Questions for the Board of Education - e-mail us at 

bdofed@pville.k12.ny.us

PLEASANTVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT:

PROTOCOLS for BOARD/SUPERINTENDENT ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

As we aim to maintain a high degree of respect and trust among the board, the administrative staff,

the teaching staff, and the community, agreement on these protocols can support our efforts.

B0ARD MEMBER ROLES/AUTHORITY

1. The board is responsible for overseeing the finances of the district, evaluating the superintendent and setting policy and delegates the administration of the schools to the superintendent and his staff.

2. The board annually sets goals for the district

3.  Board members have authority as members of the corporate board, but not to take individual action.

4.  Board decisions are binding on all board members.

5.  The board semi-annually and annually evaluates the performance of the superintendent.

6.  The board annually evaluates itself and holds itself to standards of best practice.

7.  The board strives to reach decisions through consensus.

SUPERINTENDENT’S ROLE/AUTHORITY

8.  The superintendent is responsible for the administration of the school district, and serves as

the chief executive officer.

9.  The superintendent shall have the authority to organize, reorganize and arrange the

administrative and supervisory staff including without limitation, instruction and business

affairs, which, in his judgment, best serves the school district, subject to the approval of the

Board of Education.

10. The responsibility for selection of personnel shall be vested in the Superintendent of Schools, subject to the approval of the Board of Education.

11. The superintendent shall suggest regulations, rules, policies and procedures for the operation and management of the school district.

12. It is the superintendent's primary responsibility to provide visionary and inspirational leadership that enables the district to continually improve the educational experiences of the children.

13. The superintendent is a visible presence in the schools to underscore that the most important interactions that occur are in the classrooms.

14. The superintendent provides the board with the information and analysis it needs to formulate policy and take other appropriate actions.

15. The superintendent creates and sustains a climate of collegiality among members of the staff and parent body.

AGENDA SETTING

16. Responsibility is shared by the superintendent and the board president.

17. Board members should call the board president to suggest items they would like to see on the agenda.

18. Avoid surprises: Board members, when possible, let the superintendent, through the board president, know in advance about items not in the draft which they intend to raise at the board meeting and the superintendent will do the same.

CONFIDENTIALITY

19. Rules for confidentiality are those consistent with the Open Meetings Law.

20. Discussions in executive session must remain completely confidential.

21. E-mail should not be used for confidential matters.

EXECUTIVE SESSIONS

22. Items for executive session must be consistent with the Open Meetings Law.

PARENTAL AND STAFF INQUIRIES

23. Board members direct parents who call with inquiries to work up through the hierarchy talking to the teacher, the principal, the superintendent before further involving board members.

24. Board members relay other more substantive criticisms, complaints or suggestions to the president, who in turn will refer them to the Superintendent. The superintendent does the problem solving, with staff assistance as necessary. Board members do not attempt the problem solving.

PRESS CONTACT

25. All official statements of board positions as well as responses to questions come from the board president and/or superintendent or their designee.

MEETING DYNAMICS

26. Each board member has a right to be heard once on an issue prior to others having a

             second chance.

27. Members agree to listen to one another and not interrupt.

28. Motions should be used to focus discussion on action items, and any member may "call the

             question” to test whether the board is ready to vote.

29. The board president is authorized to focus discussion toward closure.

30. Discussions should be among Board members, not engagement with the public. 

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN BOARD MEETINGS

31.  Public participation follows rules understood by the board and the Public, with an emphasis on civility and mutual respect.

32.  Public opportunity to raise an issue or to raise a question about an issue not on the agenda occurs twice during the meeting.

33.  Each speaker is allowed one comment on an issue until all others have been heard.

34.  Interruption of board discussion is not permitted.

RELATIONSHIP TO STAFF                                        

35.  In general, contact with members of the staff occurs through the superintendent when

            board members are wearing their "board hat." When contacting staff as a parent, it is

            reassuring to say, "I am calling just as a parent."

INFORMATION SHARING

36.  Share agenda information carefully and consistently across the board and with the

superintendent, in part to maintain a practice of "no surprises," particularly in public meetings.

37.  Depend on the superintendent’s weekly information packet as source material.

38.  Check e-mail for breaking news of a non-confidential nature.

39.  Keep e-mail brief and to the point, with sensitivity to overall volume.

40.  Expect that confidential news will come through the weekly packet, executive session, or in an emergency

               through telephone contact.

41.  Information requests to the administration must be vetted through the Board president in order to maintain a 

                reasonable balance of volume and content.

42.  Inter-Board communication by telephone, e-mail or in person is essential, but should be consistent with guidelines for public and executive session decision-making.

Affirmed

November 7, 2006