School Advisory Council Bylaws

  • WILLIAMS ELEMENTARY

    SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL

    BYLAWS

    (Passed 9/19)

     

     

    Article I

    Name of Organization

    Williams Elementary School Advisory Council

      

    Article II

    Purpose and Function

     

    Section 1.  Purpose

    The primary purpose of the school advisory council is to serve in an advisory capacity to the principal to improve education, school policies and procedures, and create a formal line of communication between the school, home and community.

     

    Section 2. Function

    The school advisory council shall perform the following functions:

    1. Assist in the decision-making process by establishing priorities, understanding budget resources, setting goals, evaluating the school and its academic effectiveness, formulating effective procedures, and advocating for school needs.
    2. Assist with preparation and evaluation of the School Improvement Plan (SIP) required by Florida Statutes 1001.42 (18), and annually reviewing, amending, or continuing such SIP as required by Florida Statutes.
    3. Review student performance data.
    4. Approve the expenditure of SIP funds to meet school needs.
    5. Assist in the preparation of the school’s annual budget to ensure it is aligned with the SIP and with technical assistance from the Department of Education as required by Florida Statute 1008.35(1).
    6. Complete a school advisory council (SAC) self-evaluation annually in the course of conduct of a regular SAC meeting.
    7. May develop dress code requirements beyond those outlined in Manatee County school dress code guidelines.
    8. SAC chairperson will enforce all rules of public decorum during SAC meeting and handle interruptions with security if needed.
    9. May attend training in regard to SAC duties.

     

    Article III

    Election and Appointment Procedure

    The school advisory council will be composed of the school principal and an appropriately balanced number of teachers, education support employees, students, parents, and other business and community citizens who are representative of the ethnic, racial, and economic community serviced by the school (F.S.229.580).  School newsletter, letters home, marquee sign and principal, parents and/or teacher nominations will be utilized to solicit membership.  The principal shall submit a list of School Advisory Council members to the superintendent for review by September 15th of each school year to determine compliance. 

    The following guidelines shall be used in the selection of council members:

    Section 1. Representation

    1. Members should reflect the ethnic, racial, and economic community served by the school.
    2. A majority of SAC members may not be employed at the school.
    3. There shall be at least one teacher. Teachers shall be elected by teachers.
    4. There shall be at least one education support employee on the council. This includes custodial, cafeteria, clerical and paraprofessional staff. Education support employees shall be elected by education support employees.
    5. As an option, students shall be elected by students. A fourth or fifth grade student from Williams may participate but will not be a voting member.
    6. There shall be at least six parents on the council. Parents shall be elected by parents.
    7. At least one Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) representatives shall be members of the council.
    8. There shall be at least one business and community representative selected initially through a nomination and selection process facilitated by the school principal of each School Advisory Council. The school principal shall seek candidates who are interested in making a commitment to participate in the School Advisory Council by representing businesses and the community.
    9. The principal shall be a member.
    10. Parents shall be defined as anyone who has a student currently enrolled at the school for SAC purposes.
    11. Membership in the SAC shall be limited to 10 voting members. SAC is a sunshine organization and non-members are encouraged to attend meetings but may not vote.  Voting in SAC meetings shall be limited to duly elected/appointed school board approved members.

     

    Section 2. Selection Procedure

    The School Advisory Council shall be selected through a nomination and voting process at the beginning of each school year by interested parties.  The principal and SAC chair will inform the school and community when nominations to the school advisory council for the upcoming school year are being accepted.  The invitation for nominations must clearly indicate a deadline for nominations, membership categories, and the time, date and event by which the voting will be taken.  All voting must be complete by the end of the first meeting of the school year.

     

    Section 3. Attendance/termination of membership

    A council person with two unexcused consecutive absences from a properly noticed meeting will be replaced.  An unexcused absence is an absence without prior notification given to the chairperson or principal.

     

    Section 4. Tenure

    A term shall be defined as beginning with the first School Advisory Council meeting of the year and ending at the conclusion of the school calendar year.

     

    Section 5. Resignation 

    Any School Advisory Council member may resign by filling a written resignation with the school advisory council chairperson.

     

    Section 6. Procedure for Filling Vacancies 

    SAC will advertise all vacancies using communication strategies including the school newsletter, letters home, school marquee, connect-ed phone calls, and social media and will accept nominations from the principal, parents and/or teachers.  Vacancies for parents, teachers, education support personnel will be filled by peer election. 

     

    Article IV

    Council Responsibilities

    The SAC is a resource to the school and principal.  The term “advisory” is intended to mean 1) inquiring, 2) informing, 3) suggesting, 4) recommending and 5) evaluating.

     

    The SAC, since it is advisory only, has some limitations.

    1. It may not dictate school policy
    2. It must address issues rather than a particular person, whether they are administrators, teachers, students, citizens, or parents.

     

    Article V

    Officers and Elections

    Section 1. Officers

    The officers of the School Advisory Council shall be co- chairperson and co-secretary, and such other officers as the council may deem desirable.  All officers must be a member of the SAC.

     

    Section 2. Elections and Terms of Office

    1. A nominating committee, representative of the council membership, shall

    be appointed by the chairperson.  This committee shall bring a proposed slate of officers to the membership by the last meeting of the school year.  Nominations may be made from the floor at that time provided that the consent of the nominee shall have been secured.  Officers shall then be voted in.

    1. Election to any officer position requires an affirmative vote of a majority the members present at a regularly scheduled meeting.
    2. The term of office shall be one school year.

     

    Section 3. Removal

    Any officer elected by the School Advisory Council may be removed from office by a two-thirds affirmative vote of all members of the Advisory Council, whenever in the judgment of the Council, the best interests of the council would be served.

     

    Section 4. Vacancy

    If, for any reason, an officer is unable to complete the term of office, a new election will be held at the next regularly scheduled meeting.

     

    Article VI

    Roles of the Principal, Officers and Members

    Section 1.  The Principal

    1. Serves as a resource, providing information regarding the local school education program.
    2. May appoint community SAC members
    3. Maintains the appropriate statutory composition of SAC
    4. Notifies the Office of School Improvement when modifications are necessary
    5. Acts as an active resource
    6. Encourages leadership from within the council
    7. Assist in training members in leadership skills
      1. Arranges for presentations of interest to the council
      2. Informs the SAC of county policies, curriculum, etc.
      3. Establishes, maintains, and consults with the SAC on a regular basis involving it in decisions in accordance with state purposes and policies
      4. Develops, through positive actions, feelings of trust and understanding among SAC, community and staff.
      5. Serves as the administrator in charge of the school with total responsibility to arrange all affairs of the school including general control and supervision of its employees.

     

    Section 2. The Chairperson

    1. Works closely with the principal and the council to plan each meeting and establish an agenda in time to notify the community of the purpose of each meeting.
    2. Calls the meetings to order, maintains order, and sees that the meeting is properly adjourned. The chairperson shall preside at all meetings of the School Advisory Council and shall have such other duties as may be prescribed by the council. 
    3. Shall serve as an ex-officio member of the council and committees.
    4. Instructs the secretary and other officers in their duties.
    5. Sees that minutes are taken, prepared, read, approved, and properly filed in the school.
    6. Sees that business is ordered, considered, and disposed of properly.
    7. Is an impartial, conscientious arbiter of discussion and debate, and insists on fairness in the actions and debate of the members.

     

    Section 3. The Secretary

    1. Keeps accurate and complete minutes and files them for inspection. A copy of the minutes should be provided to the principal for the school file and works with the school secretarial staff to get a copy to the Director of School Improvement.
    2. Keeps accurate records of council membership, attendance, duties and special assignments.
    3. Provides notification of meetings and votes at least one week in advance.

     

    Section 4. Parents and Community Representatives

    1. Act as council members according to established procedures by making suggestions and recommendations representative of the views of parents, citizens and community organizations of the school community.
    2. Participate regularly in SAC meetings and carry out council assignments.
    3. Become knowledgeable about personnel and material resources of the school and community and the school’s education program.
    4. Act as a resource persons for the SAC, especially in the solutions of the community-related problems which affect the school and its students
    5. Assist in obtaining community resources to aid the school’s education program
    6. Serve as a communication link between SAC, the community, and the school.
    7. Participate in activities aimed at obtaining parent and community support and assistance for school related programs.

     

    Section 5. Faculty and School Staff Representatives

    1. Act as members of the council to represent the views and interest of the school staff.
    2. Participate regularly in SAC meetings and carry out council assignments.
    3. Act as a resource person for the SAC by making available specialized information about the educational programs, innovative ideas, and available resources.
    4. Assist in identifying community resources which can aid in the school’s educational programs
    5. Serve as a communication link between the SAC and the school staff, and keep the staff informed of actions and activities of the council.
    6. Participate in efforts to encourage school staff support for goals and activities of the SAC.

     

     

    Article VII

    Procedures

    Section 1. Regular Meetings

    The general membership of the School Advisory Council shall meet a minimum of four times yearly, the first meeting to occur prior to September 30th of the school calendar year.  Meeting times, dates, and locations to be mutually agreed upon by members.  Times and dates will be scheduled to support maximum attendance.

     

    Section 2. Quorum

    A majority of the membership shall constitute a quorum for voting.  Prior to any vote, there must be a three-day written notice given to all School Advisory Council members.

     

    Section 3. Decisions of the School Advisory Council

    All decisions of the School Advisory Council shall be made by an affirmative vote of a majority of the voting members present at a regular or called meeting.  Each SAC member has one vote.  Only voting members in attendance shall have the right to vote.  Parents, staff, and community members who are not elected voting members of SAC meetings will NOT be permitted to vote.

     

    Section 4. Open Meetings

    All meetings of the School Advisory Council and its standing and special committees, shall be open to the public.  Speakers who wish to address the School Advisory council on school related issues, (adherence to the Government-in-the-Sunshine Law), shall be limited to two minutes during open forum.

     

    Section 5. Scheduling Meetings

    Meetings shall be scheduled when members, parents, teachers, educational support personnel and community members can attend.

     

    Article VIII

    Determination of Procedures for Council Activity

    Section 1. Annual Report

    The outgoing chairperson of the School Advisory Council will prepare a self evaluation report before June 30th each year, comprised of a summary of the past year’s actions and conclusions adopted by the council.

     

    Article IX

    Bylaws

    Section 1. Bylaw Review

    The Bylaws shall be reviewed on an annual basis by the committee.

     

    Section 2. Amendment to Bylaws

    1. No amendment can be made to these bylaws that is incompatible with current local, state or federal laws. If any amendment inadvertently violates that requirement, corrective action must be taken as soon as that oversight is discovered and should proceed as if the amendment had never been approved.
    2. These bylaws shall be amended at any regular meeting of the SAC by a majority of the membership.
    3. The amendment shall become effective immediately upon passage.

     

    Section 3. Ratification of Bylaws

    1. The bylaws of the SAC will be ratified by a majority of its members.
    2. The district school board may review all proposed bylaws of the SAC and shall maintain a record of minutes of council meetings (Florida Statute 1001.452)

     

    Article X

    Committees

    The chairperson shall appoint the members and designate the chairperson of standing and other committees.

     

    Article XI

    Emergency Decision Procedures

    In the event of an urgent decision whose deadline is in between School Advisory Council meetings the follow procedure will preside:

    1. Chairman and/or Secretary will phone or e-mail all members with the scope and context of pressing decision including any foreseen positive or negative effects of said decision.
    2. The date of the emergency meeting will be publicized no later than one week prior to the meeting date.
    3. Votes will be taken at the emergency meeting.

     

    In witness whereof, the Principal of Williams Elementary School has caused these Bylaws to be duly executed on the 6th day of September, 2019.