An orderly board meeting allows the board members to participate in the discussion and decision process on an issue confronting the school district. Rules of order for board meetings allow school district business and the relative information concerning the business to be brought to the attention of the board. They also allow the board to discuss, act upon and make a clear record of school district business in a regular, ordered, reasonable and consistent manner.
The board will follow Robert’s Rule of Order, Revised, latest edition as modified by this policy and subsequent rule.
The purpose of modified rules adopted by the board are:
- To establish guidelines by which the business of the governing board can be conducted in a regular and internally consistent manner;
- To organize the meetings so all necessary matters can be brought to the board and decisions of the board can be made in an orderly and reasonable manner;
- To ensure members of the board, concentrating on the substantive issues at hand, have the necessary information to make decisions, and to ensure adequate discussion of decisions to be made; and,
- To ensure meetings and actions of the board are conducted so as to be informative to the staff and the public, and to produce a clear record of actions taken and decisions made.
It is the responsibility of each board member to follow the rules of order stated in this policy at each meeting, and it is the responsibility of the presiding officer to conduct the board meeting within these rules.
The Board shall adhere to the following rules, which are consistent with Robert’s Rules of order:
- Board members may speak while seated without being recognized by the presiding officer.
- All motions will be made as a positive action.
- A motion will be adopted or carried if it receives an affirmative vote from more than half of the votes cast. Only “yes” and “no” votes are counted in this calculation. It should be noted that some motions require larger numbers of affirmative votes, such as to move into a closed session.
- Informal discussion of a subject is permitted while no motion is pending.
- The board president may decide the order in which board members will be recognized to address an issue. An attempt should be made to alternate between pro and con positions.
- The board president shall rule on all motions that come before the board.
- The board president may rule on points of order brought before the board.
- The board president shall have complete authority to recognize a member of the audience regarding a request to participate in the board meeting. Members of the public may speak on any agenda item at the time that item is present for board discussion prior to that discussion, provided they have indicated a desire to do so on a sign-in sheet provided at the entrance to the board meeting room.
- If an agenda item is discussed, and a majority of the board members present wishes to have additional information from the public, the board has the right to ask any person or persons for that information.
- If an agenda item is discussed, and the board president wishes to have additional information from the public, the board president has the right to ask any person or persons for that information.
- The board president has the authority to declare a recess at any time for the purpose of restoring decorum to the meeting.
- The presiding officer may speak in discussion, make and second motions, and vote on all questions without rising or leaving the chair.
The Board shall further adhere the following rules:
- Motions before the Board:
- Any person not a member of the Board attempting to discuss any motion pending before the Board is out of order unless the presiding officer calls for discussion from the staff or audience, or unless the Board votes to hear such discussion.
- The Board shall receive reports and/or presentations, if applicable, from designated members of the staff prior to opening the floor to discussion.
- All motions may be made or seconded by any member of the Board.
- All motions shall be seconded before being considered for action by the board.
- Postponement of Action:
- When less than the full Board is present at any meeting, any member, absent or present, who feels that any item to be presented should have attention of the full Board, may request that consideration of the item be postponed. It will be the policy of the Board to determine the merit of postponement of each item by a consensus of the membership.
(June 15, 1992; September 20, 2010; November 15, 2010; June 18, 2012, June 20, 2016, March 4, 2019)