208-Policy Stewardship

Rationale	Date Approved/Revised
The purpose of this policy is to emphasize the importance of the policy-making role of the school board and provide the means for it to continue to be an ongoing effort.	11/20/07 Revised: 11/22/11 Revised:  5/26/15 Revised:  6/28/16 Revised:  5/21/19 Revised:  9/24/19 Revised:  6/21/22 Revised:  11/15/22

1) General Statement of Policy  

Formal guidelines are necessary to ensure the school community that the school system responds to its mission and operates in an effective, efficient, and consistent manner.  A set of written policies shall be maintained and modified as needed.  Policies should define the desire and intent of the school board and should be in a form that is sufficiently explicit to guide administrative action.

2)  Development of Policy          

A.         The school board has jurisdiction to legislate policy with the force and effect of law for the school district.  School board policy provides the general direction as to what the school board wishes to accomplish while delegating implementation of policy to the administration.

B.         The school district’s policies provide guidelines and goals to the school community.  The policies are the basis guidelines and directives created by the administration.  The school board shall determine the effectiveness of the policies by evaluating periodic reports from the administration.

C.         Proposed policies or ideas shall be submitted to the superintendent for review prior to possible placement on the school board agenda.

3)  Adoption and Review of Policy          

A.         The school board shall give notice of proposed policy changes or adoption of new policies by placing the item on the agenda of two school board meetings.  The proposals shall be distributed and public comment will be allowed at both meetings.

B.         The final action taken to adopt the proposed policy shall be approved by a simple majority vote of the school board following the second reading.  The policy will be effective on the later of the date of passage or the date stated in the motion.

C.         In an emergency, a new or modified policy may be adopted by a majority vote of a quorum of the school board in a single meeting.  A statement regarding the emergency and the need for immediate adoption of the policy shall be included in the minutes.  The policy adopted in an emergency shall expire within one year following the emergency action unless the policy adoption procedure stated above is followed and the policy is reaffirmed.  The school board shall have discretion to determine what constitutes an emergency.

D.         If a policy is modified with minor changes that do not affect the substance of the policy or because of a legal change over which the school board has no control, the modified policy may be approved at one meeting at the discretion of the school board.

4)  Implementation of and Access to Policy         

A.         The superintendent shall be responsible for implementing school board policies, other than the policies that cover how the school board will operate. The superintendent shall develop administrative guidelines and directives to provide greater specificity and consistency in the process of implementation. 

B.         Each school board member shall have access to school district policies manual.

C.         The superintendent, employees designated by the superintendent, and individual school board members shall be responsible for keeping the policy current.

D.         The superintendent shall be responsible for developing a system of periodic review of policies.  In addition, the school board shall review the following policies annually:

·      506  Student Discipline & Notice of Suspension;

·      722  Public Data Requests

·      806  Crisis Management.

E.         When no school board policy exists to provide guidance on a matter, the superintendent is authorized to act appropriately under the circumstances keeping in mind the mission,  educational philosophy, and financial condition of the school district.  Under such circumstances, the superintendent shall advise the school board of the need for a policy and present a recommended policy to the school board for approval.

Adoption and Revision History	Incorporated Policies
Policy 208 DEVELOPMENT, ADOPTION, AND IMPLEMENTATION OF POLICIES This Policy Adopted:  January 14, 1997 Rescinded:  August 5, 2008	Replaced Policy: BF (Board Policy Development) adopted August 12, 1965; BFC (Policy Adoption) adopted June 28, 1979; BFCAA (Formulation of Administrative Regulations) adopted August 12, 1965;  BFE (Administration in Policy Absence) adopted June 28, 1979. 105 - Appendix A, III.A.(Adoption, Amendment, Repeal or Suspension of Policies and Bylaws) adopted March 26, 1992; 105 - Appendix A,III.B. (School Board Policy Making/Adoption, Amendment, Repeal or Suspension of Administrative Procedures), adopted March 26, 1992.
Policy G-050 POLICY STEWARDSHIP This Policy Adopted:  November 20, 2007; Revised:  November 22, 2011; Revised:  May 26, 2015; Revised:  June 28, 2016
208 POLICY STEWARDSHIP This Policy Revised:  May 21, 2019; Revised:  September 24, 2019 Revised:  June 21, 2022 Revised:  November 15, 2022	MSBA 208

Legal References:                   Minn. Stat. § 123B.02, Subd. 1 (School District Powers)

                                                      Minn. Stat. § 123B.09, Subd. 1 (School Board Powers)

Cross References:                  MSBA/MASA Model Policy 305 (Policy Implementation)