General Board Information

  • Five members of the Board of Education are elected at large by qualified voters of the District and each member serves a four-year term.

    Meetings

    Traditionally, the Board meets on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month with adjustments made to avoid meeting on holidays. The public session begins at 7:00 p.m. The date of a regular meeting may be changed by action of the Board at a previous meeting. Each member must be notified of the change by letter or by distribution of the minutes from the meeting at which the change was approved. Notices of change of time or date of meetings are posted in accordance with the provisions of law.

    The Education Code of the State of California establishes the authority of the Board. The Board must adhere to the provisions of the Code and the State Constitution as well as rules and regulations of the California Code of Regulations, Title 5. Policies and procedures not specified in the aforementioned authorities may be established by the Board of Education.

    Members serve as representatives of the electorate in determining general policies and in making decisions which govern the District. Such decisions include personnel matters, budget allocations, Ï㽶ÊÓƵ programs and courses, and academic standards.

    The District Superintendent, chief executive of the District and administrative officer of the Board is a non-voting member. The Superintendent also serves as secretary to the Board.

    An appointed Student Board Member serves as a Preferential Voting Member whose status permits the student to cast a recorded yet non-tallied vote on all but employer-employee items and student expulsions. A student is chosen for a one-year term by majority vote of the student body of his/her school. A Student Board member does not participate in closed sessions.

    In addition to the Student Board member, a student representative from each of the secondary schools is invited to make a presentation at the first Board meeting of the month to update the Board on the activities and achievements at their respective schools.

    Board of Education public meetings are held in the District Education Center Board Room. All meetings are public, unless otherwise announced. The closed session portion of the meetings, in which the Board may take action on personnel, legal, student discipline or negotiation matters is not open to the public.

    Special board meetings may be called at any time by the president or at the request of three or more members of the Board. Each member shall be served with a notice. Time and date of all special meetings shall be set at the time the meeting is called. (Education Code 35144).

    Closed sessions of the Board are reserved specifically to consider: the appointment, employment, evaluation, or dismissal of a school employee; disciplinary action concerning a pupil of the school district; employee negotiations; and any legal action brought by or before the Board. The Board of Education conducts the election of officers at the annual organization meeting which is held in December of each year.

    A public hearing on the budget is held in June as required by law. Board members are responsible for approving the annual budget. All meetings are conducted in accordance with the Open Meeting Laws of the Ralph M. Brown Act (Government Code Section 54950-54962).

    Agenda Organization and Public Participation

    A. Call to Order, Roll Call, Closed Session, Flag Salute
    B. Student Representatives/Presentation
    C. Public Comments/Comments from Board Members and Superintendent
    D. Public Hearing/Public Information
    E. Consent Calendar Items:
    • General Functions
    • Instruction
    • Business and Financial
    • Facilities Planning
    • Personnel
    • Minutes
    F.  Discussion/Action Items
    G. Adjournment

    *Comments from any resident of the District, Ï㽶ÊÓƵ, certificated or non-teaching employees of the District, individuals who have been requested by the Superintendent or Board to present a given subject, or any other individual having an interest directly related to the welfare of the District are appropriate at this time.

    The speaker shall be asked to state his/her name and address and/or the name of the group represented before addressing the Board, and shall limit his/her individual presentation to a maximum of three (3) minutes. No more than a total of twenty (20) minutes per topic shall be allowed. The speaker shall not present charges or complaints against any employee of the school district, regardless of whether or not the employee is identified by name or another reference which tends to identify the employee.

    Any employee may speak to the Board at a public meeting, representing himself/herself, other employees, or citizens of the community, on non-negotiable items outside the scope of representation.