic rank at two major universities. Books – Articles – Lectures - Workshops Dr. Kritsonis lectures and conducts seminars and workshops on a variety of topics. He is author of more than 600 articles in professional journals and several books. His popular book SCHOOL DISCIPLINE: The Art of Survival is scheduled for its fourth edition. He is the author of the textbook William Kritsonis, PhD on Schooling that is used by many professors at colleges and universities throughout the nation and abroad. In 2008, Dr. Kritsonis coauthored the textbook A Statistical Journey: Taming of the Skew. The book has been adopted by professors in many colleges and universities throughout the nation. It was published by the Alexis/Austin Group, Murrieta, California. In 2007, Dr. Kritsonis’ version of the book of Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning (858 pages) was published in the United States of America in cooperation with partial financial support of Visiting Lecturers, Oxford Round Table (2005). The book is the product of a collaborative twenty-four year effort started in 1978 with the late Dr. Philip H. Phenix. Dr. Kritsonis was in continuous communication with Dr. Phenix until his death in 2002. In 2007, Dr. Kritsonis was the lead author of the textbook Practical Applications of Educational Research and Basic Statistics. The text provides practical content knowledge in research for graduate students at the doctoral and master’s levels. In 2009, Dr. Kritsonis’ b

1. -1Case One
Court of Appeals of Texas,
San Antonio.
NORTH EAST INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT, Appellant,
v.
John KELLEY, Appellee
No. 04-08-00162-CV.
LITIGANTS
Plaintiff’s-Appellant: John Kelly
Defendant-Appellees: North East Independent School District
BACKGROUND
Former school teacher filed suit against school district asserting claims for breach
of contract, quantum meriut, declaratory relief, and injunctive relief, after Commissioner
of Education denied his grievance seeking an additional day's pay. School district filed
plea to the jurisdiction, and parties filed competing motions for summary judgment. The
County Court at Law No. 7, Bexar County, David Rodriguez, J., granted summary
judgment to teacher. District appealed.
FACTS
Kelley was employed by the District pursuant to a written one-year probationary
contract. The contract provided that Kelley would be employed "on a 10-month basis for
the school year 2000-01, according to the hours and dates set by the district as they exist
or may hereafter be amended." The District adopted a teacher salary schedule that was
based on 187 working days and a work schedule that required teachers to work 187 days
during the 2000-2001 school year. The District required Kelley to attend a graduation
ceremony in addition to the 187 days he was required to work. Kelley filed a grievance
seeking an additional day's pay and appealed the District's decision to the Commissioner
of Education.
The Commissioner of Education concluded that Kelley's contract required him
*444 to work only 187 days; therefore, the contract did not require Kelley to work an
additional day by attending the graduation ceremony. The Commissioner also concluded,
however, that the District did not violate the contract by requiring Kelley to work an
additional day; instead, Kelley's claim would be a claim for quantum meruit over which
the Commissioner had no jurisdiction. Therefore, the Commissioner dismissed the appeal
for lack of jurisdiction.

2. Kelley then proceeded on two fronts. First, Kelley filed the underlying lawsuit in
Bexar County alleging claims for breach of contract, quantum meruit, declaratory relief,
and injunctive relief and requesting attorney's fees and costs. Kelley also filed an
administrative appeal of the Commissioner's decision in Travis County.
In the Bexar County lawsuit, the District filed a plea to the jurisdiction. The
parties also filed competing motions for summary judgment. The district court in Travis
County abated its case pending the outcome of the Bexar County lawsuit. The trial court
in Bexar County subsequently granted summary judgment in favor of Kelley, awarding
him: (1) damages for his breach of contract claim; (2) declaratory relief that the District
violated the contract; and (3) injunctive relief prohibiting the District from "illegal
conduct (as occurred in this case) in the future." The Bexar County trial court also
awarded Kelley attorney's fees and costs.
DECISION
The District contends that required Kelley to appeal the Commissioner's decision
to a district court in Travis County; therefore, the Bexar County court did not have
jurisdiction to consider Kelley's breach of contract claim. See Section 7.057(d) provides:
A person aggrieved by an action of the agency or decision of the commissioner may
appeal to the district court in Travis County. Kelley responds that the Bexar County court
had jurisdiction because the Commissioner dismissed his appeal for lack of jurisdiction.
Kelley's assertion ignores the basis for the dismissal by the Commissioner as stated in the
Commissioner's written decision. The Commissioner dismissed the appeal based on his
conclusion that the only claim available to Kelley was a quantum meruit claim. Any
complaint by Kelley that he had viable breach of contract claim had to be appealed to the
district court in Travis County pursuant to section 7.057. No other court had jurisdiction
to *445 consider the breach of contract claim. Similarly, a declaratory judgment action
seeking to determine whether the District's actions violated the contract could not be
brought in Bexar County because such a claim challenges the Commissioner's decision
that no such complaint existed Because the Bexar County court was without jurisdiction
to consider Kelley's breach of contract and declaratory judgment claims, it also was
without jurisdiction to award Kelley attorney's fees based on the judgment it entered on
those claims.
DICTA
Kelley contends that because he pled a quantum meruit claim in the alternative,
we can affirm the trial court's judgment on that basis. A party may recover under quantum
meruit only when there is no express contract covering the services rendered.
Accordingly, the trial court necessarily rejected the quantum meruit claim in
granting relief on the breach of contract claim. Because the existence of Kelley's quantum
meruit claim hinges on the non-existence of his breach of contract claim, and his breach
of contract claim is within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Commissioner under appeal in
Travis County, the Bexar County trial court was required to abate that claim until the

3. appeal of the administrative proceedings was concluded.
IMPLICATIONS
The trial court's judgment is reversed. Kelley's claims for breach of contract and
declaratory judgment are dismissed. The *446 cause is remanded to the trial court with
instructions to abate its proceedings with regard to Kelley's quantum meruit and
injunction claims pending the final resolution of Kelley's appeal of the Commissioner's
decision in Travis County.