She taught kindergarten for one-half of each day and primary physical education and art for the remaining half day. Due to financial exigencies, the Board of Education of Ludlow Community Consolidated School District No. 142 of Champaign County voted to reduce Caviness from her full-time position and reassign her to a half-time teaching position for the 1977-78 school term, with a salary one-half that of a full-time employee. The Board intended to retain her as a kindergarten teacher, but reassign the physical education and art duties to homeroom teachers. At the time of Caviness' reassignment, there were two non-tenured teachers in full-time positions for which Caviness was qualified, but the Board of Education refused to place her in one of these positions.