Policy 2.09

School Advisory Councils

1. School Advisory Council.-- Each school in this school district shall have a School Advisory Council ("SAC") as set forth in Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(a).

2. Composition of Councils

   1. Membership of the SAC shall meet the requirements within Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(a). These requirements include that the SAC be composed of the school principal/director (who, pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 1001.54(2), must provide instructional leadership in the development, revision, and implementation of the school improvement plan) and an appropriately balanced number of teachers, education support employees, students (where appropriate), parents, and business and community representatives.

      1. Middle and junior high schools must include student representation on their SACs.

      2. Vocational-Technical centers and high schools must include student representatives on their SACs.

      3. Vocational-Technical centers and adult education centers are not required to have parent participation on the SACs.

      4. In accordance with Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(a), the term "education support employee" as used herein refers to any person who is employed by a school who is not defined as instructional or administrative personnel pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 1012.01 and whose duties require twenty (20) or more hours in each normal working week.

      5. For purposes of school advisory council membership, the term "teacher" includes classroom teachers, certified student services personnel, and media specialists pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(a).

   2. As required by Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(a), the majority (fifty percent plus one (50% + 1)) of the members of the SAC shall be persons who are not employed by the school district.

   3. Membership shall be representative of the ethnic, racial, and economic community served by the school, as required by Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(a).

3. Selection of Council Members

   1. All council members shall be elected by their respective peer group, except for business and community representatives and the school principal/director. The SAC bylaws will establish the term of membership and a process for ensuring staggered terms to provide continuity on the SAC.

   2. As required by Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(a), the following council members shall be elected by their respective peer group in a fair and equitable manner through an election as set forth in the bylaws of the SAC. Procedures in the bylaws should include the means of ensuring wide notice of vacancies and elections through such means as the school marquee, school newsletter, Parent Teacher Association/Parent Teacher Organization (PTA/PTO) meetings, and announcements at open house, etc.

      1. Teacher(s) shall be elected by teachers;

      2. Education support employee(s) shall be elected by education support employees;

      3. Student(s), when appropriate, shall be elected by students; and

      4. Parent(s) members shall be elected by parents in general, with all parents having an opportunity to participate in voting for any parent as set forth in the bylaws of the SAC.

   3. Any SAC member may recommend the appointment of business and community member(s) to serve on the SAC. The procedures in the SAC bylaws will include the means of ensuring wide notice of vacancies through methods such as school marquee, school newsletter, and instructional television, and of taking input on possible members from local business, chambers of commerce, community and civic organizations and groups, and the public at large. Business and community members will be appointed by the principal following the advice and consent of the SAC.

   4. The bylaws of the SAC must set forth a process for appointment of additional SAC members if the election process does not produce representative membership as provided within Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(a). If the process set forth in the SAC bylaws still does not produce representative membership, the Board will appoint additional SAC members, as set forth in Paragraph 5 below.

   5. Each school year and prior to or at the beginning of the first SAC meeting, each SAC member shall register as: a) a volunteer using the Volunteer Tracking System, subject to the provisions within School Board Policy 2.53 -Volunteers in Public Schools; and b) a SAC member for that school by submitting online a completed PBSD e-form 1710.

4. SAC Governance

   1. Each SAC shall be governed by the Sunshine Law ( Fla. Stat. § 286.011), the Public Records Law ( Fla. Stat. Chapter 119), the SAC Statute ( Fla. Stat. § 1001.452), and other relevant Florida statutes and State Board of Education Rules relating to SACs.

   2. Each SAC will adopt bylaws, including membership selection procedures that meet the requirements of Florida Statutes, State Board of Education Rule, and this Board Policy. As required by Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(d), the bylaws must establish procedures for the following:

      1. Requiring a quorum to be present before a vote may be taken by the school advisory council. A majority of the membership of the council constitutes a quorum.

      2. Requiring at least three (3) business days' advance notice in writing to all members of the advisory council of any matter that is scheduled to come before the council for a vote. (This notice to members is in addition to the meeting notice for the general public under the Sunshine Law).

      3. Scheduling meetings when parents, students, teachers, businesspersons, and members of the community can attend.

      4. Replacing any member who has two consecutive unexcused absences (as determined by the SAC Chair) from SAC meetings scheduled according to the procedures in the bylaws.

      5. Recording minutes of meetings (and, as required by Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(d)5, the School Board shall maintain a record of minutes of council meetings).

   3. The SAC shall annually review its bylaws to ensure alignment with current statutes and Board Policy.

   4. The SAC shall submit the SAC bylaws when submitting the school improvement plan for Board approval.

5. Validation of SAC Membership Composition

   1. The Superintendent/designee will validate each school's membership composition, including reviewing whether "schools have maximized their efforts to include minority persons and persons of lower socioeconomic status," pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(a).

   2. The Superintendent shall annually submit the membership lists of all SACs to the School Board for review during a regular or special Board meeting in, or before, December of each school year.

      1. The School Board shall review the SAC membership composition to determine if it is representative of the ethnic, racial, and economic community served by the school, as required by Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(a).

      2. If necessary to achieve proper representation, the School Board, based on the recommendation of the Board member in whose district the school is located, shall vote to appoint additional members to a SAC.

6. SAC Powers and Duties

   1. Each SAC has the authority to exercise the functions and duties provided to SACs by the Florida Statutes and State Board of Education rules, but has no powers or duties now reserved by law to the Board. Pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 1001.452(1)(a), the SAC shall be the sole body responsible for final decision-making at the school relating to implementation of Fla. Stat. §§ 1001.42(18) and 1008.345, regarding school improvement and accountability.

   2. Each SAC shall assist in the preparation and evaluation of the school improvement plan required by Fla. Stat. § 1001.42(18). Technical assistance from the DOE may be requested as needed.

   3. Each SAC shall assist in the preparation of the school's annual budget and plan as required by Fla. Stat. §§ 1001.452(2) and 1008.385(1).

   4. As required by Fla. Stat. § 1008.36(4), school recognition funds "must be used for purposes listed in Fla. Stat. § 1008.36(5) as determined jointly by the school's staff and school advisory council." For purposes of this subsection, "school staff" means all employees assigned to that school at the time of the decision.

      1. Pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 1008.36(5), school recognition funds must be used for any of the following:

         1. Nonrecurring bonuses to the faculty and staff;

         2. Nonrecurring expenditures for educational equipment or materials to assist in maintaining and improving student performance; or

         3. Temporary personnel for the school to assist in maintaining and improving student performance.

      2. Pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 1008.36(4), if school staff and the school advisory council cannot reach agreement by the date specified in the Statute, "the awards must be equally distributed to all classroom teachers currently teaching in the school." The term "classroom teachers" is defined in Fla. Stat. § 1012.01(2)(a) as "staff members assigned the professional activity of instructing students in courses in classroom situations, including basic instruction, exceptional student education, career education, and adult education, including substitute teachers" who are assigned to that school as of the deadline stated above. (The term does not include other instructional personnel which are separately defined in Fla. Stat. § 1012.01(2)(b)-(e)).

   5. Each SAC shall have access to the District's web site as a means of providing information to the public and other SACs.

7. School Improvement Plan (SIP)

   1. Each SAC shall assist in the preparation and evaluation of the school improvement plan pursuant to Fla. Stat. §§ 1001.42(18); 1001.42(18), 24.121(5), and 1008.33. Each school must have an approved school improvement plan, pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 1001.42(18), after one (1) full school year of planning and development, as required by Fla. Stat. § 1008.345(6)(c). Accordingly, new schools must have a school improvement plan upon completing one full school year of operation.

   2. The school improvement plan shall address single school culture as well as appreciation of multicultural diversity, and shall include all matters required by federal law, Fla. Stat. § 1001.42(18)(a) and other Florida Statutes, the State Board of Education, or the Florida Department of Education. The student performance standards to be addressed include both Florida state standards and the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

   3. Each school's SAC shall vote to approve the SIP at a SAC meeting. The school Principal with SAC consent shall verify and save the school improvement plan on the Florida Department of Education (DOE) school improvement plan template by the last Friday in September (absent extenuating circumstances) or as required by DOE, whichever is earlier. The Principal and SAC Chairperson(s) shall verify, sign, and send the school improvement plan checklist (PBSD 2248) to the designated Supervisor.

   4. The Supervisor/designee shall review and verify respective school improvement plans, as well as the school's SAC bylaws, by submitting PBSD e-form 2250 to the School District's Department of School Improvement.

   5. The Superintendent shall submit the school improvement plan for each school to the Board for approval by December 31st of each year, and the Board must annually approve and require implementation of a new, amended, or continuation school improvement plan for each school in the district, as required by Fla. Stat. § 1001.42(18)(a).

   6. The Board shall provide school improvement funds to schools for developing and implementing school improvement plans pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 1001.42(18)(c).

      1. Such funds shall include those funds appropriated for the purpose of school improvement pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 24.121(5)(c).

      2. School improvement funds provided under Fla. Stat. § 24.121(5)(c) may be expended only on programs or projects selected by the SAC for enhancing school performance through development and implementation of a school improvement plan. As stated in Fla. Stat. § 24.121(5)(c), the school principal may not override the recommendations of the SAC on use of these funds.

      3. These moneys may not be used for capital improvements, nor may they be used for any project or program that has a duration of more than one (1) year; however, as allowed by Fla. Stat. § 24.121(5)(c), a SAC may independently determine that a program or project formerly funded under this paragraph should receive funds in a subsequent year.

8. Waiver of Local or State Regulation.-- Should a school identify a local or state regulation that presents a barrier to improved student achievement and implementation of the school improvement plan, the SAC may submit a request to the District's School Waiver Committee (SWC), a committee that is subject to Florida's Sunshine Law.

   1. The SWC may recommend a waiver of School Board Policy to the Board pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 1001.42(19)(b), as long as the waiver would not be inconsistent with the underlying state statutes or State Board of Education rules.

      1. Following a vote of the SAC, the principal submits the waiver request for review to the area superintendent/designee and Superintendent/designee.

      2. The Superintendent/designee forwards the waiver to the SWC Committee. The Committee consists of:

         1. One elementary, middle, and high school principal selected by their respective Principals Associations;

         2. One department representative as appointed by the Superintendent and when the waiver is applicable to that department;

         3. The Classroom Teacher's Association (CTA), with one representative on the District's School Waiver Committee, shall review each waiver pursuant to the standards set forth in the CTA Bargaining Agreement, to determine if the waiver constitutes a change in employee hours, terms or conditions of employment (the CTA Board of Directors is the governing body authorized to accept waivers, reject waivers, or accept waivers with conditions if they require a waiver of contract standards);

         4. One representative from The Association of Educational Secretaries and Office Personnel (AESOP) when the waiver is applicable to their constituency; and

         5. One representative from the Florida Public Services Union-Service Employees International Union, Local 1227 (FPSU-SEIU) when the waiver is applicable to their constituency.

   2. The SWC will review and make recommendations to the Superintendent/designee on each waiver, considering the following factors:

      1. Whether the waiver of School Board Policy under Fla. Stat. § 1001.42(19)(b) is possible without incurring inconsistency with the underlying state statutes or State Board of Education rules;

      2. Whether the waiver is focused on maximizing student outcomes;

      3. Whether the waiver is based on research and best practices.

   3. If the waiver is not recommended, the principal and SAC will be notified by the Superintendent/designee of any issues or questions the SWC has regarding the waiver and will have an opportunity to amend the waiver for further consideration.

   4. If the waiver of Board Policy is recommended by the SWC, the Superintendent may submit the waiver request(s) to the Board for approval.

   5. If the requested waiver of Board Policy would be inconsistent with the underlying state statutes or State Board of Education rules, the SWC may transmit the request to the Charter District Advisory Committee as a possibility for the School Board to pursue as an exemption under charter district status.

9. Training and Support

   1. Training, support, and written materials shall be available for SAC members that include state and local requirements for SACs, roles and responsibilities of SAC members, use of data for decision-making, the budget process, and timelines for developing the school improvement plan. All SAC members are encouraged to review the SAC materials posted on the web site of the District's Department of School Improvement.

   2. If a SAC member or other member of the school community has a concern about the SAC's operation or compliance with this Policy, such person may contact the District's Department of School Improvement. The Department of School Improvement will coordinate resolution of the issue, with the advice and assistance of appropriate sources as needed, such as the principal, area superintendent, Chief Academic Officer, or Department of Legal Services.

10. School Budget

    1. Each SAC shall assist in the preparation of the school's annual budget, which is prepared by Budget Services, as required by Fla. Stat. §§ 1001.452(2) and 1008.385(1).

    2. To facilitate this budgeting process, the SAC will have the school's previous year's June 30th Budget Status Summary with supporting documentation, the current fiscal year's Budget Status Summary with supporting documentation, and the proposed fiscal year's budget, as provided by Budget Services.

    3. The school's current fiscal year's Budget Status Summary, prepared by Budget Services, will be provided to the SAC on an annual basis in accordance with Fla. Stat. §§ 1001.452(2) and 1008.385(1).

    4. Information regarding other resources of the school, such as internal accounts, will be shared with the SAC on an annual basis for information purposes only.

    5. If requested by a majority vote of the SAC, quarterly reports of the current year's budget by project, function and object, including a percentage comparison of amended budgets spent to date, will be provided by Budget Services. These reports can be used to compare the current year's budget with the previous year's budget.

11. District-Wide Meetings

    1. The Superintendent shall schedule at least two (2) district-wide meetings regarding school improvement and SACs each school year. One meeting in the summer/fall will provide school improvement training, and one meeting in the spring will provide school advisory council training and also provide an opportunity for SAC members to give input on school improvement to the Superintendent/designee.

    2. These meetings are intended for SAC members, Reform Panel members as established by the CTA Collective Bargaining Agreement, and School Board members to exchange programs, ideas, and other information on school improvement.

12. Sample SAC Bylaws. Sample bylaws that are consistent with Florida Statutes and Board policy are provided on the Web site of the Department of School Improvement to assist SACs in the development of their bylaws. These bylaws serve only as an example, although some content is required by the cited statutes.

13. All forms referenced within this Policy are incorporated herein by reference as part of this Policy and can be found on the District Forms website.