Scott T. Price SCSBA Executive Director ElizaBeth D. Branham, Esquire SCSBA Past President, NSBA Board Member, Lexington School District Two Board Member

 Board and Superintendent Relationship

 Your School District’s Education Leadership Team The board and the superintendent To be effective, we start with agreeing on the work of the board versus the work of the superintendent.

 Governing and managing  Policy adoption is the function of the board  Policy implementation is the function of the superintendent  Stay on your page!!

 Board Powers and Duties  Policymaking…adoption of policy  Executive…hold the supt. accountable  Quasi-judicial…a court of appeals  Appraisal…evaluate policy effectiveness  Planning…continuous improvement  Interpretation…being the link to citizens  Operational…effective board meetings  Budget…providing necessary resources  Reviewing action…the final authority  Visits to schools…use proper protocol

 BOARD – SUPERINTENDENT RELATIONSHIP  There is nothing more important than both parties dealing with each other in an ethical, honest, straight- forward, open-and-above-board manner  The superintendent is the CEO of the board and  In a sense, the superintendent is a “member” of the board … with limits

 BOARD – SUPERINTENDENT RELATIONSHIP  The relationship that exists between a board and its superintendent is an intrinsic part of the educational process within a community.  A knowledge of what each can reasonably expect of the other can help substantially in promoting sound working relationships.

 Roles and Responsibilities

School board’s job versus Superintendent’s job Aiken Policy BDD School Board Superintendent Selects SuperintendentSelects staff Sets policyRecommends and implements Adopts budgetProposes and administers Approves organizationProposes organization Approves personnel mattersRecommends personnel matters Functions as a board onlyDeals with the board as a wholeStaff matters through Supt. Acts as a court of appealsActions based on policy Adopts curriculumRecommends curriculum

In short … Boards govern and Superintendents manage

What about individual board members?

 BOARD MEMBER AUTHORITY Simply stated …  All powers of the board lie in its action as a body. Board members acting as individuals have no authority over personnel or school affairs  Individual members of the board, including the chair, only have individual authority when given to them by the board.

 BOARD MEMBER AUTHORITY Aiken Policies BBA, BBAA  The power of individual board members exists exclusively in their action as a group.  Individual board members, including the chair, have only such authority as delegated by Board vote or policy provision.  The board and its members deal with administrative services through the superintendent and should not give orders to any subordinates (of the superintendent) either publicly or privately.

 BOARD MEMBER AUTHORITY Aiken Policy BCA ( code of ethics )  The board will not be bound in any way by actions or statements of an individual.  Individual board members making information requests to the superintendent.  The board officers may, when appropriate, counsel individual members who are acting outside his/her authority and responsibilities or abusing his/her privileges.

 It is not your job to “fix” things You have to follow the proper chain of command

 The problem is … Your constituents don’t know that!

 Memorize this statement! This problem could end up requiring board action, and if I am involved in it at this level, I will be unable to act on it as a member of the board because it could be a violation of due process. You really need to go through the proper channels.

 The board is a “committee of the whole.” You have no more authority than any other member of the public. You have no more authority than any other member of the public.

 Advocates for Public Education

  Most board members want the same thing: improve educational outcomes for all students in their district.  We don’t always agree on the same things; HOWEVER, when it comes to advocacy we MUST be on the same page.  Accurate, timely, and understandable communication is a necessity. Advocacy “Big Picture” Aiken Policy BJ

  Do: Develop a good working relationship with your local legislative delegation.  Don’t: Go to war with the delegation because you didn’t get what you wanted.  Do: Give as much access as possible to local media, as well as provide them leads on the district’s successes.  Don’t: Hide from the media or make it hard for them to report on what is going on in the district. Advocacy: Do’s and Don’ts

  Do: Try to insure the district speaks with one voice and hopefully through one staff member and one board member.  Don’t: Present a divided front to the public or call out each other.  Do: Communicate often to your parents and other stakeholders. Give them information that is easy to understand as well as easy to access.  Don’t: Forget that the parents are customers of the district and need to be involved with every aspect of advocacy. Advocacy: Do’s and Don’ts

 Working in the Sunshine

 Open Meetings

 The purpose and intent of the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act is to ensure the performance of public business in an open and public manner. Freedom of Information Act Open Meetings

 Notice  Regularly scheduled meetings must be posted at the beginning of the calendar year (school year). The notice will include the date, times, and places of the meetings.  Called, special, or rescheduled meetings must be posted as early as possible, but not later than 24 hours before the meetings and will include the agenda.  Notices must be posted on a bulletin board at the office or meeting place AND on the district’s website. Open Meetings: Changes to FOIA

 Agenda  Must be posted at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting  Can be amended up until the 24 hour deadline  At the meeting, can be amended with a 2/3 vote for discussion items  At the meeting, can be amended with a 2/3 vote and a finding of an emergency or exigent circumstance for final action items Open Meetings: Changes to FOIA

 Board Meeting Minutes Open Meetings: Changes to FOIA

 Working with Committees  Function under the authority granted by the board  Fall under the same requirements of FOIA as the full board o Meetings must be noticed with agendas o Amending agendas require the same 2/3 vote including or excluding the emergency and exigent finding o Minutes must be maintained

 Closed Meetings

 Freedom of Information Act Closed Meetings Prior to going into executive session, the board must state the reason which can only include one of the following :  Personnel or student matters  Contract negotiations  Legal matters related to a pending, threatened, or potential claim; settlement of a claim; or the position of the district in other adversary situations  Security and safety measures  Investigative proceedings related to criminal conduct *Board members and invited persons are duty bound not to disclose discussions!

 SC School Boards Association Services On-site Board Training Policy and Legal Services Legislative and Advocacy Services Statewide Conferences SCSBIT - Insurance Trust

Thank you!