B9270
ST. LOUIS BOARD OF EDUCATION BYLAWS
BYLAWS OF THE BOARD
DUTIES OF OFFICERS, MEMBERS,
EMPLOYEES AND AGENTS
Individual Members
Each
member of the board, before assuming the duties of
his or her
office, shall take an oath before a circuit or associate circuit
judge of the city, which oath
shall be kept on record
in the office of the
board, that he or she
possesses all the qualifications
required by law, and that he or
she will demean himself or herself faithfully in the office as a member of the Board of Education of the City of St. Louis.
The board has authority only when
acting as a board legally in session. A board member can
exercise authority
only as a member of the board
at official board meetings. The board shall not be bound by any statement or action by an individual
board member except when such
statement or action is in pursuance
of specific Instruction of the
board.
No board member, by virtue of his or her office, shall exercise any administrative responsibility
with respect
to the schools or as
an Individual may command the services of
any district employee. Board members seeking to communicate with district employees
in their official capacity as board members
shall coordinate such communications through the Superintendent's Office.
Nothing contained herein shall
limit a board member
from communicating directly with district
employees on
matters relating to their children
or any children for which they serve as guardian.
Board members are encouraged to seek professional development opportunities that will provide benefit
to both the board and district. Toward this goal, board members
appearing at public events in their capacity as a board member
should ensure that their attendance at any public event, conference, or speaking appearance is aligned
with the goals and objectives adopted by
the board of education and/or the current Transformation Plan Goals.
Board members will
notify the
board of
events they
plan to attend in their capacity as a board member
with as much
advance notice as possible.
Board members will identify the board goals or objectives that will be
advanced by
the board member's attendance
or participation in
the event. If any individual board member has concerns about
attendance at an event, they
shall contact the attending board member directly.
In the event more than one board member expresses concerns
regarding the board member's attendance, the
event will be added to
the next work session agenda if time allows. If
time does not allow, the
board member will contact each
member of the board via email or phone call to discuss concerns. If a
majority of the Board expresses an
objection, the board member may attend the event, but must expressly state that they
do not appear as a
representative of the board of
education or the district, and that any
opinions they
express are not those
of the board of education.
A majority of
the board
shall vote
to approve
board member
attendance or participation in any public event, conference, professional
development,
etc. requiring the expenditure (or board member
reimbursement) of district funds. Board members shall identify how
their attendance is aligned with any adopted board goals
or objectives and/or the
current Transformation Plan Goals. In the event the
board does not approve
the expenditure, the board member may still
attend, at their
expense, but must expressly state that
they do not appear as
a representative of the
board of education or the
district, and that any opinions they express are not those of the board of education.
Board members will notify the board president
when they will be absent from meetings
of the board and will notify committee chairpersons of their absence from committee meetings, The board members will provide the reasons for their absence.
Spokespersons
The
superintendent, board president or a
designee will serve as official
spokespersons for the district.
All employees and board members will direct
requests for official
statements about district business from the public or
members of the
media to the district's
spokespersons. Board
members should emphasize
to the media and
members of the public that they
may only speak as individual citizens unless empowered
by the Board to speak on its behalf.
References
Legal: Section 162.581 RSMo. Bylaw adopted July 10, 1999
Revised: February 9, 1999
Revised: February
22, 2000
Revised: October 10, 2006
Revised:
February 11, 2020