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Agenda Items and Public Participation                                                                  BF                             

Revised: 6-13-12 (Combined BDDB, BDDC, and BDDH)

Philosophy
To maintain a sense of order and direction at Board Meetings, the South Sanpete Board of Education shall follow a predetermined agenda in carrying out the business of the District and providing an opportunity for citizen dialog.

Policy
The Superintendent is primarily responsible to prepare the agenda for Board Meetings. Any Board Member, staff member, student, or citizen of the District may suggest agenda items; however, the inclusion of such items shall be at the discretion of the Superintendent and Board President. Items to be placed on the agenda must be received by Friday morning prior to Board Meeting. The Board may not take any action on items that are not on the agenda; however, they may choose to discuss them.

The agenda, with accompanying information, shall be distributed electronically to Board Members, the Business Administrator, and the Assistant Superintendent several days before Board Meeting. With the exception of the Closed Meeting items, the Board agenda and accompanying information shall also be posted on the District's Website for public review.

Agenda Format
The following agenda shall be utilized in transacting business of the South Sanpete Board of Education at its regular monthly meetings:

          I. Patriotic Tribute and Invocation
               A. Student Achievement and Recognition
               B. Employee/Volunteer Recognition

         II. Citizen Dialog

        III. Business Affairs
               A. Minutes
               B. Warrants
               C. Budget Report

        IV. Items from Board Members
              A. Professional Development
              B. Reports/Articles

         V. Reports
              A. Student Achievement
              B. Committees
              C. Superintendent

       VI. Information Items

      VII. Action Items
              A. Policy Review/Revision

Public Participation at Board Meetings
All regular Meetings of the Board shall be open to the public. Because the Board desires to hear the viewpoints of citizens throughout the District, it shall offer a reasonable amount of time at all Meetings for citizens to be heard.

Recognizing its responsibility for proper governance of the schools and the need to conduct its business in an orderly and efficient manner, the Board shall allow citizen dialog on school related matters under the following conditions:

  1.  At the beginning of each Meeting, the Board shall schedule no more than 30 minutes for Citizen Dialog. The Board President shall recognize, introduce, and monitor all patrons who are scheduled to participate during this time, plus set time limits and maintain proper order.
  2. There shall be a recommended time limit for individual patrons of five minutes. If a group is being represented, their designated spokesperson may have 10 minutes. The length of the Citizen Dialog, and the proposed time limit for individual patrons, may be extended by action of the Board President.
  3. All patrons who address the Board may also provide a written copy or synopsis of their proposal or additional information and comments for the Board.
  4. Anyone wishing to speak before the Board, either as an individual or as a spokesperson for a group, shall inform the Superintendent of the desire to do so and of the topic to be discussed, preferably one week prior to Board Meeting. This will permit orderly scheduling of public remarks on the Board Meeting agenda.
  5. The intent of the Board is to listen to citizen concerns or requests and respond in a timely manner. Questions and comments requiring further investigation shall be referred to the Board or administrative staff for consideration and later response.
  6. Comments and questions at a regular meeting may deal with any topic related to the Board's conduct of the schools. Comments at special meetings must be related to the call of the meeting.
  7. Individuals addressing the Board may be reminded that Members of the Board are without authority to act independently as individuals in official matters. Thus, questions may be directed to individual Board Members, but answers may be deferred pending consideration by the full Board or staff.
  8. Patrons who disrupt Board Meetings or the business of the Board by applause, cheering, jeering, or personal outbursts may be removed from the Meeting by appropriate legal means. Speech that defames the character, professional competence, or physical or mental health of an individual, or interrupts the public business of the Board will not be tolerated and may be cause for removal from the Meeting. The Board, at its option, may adjourn the Meeting at any time.
  9. The President will not recognize members of the public as the Board conducts its official business except when the Board schedules, in advance, an interim public discussion period on a particular agenda item or when those in attendance are present as a resource to the item being discussed.
  10. The Board will not take public comment on personnel issues during Board Meeting. Communications regarding personnel issues should be sent in writing to the Superintendent or Board President.
  11. Patrons may not address the Board on the same issue more than once in a three-month period except by action of the Board.
  12. Attendance at Board Meeting is subject to the seating capacity of the room in which the Meeting is held. Whenever possible, the Board will attempt to accommodate overflow seating.
  13. The length of time scheduled for Citizen Dialog shall be stated at the bottom of the agenda with the following information:

Persons requesting to speak to the Board of Education in an Open Meeting need to notify the Superintendent's Office, preferably one week prior to Board Meeting, to be placed on the agenda. Resolutions of questions or responses to proposals should not be expected at this Meeting. Staff or others may be asked to research and/or prepare materials, recommendations, and/or solutions for a later time. Up to thirty minutes will be scheduled for Citizen Dialog. Five minutes will be allotted for individual requests and ten minutes will be allotted for a spokesperson of a group. Requests to address the Board will be assigned on a first-come basis. If the Board receives more requests than allotted time permits, those requests may be scheduled for the next Board Meeting. As a reminder, concerns or proposals may also be submitted in writing to the Superintendent for distribution to the Board of Education at any time.

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