Stevensville School District

THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

School Board Meeting Procedure

Agenda

The authority to set the board agenda lies with the Board Chair in consultation with board members and the administration. The act of preparing the board meeting agendas can be delegated to the Superintendent.

Any topic requested by Board members or members of the public must first be approved by the Board Chair before being placed on the agenda. However, if two or more Board members request a topic the item will be place on the agenda regardless of Board Chair approval.
Citizens wishing to make brief comments about school programs or procedures will follow the public comment procedures in district policy.

The agenda also must include a “public comment” portion to allow members of the general public to comment on any public matter under the jurisdiction of the District which is not specifically listed on the agenda, except that no member of the public will be allowed to comment on contested cases, other adjudicative proceedings, or personnel matters. The Board Chairperson may place reasonable time limits on any “public comment” period to maintain and ensure effective and efficient operations of the Board. The Board shall not take any action on any matter discussed, unless the matter is specifically noticed on the agenda, and the public has been allowed opportunity to comment.

Copies of the agenda for the current Board meeting, minutes of the previous Board meeting, and relevant supplementary information will be prepared and distributed to each trustee at least forty-eight (48) hours in advance of a Board meeting and will be available to any interest citizen at the Superintendent’s office forty-eight (48) hours before a Board meeting. An agenda for other types of Board meetings will be prepared if circumstances require and agenda.

Consent Agenda

To expedite business at its meetings, the Board approves the use of a consent agenda, which includes those items considered to be routine in nature. Any item that appears on the consent agenda may be removed by a member of the Board. Any Board member who wishes to remove an item from the consent agenda must give advance notice in a timely manner to the Superintendent. 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.

Minutes

Appropriate minutes of all meetings required to be open must be kept and must be available for inspection by the public. If an official recording is made a written record of the meeting must also be made and must also include:

• Date, time, and place of the meeting;
• Presiding officer;
• Board members recorded as absent or present (board members present electronically will be noted as such);
• Summary of discussion on all matters discussed (including those matters discussed during the “public comment” section), proposed, deliberated, or decided and a record of any votes taken;
• Detailed statement of all expenditures;
• Purpose of recessing to closed session; and
• Time of adjournment.

If the minutes are recorded and designated as the official record, a log or time stamp for each main agenda item is required for the purpose of providing assistance to the public in accessing that portion of the meeting.

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 Board 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 for inspection upon request. A written copy shall be made available with five (5) working days following approval by the Board.

Quorum

No business shall be transacted at any meeting of the Board unless a quorum of its members is present. A majority of the full membership of the Board shall constitute a quorum, whether the individuals are present physically or electronically. A majority of the quorum may pass a resolution, except as provided in §20-4-203(1), MCA and §20-4-401(4), MCA.

Electronic Participation

The Board may allow members to participate in meetings by telephone or other electronic means. Board members may not simply vote electronically but must be connected with the meeting throughout the discussion of business. If a Board member electronically joins the meeting after an item of business has been opened, the remotely located member shall not participate until the next item of business is opened.

If the Board allows a member to participate electronically, the Board Chair will determine the method of connection. The member will be considered present and will have his or her actual physical presence excused. The member shall be counted present for purposes of convening a quorum. The Clerk will document it in the minutes, when members participate in the meeting
electronically.

Any Board member wishing to participate in a meeting electronically will notify the Chairperson and Superintendent as early as possible. The Superintendent will arrange for the meeting to take place in a location with the appropriate equipment so that Board members participating in the meeting electronically may interact, and the public may observe or hear the comments made. The Superintendent or Board Chair will take measures to verify the identity of any remotely located participants.

Meeting Conduct and Order of Business

General rules of parliamentary procedure are used for every Board meeting. 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 agenda can be re-ordered or items can be dropped immediately after the Board Chair calls the meeting to order with a majority vote of the trustees. Should the agenda need re-ordered or action item dropped after the meeting is underway, a 2/3 majority vote of the Trustees is required. The use of proxy votes shall not be permitted. Voting rights are reserved to those trustees in attendance, either physically or through an approved electronic connection. Voting shall be by acclamation, roll call, or show of hands.

Rescind a Motion

A motion to rescind (cancel previous action) may be made anytime by any trustee that voted on the prevailing side of the action. A motion to rescind must be properly noticed on the Board’s agenda for the meeting. It is in order any time prior to accomplishment of the underlying action addressed by the motion.

Cross Reference:
1441 Audience Participation

Legal References:
§2-3-103, MCA Public participation – governor to ensure guidelines adopted
§2-3-202, MCA Meeting defined
§2-3-212, MCA Minutes of meetings-public inspection
§20-1-212, MCA Destruction of records by school officer
§20-3-322, MCA Meetings and quorum
§20-3-323, MCA District policy and record of acts
Jones and Nash v. Missoula CO., 2006 MT2, 330 Mont 2005

Policy History:
Adopted on: February 12, 2002
Reviewed on: September 11, 2018; December 10, 2019; April 12, 2022
Revised on: October 9, 2018; January 14, 2020; May 10, 2022