San Francisco Unified School District and County Office of Education
Board Policy 1235
School Site Councils – AB65
This Board Policy applies to the San Francisco Unified School District and the County Office of Education.
WHEREAS: In accordance with Assembly Bill 65 and Section 52011 of the Education Code, the governing board of each school district shall adopt policies to insure that prior to scheduled phase-in, a school site council is established at each school site to consider whether or not it wishes the local school to participate in the school improvement program; and
WHEREAS: The composition of site councils is described in AB-65 (Education Code Section 52012) as follows:
A school site council shall be established at each school which participates in the school improvement program authorized by this chapter. The council shall be composed of the principal and representatives of teachers selected by teachers at the school; other school personnel selected by other school personnel at the school; parents of pupils attending the school selected by such parents; and, in secondary schools, pupils selected by pupils attending the school.
At the elementary level, the council shall be constituted to insure parity between (a) the principal, classroom teachers and other school personnel, and (b) parents or other community members selected by parents.
At the secondary level, the council shall be constituted to insure parity between (a) the principal, classroom teachers, and other school personnel, and (b) equal numbers of parents and pupils.
At both the elementary and secondary levels, classroom teachers shall comprise the majority of persons represented under subdivision (a) of this section.
The San Francisco Unified School District shall define teachers who are currently serving as resource persons, librarians, or in other non-administrative certificated positions as being eligible to be considered and vote as “teachers”.
Existing school wide advisory groups or school support groups may be utilized as the school site council if such groups conform to the provisions of this section.
The number of representatives on the school site council may be determined at the district or school level.
(The smallest possible council would be ten members at the elementary level and twelve members at the secondary level.)
Consistent with existing policies, those members identified as parents or community on the council must not be employees of the school district. This insures that half of the council members are employees of the school district and half are not employed by the district.
School site councils are encouraged to consider broad participation from the school and community in their meetings. All meetings should be open to the public, and non-members should be encouraged to participate in council activities. For example, a council at an elementary school with seventh or eighth grades may wish to receive input from student representatives, or a secondary school of the community. Elementary and secondary school councils may also wish to provide for liaison representatives from existing organizations and advisory committees.
WHEREAS: The board shall likewise insure that all interested persons, including, but not limited to, the principal, teachers, other school personnel, parents, and in secondary schools, pupils have an opportunity to meet in public to establish such council;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED: That principals at each school site shall call for and send notices of meetings to establish school site councils to all interested persons, including, but not limited to, site administrators, teachers, others school personnel, parents, and in secondary schools, students.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That all school wide advisory groups and school support groups be notified of the following aspects of AB-65:
- Education Code Section 52012 specifies that:
- “Existing school wide advisory groups or school support groups may be utilized as the school site council if such groups conform to the provisions of this section.”
If board or school site council chooses to augment an existing committee to form a council, the selection process of existing and future members must conform to the provisions of Education Code Section 52012. If an advisory committee established pursuant to federal or state categorical aid programs is modified to form a school site council for the purpose of school improvement, the district or school is in no way relieved of its responsibilities relating to the selection and composition of that committee stipulated in other laws or regulations when it functions for its original purpose.
First Considerations of the Council
Education Code Section 52011 (b) provides that:
“Upon the vote of a majority of the persons represented pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 52012 and a majority of the persons represented pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 52012, the council may request the governing board to exclude the school from participation in the school improvement program authorized by this chapter. If the Governing Board accepts such a request, the schedule developed pursuant to subdivision (c) of this section shall be amended at the school no later than three years from date of the decision not to participate. Final determination as to whether a local school will participate in the school improvement program shall rest with the local governing board.”
After a school has been selected by the district board to be phased into the school improvement program, and after a school site council has been organized, the council shall discuss the implications of school improvement for its school. It shall take a critical look at the total school program. For example, what abilities and competencies does the council want learners to possess? How effective is the existing school program and organization in bringing about student growth? Is the school climate conducive to learning? Is every student achieving consistently within his or her abilities? The discussion of these questions should serve as a starting place for the first step in a more formal process.
If for some reason the council feels that it would prefer to postpone involvement in the school improvement program, it should take a formal vote as described in Section 52011 (b)., which requires that both a majority of school employees and a majority of those not employed by the district (parents/community members, and in secondary schools, students) vote to request that the governing board postpone its school’s participation. Note: There are only two such decisions in the legislation which require a separate vote of the two major sub-groups of the council. In all other cases, it is anticipated that the council will vote as a whole. It should communicate the rationale for that decision to the local governing board.
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED: That the San Francisco Board of Education adopt the following procedures for selection of school site councils as required by AB-65 and Education Code Section 52012:
Educational Code Section 52012 outlines the procedures to be followed in selecting and Replacing the members of the school site council:
“Consideration should be given to a variety of selection and replacement procedures, and the final decision should be based on what is best for the school. Care should be taken to insure that persons or groups not usually or previously involved have an opportunity to participate in the selection process.”
Processes for selecting members of school site councils follow. In each case, members are selected by their peers:
- Nominating and balloting electoral processes within each required group.
- Election or selection by peer group following volunteering for the position.
Replacement processes follow. In each case, the required composition of the school site council must be maintained:
- Appointment by the chairperson with the approval of the school site council.
- Replacement by same method used for selection.
The selection and replacement procedures shall be described in the school plan and in the school site council by-laws.
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HISTORY/AUTHORIZATION
Adopted: Resolution #82-14Sp1 as amended by Resolution #83-28A10, March 28, 1978
Policy SAN FRANCISCO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
adopted: March 12, 2013 San Francisco, California
Please note that compare references, or “cf”, refer to CSBA model policies and do not necessarily indicate that the San Francisco Unified School District has adopted the referenced policy.