Model Board Policy Manual

ISBA Policy Management Console

Agenda

The agenda for any Board meeting shall be prepared by the Superintendent and Board Chair. Items submitted by the Board Chair or at least two Board Members shall be placed on the agenda. The clerk, administration, or patrons of the District may also suggest inclusions on the agenda. Such suggestions must be received by the Board Clerk at least 7 days before the Board meeting, unless of immediate importance. Individuals who wish to address the Board must also notify the Superintendent, in writing, of the request.

Regular Meeting Agendas

A 48 hour agenda notice shall be required in advance of each regular meeting. Notices and agendas must be posted in a prominent place at the principal office of the District or, if no such office exists, at the building where the meeting is to be held. All meeting notices and agendas must be posted on the District website. 

Special Meeting Agendas 

Special meetings require a 24 hour meeting and agenda notice. The agenda notice shall include at a minimum the meeting date, time, and place. The Board clerk or their designee shall maintain a list of the news media requesting notification of meetings and shall make a good faith effort to provide advance notification to them of the time and place of each meeting. All meeting notices and agendas must be posted on the District website.

Amending Agendas 

An agenda may be amended provided that a good faith effort is made to include, in the original agenda notice, all items known to be probable items of discussion. 

Amending the Agenda More than 48 Hours Before a Regular Meeting or 24 Hours Before a Special Meeting: If an amendment to an agenda is made after an agenda has been posted but 48 hours or more prior to the start of a regular meeting, or 24 hours or more prior to the start of a special meeting, then the agenda is amended upon the posting of the amended agenda. 

Amending the Agenda Less than 48 Hours Before a Regular Meeting or 24 Hours Before a Special Meeting: If an amendment to an agenda is proposed after an agenda has been posted and less than 48 hours prior to a regular meeting or less than 24 hours prior to a special meeting but prior to the start of the meeting, the proposed amended agenda shall be posted but shall not become effective until a motion is made at the meeting and the Board votes to amend the agenda. 

Amending the Agenda After the Start of a Meeting: An agenda may be amended after the start of a meeting upon a motion that states the reason for the amendment and states the good faith reason the agenda item was not included in the original agenda posting.

Negotiation Meeting Notices

Notice of all negotiation sessions between the District and the local education organization shall be posted at the earliest time practicable on the front page of the District’s website. Additionally, if time permits, the District shall post notice of the negotiation sessions within 24 hours at the same physical locations the District uses for posting its regular meetings. 

Order of Business

The order of business will be determined by the Board Chair and Superintendent with input from the Board. Upon consent of the majority of the Members present, the order of business at any meeting may be changed. The Board shall accept public comment before it takes action on any District business.

Consent Agenda

To expedite business at a Board meeting, the Board approves the use of a consent agenda, which includes those items considered to be routine in nature. Any item which appears on the consent agenda may be removed by a Member of the Board. It is strongly suggested that any Board Member who wishes to remove an item from the consent agenda give advance notice in a timely manner to the Board Chair and Superintendent. The remaining items will be voted on by a single motion. The approved motion will be recorded in the minutes, including a listing of all items appearing on the consent agenda.

Action Items

All agenda items that require a vote shall be identified on the agenda as such. Final action may not be taken on any agenda item added after the start of a meeting unless an emergency is declared necessitating action at that meeting. The declaration and justification shall be reflected in the Board minutes.

Minutes

The clerk shall keep written minutes of all open Board meetings, which shall be signed by the Chair and the clerk. The minutes shall include:

1. The date, time, and place of the meeting;
2. The presiding officer;
3. Board Members recorded as absent or present;
4. All motions, resolutions, orders, or ordinances proposed and their disposition;
5. The results of all votes, and upon the request of a Member, the vote of each Member, by name;
6. Legal basis for recessing into executive session; and
7. Time of adjournment.

When issues are discussed that may require a detailed record, the Board may direct the clerk to record the discussion verbatim. 

Unofficial minutes shall be delivered to Board Members in advance of the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Board. Minutes need not be read publicly, provided that Members have had an opportunity to review them before adoption. A file of permanent minutes of Board meetings shall be maintained in the office of the clerk, to be made available within a reasonable period of time after a meeting for inspection upon the request. 

Minutes of Executive Session

The clerk shall keep written minutes of executive session. Said minutes shall be limited to a specific reference to the Idaho Code subsection authorizing the executive session and sufficient detail to provide the general subject matter to identify the purpose and topic of the executive session. The roll call vote to go into executive session shall be recorded in the minutes. The minutes shall not contain information that would compromise the purpose of going into executive session.

Minutes of Negotiation Sessions

In all negotiation sessions between the District and the local education organization, the District shall cause to be taken written minutes. All documentation exchanged between the parties during a negotiation session, including all offers and counter-offers, shall be retained by the District and shall be subject to public writings disclosure laws. 

Quorum

No business shall be transacted at any meeting of the Board unless a quorum of the Members is present. A majority of the full membership of the Board shall constitute a quorum, a majority of the quorum may pass a resolution. However, in the event one or more vacancies on the board exist in accordance with Policy 1140, a quorum is permitted if a majority of the remaining members of the board are present.

Meeting Conduct and Order of Business

General rules of parliamentary procedure are used for every Board meeting. The most current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order may be used as a guide at any meeting. The order of business shall be reflected on the agenda. The use of proxy votes shall not be permitted. Voting rights are reserved to those Board Members in attendance. Voting shall be by acclamation or show of hands. The Board shall adopt a board operating protocol and rules of procedure, and make it available for patrons at all Board meetings. 

Recall of School Trustees 

In the event one or more Board Members are subject to a recall election, those Board Member(s) shall not vote on any of the following action items until after the certification of the recall election results: 
1. Action items that would alter the structure of the Board; or  
2. Action items that would create a new contractual or financial obligation for the District.  

This prohibition shall apply to all Board Members who are subject to the recall election, regardless of the result of the election, and it shall apply from the date of the recall election until the results are certified.  These Board Members may participate and vote in all other routine matters.   

Cross References