I would not want to be in David Stewart's shoes for the next few weeks.

Stewart is the associate superintendent of administrative services for North Kansas City Schools. He's also one of the people at the center of the storm whipped up this week after it was revealed that the district hired a Kindergarten teacher who had already been charged with child abuse.

Emily Bowers is now on paid leave from Northview Elementary School, so she should have plenty of time to prepare a defense against misdemeanor assault charges filed Sept. 10.

According to my interview with Stewart, it appears Bowers fell through the proverbial cracks in the system. The required state background check didn't turn up the allegations and she wasn't required to reveal the charges.

Now, district officials need to figure out what to do with Bowers, who is making more than $30,000 a year. In the mean time, a substitute will be paid $100 a day to run her classroom.

It's not an easy equation. On the one hand, it's not clear if the district can legally terminate Bowers' contract before a conviction if it turns out she didn't break any rules during the hiring process. And the reality is that Bowers is innocent until proven guilty.

On the other, Stewart knows all too well the fury he'll face from parents if she's allowed to return to the school. Fair or not, even the perception among the community of an unsafe environment could do a lot of damage to the school district.

In the mean time, the poor children in Bowers' class will be have to adjust to their third teacher so far this semester. That's not the best formula for educational success.

You can read more about this in the Nov. 26 issue of the Sun Tribune.