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Essex High School
2 Educational Dr. Essex Jct., VT 05452 | (802) 879-7121

EHS School Council/School Senate

The EHS School Council and/or Senate make decisions

1.regarding use of professional staff development/inservice time,

2.related to the structure of the school which will affect instructional and other professional services; eg. moving to a house plan structure or block scheduling,

3.regarding school-wide commitments to the use of instructional methodologies and curriculum; eg. cooperative learning or team teaching,

4.regarding special activities and events which will affect the school community: eg. Wellness Week,

5.regarding school-wide procedures on student discipline and rules.

*note: Decisions affecting professional staff time and/or responsibilities shall be compatible with the terms of the Master Agreement and Vermont state law. The Council reserves the right to decide, or not to decide.

EHS SCHOOL COUNCIL BY-LAWS

Purpose:

The purpose of the EHS School Council is to help faculty and administration resolve issues, which are defined in the Areas of Authority. These issues may be resolved in the School Council or sent to the School Senate. The Council will check that its decisions do not violate state or federal law, the Master Agreement or Union School Board #46 policy.

Composition:

1.The Council will consist of eleven (11) members.

2.One member will be the principal (or acting principal in the case of a long-term absence).

3.Eight (8) faculty members will be elected at-large by Australian ballot.

4.Two (2) students will be elected at-large from the Student Senate.

Operations:

1.The School Council will make decisions by consensus (without objection).

2.A quorum of seven (7) School Council members must be present in order to take action on any issue.

3.The following are possible results of School Council decisions:

a.a proposal may be adopted and implemented,

b.a proposal may be rejected and go no further,

c.a proposal, whether adopted or rejected by the School Council, may be sent to the School Senate for reconsideration by petition of ten (10) percent of the School Senate within 10 school days. Upon reaching consensus, no council member may sign a petition, or

d.a proposal may be sent directly to the School Senate for consideration.

4.The School Council will not consider a new proposal that promotes the same general idea(s) as a previously submitted proposal unless a minimum of two calendar years has passed since the most recent prior version was submitted. It there is a question about the similarity of those proposals, the School Council must agree, by consensus, that the new proposal(s) does not promote the same general idea. The council may choose to revisit a proposal before the two-year minimum if the School Council agrees, by consensus, to do so.

5.The School Council will establish ground rules for conducting meetings, including the appointment of leadership, the keeping of minutes, and input from the floor.

Meetings and attendance:

1.Meetings will be held once a week, if necessary, after school on a designated day on which few other professional obligations will be scheduled (eg. Dept meetings, IEP meetings, parent conferences).

2.Anyone is welcome to attend. Time will be allotted for comments from the floor.

Duties:

1.Distribute agendas and dates for the School Council.

2.Post the agenda and minutes of regular meetings by e-mail in department offices, main office, the library and other locations within two (2) school days of the meeting. For an emergency meeting a posting will occur twenty-four (24) hours previous to the meeting.

3.Inform the Senate Chair of the need for a School Senate meeting.

Faculty Elections and Tenure:

1.Volunteers and nominations will be solicited in the spring for the following year.

2.Faculty candidates for membership will be posted and will be available to speak at a Senate meeting.

3.Within one week of the candidate meeting, voting will occur by Australian ballot over a two-day period. Each senate member will be able to vote for four (4) people.

4.The four (4) people with the most votes will serve on the Council. Membership on the Council will be a professional duty.

5.Each member will serve a two (2) year term.

6.Upon the vacancy of a seat on the School Council, a general announcement will be made to all faculty requesting volunteers to fill the seat. If more than one faculty member comes forward, an election shall be held in the Faculty Senate. If only one comes forward, the chair shall appoint that person to the seat pending the approval of the Council. If nobody comes forward, the chair will seek a replacement first from underrepresented departments pending the approval of the Council.

Student Election and Tenure:

1. Any freshman, sophomore or junior, elected as a senator to student government, who has been nominated for School Council by the Student Senate will be placed on the ballot.

2. Elections for the next year will take place at the first Student Senate meeting after senate elections and before the end of the school year by Australian ballot. Each senator will be able to vote for two (2) people.

3. The two (2) candidates with the most votes will serve on the School Council. In case of a tie, each candidate will speak to the team, consisting of Student Council President, Vice-President, Speaker of the Student Senate, and each class leader, who by majority decision will choose the representative.

4. The member will serve a one (1) year term.

EHS SCHOOL SENATE BY-LAWS

Purpose:

The Senate will provide a forum for issues in the Areas of Authority. It is a means for direct communication, individual participation, and resolution of issues by the entire faculty and administration.

Composition:

The Senate consists of all faculty members, all administrators, and seven (7) Student Governance representatives; the President, Vice-President, Speaker of the Student Senate, and the four (4) Class Leaders; within Essex High School.

Procedures:

Step 1: A proposal must have been presented to the EHS Council. The Council may decide to pass this proposal directly to the Senate. If a proposal presented to the Council does not receive consensus, then the proposalŐs originators can present a petition containing signatures of 10% of the Senate members to the Senate Organization Committee.

Step 2: The Senate Organization Committee sets a date and makes the agenda for the

next Senate meeting. If the Senate wishes to pursue the development of this issue, then the Senate may establish a task force, if needed, or proceed to Step 3. This task force shall be open to any interested Senate member. It may include community members and students, depending upon the topic. At least one half of the members must be faculty members. The task force in consultation with the Senate shall establish a time line for its work and for an evaluation component to determine the effectiveness of the new plan. The task force develops a proposal which is then resubmitted to the council.

Step 3: A written outline of the proposal will be made available to members by the

originators in advance of the first Senate meeting. At the meeting members may ask the originator (s) of the proposal questions regarding this proposal for purposes of clarification.

Step 4: Small group discussions of the proposal will take place in departments or in informal gatherings during a period following the Senate meeting.

Step 5: At the end of the period designated, a second Senate meeting is called. This will be a time for the Senate to hear the results of various small group discussions on the proposal and to debate its strengths and weaknesses. At that meeting, editorial revisions may be made with permission of the originator. The moderator has the authority to determine whether revisions significantly alter the intent of the proposal. After posting, revised proposals shall proceed to a vote. Consideration of significantly altered proposals shall begin with the School Council.

Step 6: Within one week following the second Senate meeting, Senate members will have the opportunity to vote by Australian ballot on the proposal. The proposal will be adopted if it gains 60 % approval of those voting.

Meetings and Attendance:

1.Attendance is optional.

2.Meetings will occur after school or during in-service. Minutes and agendas from the Senate will be posted. The agenda shall always include a time for discussion of items of interest. These discussions may lead to proposals.

Senate Organization Committee:

1.The Senate Organization Committee (SOC) will consist of 3 people elected from the Senate membership at-large. For their first term beginning in the fall of 1997, the members shall be elected annually by Australian ballot at the time of the School Council elections. These same people may share the role of moderator. A Senate member may not serve on the Council and SOC within the same school year.

2.The Senate Organization Committee will meet as needed in order to plan and carry out the following Senate duties:

1 to set the dates for Senate meetings: proposal presentation, discussion, and voting,

2 to post Senate agenda and minutes,

3 to moderate each Senate meeting,

4 to supervise voting and inform members of the results,

5 to keep a calendar for evaluations of approved proposals, and

6 to solicit volunteers and nominations for SOC and CouncilŐs faculty members; arrange annual elections.

 
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