School Board/Policies -

Board Meetings

Committee Meeting Agendas

Board of Education Description

The School Board is a policy-setting body. Because education is a state function, once a School Board member is elected/appointed to office they become officers of the State. As officers, they are under oath to obey and carry out its laws. The School Board is a legislative body responsible for establishing local school policies to assure that the schools are properly run in accordance with state laws and regulations. In doing so, they have no authority as individuals only as a body known as the Board.

Board meetings are NOT a public hearing. It is an official business meeting of the School Board, conducted under a prepared and limited agenda which is distributed to Board members ahead of time.

The School Board generally meets twice a month, typically on the third and fourth Monday. The third Monday of the month is a scheduled work session, where items are discussed prior to placement on the agenda for the regular business meeting which is held on the fourth Monday. All official meetings of the School Board, with the exception of Executive Sessions, are open to the public.

Public Participation in Board Meetings

All persons wishing to participate at the beginning of the work session or regular business meeting must register their intent with the Board Secretary by the close of business on the Tuesday prior to the meeting. Speakers participating at the regular business meeting must state the specific agenda item they wish to address when registering their intent. A 3-minute time limit will be allotted each speaker, unless waived by the Board.

To ensure the timeliest resolution to your concern and/or question, first contact your student’s teacher, counselor, or principal so that he/she can respond without any undue delay. The OCASD School Board meetings are business meetings which are held in public. On each meeting agenda, you will see “Public Comment.” In order to permit fair and orderly expression of comment, the Board has provided this time to hear appropriate comments from anyone who has registered, in advance, to speak at the meeting. However, the School Board does not respond to questions during the course of the meetings. Please note that “Public Comment on Non Agenda items” will be addressed as part of the Work Session agenda and “Public Comment on Agenda Items “ will be addressed as part of the Voting Meeting agenda. The Board values and welcomes civil, respectful statements and clear, concise communications that inform its deliberations. The Board uses the public comment period as an opportunity to listen to citizen concerns, but not to debate issues or enter into a question-and-answer session. No person addressing the Board should initiate charges or complaints about individual Board members, employees, or students of the OCASD. Such charges or complaints should be presented directly to the Superintendent. Speakers are encouraged to provide the Board with a written copy of their comments and other appropriate supporting documentation.

For more information regarding public participation, please refer to Board Policy #006 Local Board Procedures and Board Policy #903 Public Participation in Board Meetings. Both policies are attached below as PDFs.