Red Lined Version Board Policy BBI Board-Staff Relations

                                                                                                     Board Policy Manual
                                                                                             DeKalb County School District




 Board Policy BBI: Board-Staff Relations                                                                      Status: DRAFT

 Original Adopted Date: 03/21/2012 | Last Revised Date: 11/03/2014 | Last Reviewed Date: 08/20/2024


Red Lined Version

The DeKalb County Board of Education wishes to maintain open channels of communication with dDistrict staff,
including dDistrict employees and contractors. , vendors. The primary line of communication, however, will be
through the sSuperintendent, and official business of the dDistrict willshall not be carried on between staff and
bBoard members except as directed by the sSuperintendent.
  A. Staff Communications to the Board

      All communications or open reports to the Board or any of its subcommittees from principals, supervisors,
      teachers, or other staff members will be submitted through the Superintendent. Staff should not contact
      Board members regarding school or District business, and staff interests or concerns should be communicated
      through the chain of command unless otherwise directed by the Superintendent.
      This procedure does not deny the right of any employee to appeal to the bBoard from administrative decisions
      on important matters, provided that the sSuperintendent has been notified of the forthcoming appeal and that
      it is processed in accordance with the bBoard’s policy on complaints and grievances. Staff are encouraged to
      report concerns to employee relations department the appropriate department handling employee grievances
      and concerns or through the whistleblower hotline 1-88-475-0482 at the Audit & Compliance department. If
      the complaint or concern is with Audit & Compliance department, then staff is encouraged to report to the
      Chief Legal Officer. If ther are complaints or concerns about the superintendent, those should be reported
      directly to the Board Chair who will consult with General Counsel.

      Staff members are also reminded that bBoard meetings are public meetings. As such, they provide an excellent
      opportunity to observe firsthand the bBoard’s deliberations on problems of staff concern.
  B. Board Communications to Staff
      All Board member communications, questions, policies or directives of staff interest and concern will be
      communicated to staff members through the Superintendent. Board members should not contact staff to
      discuss school or District business. The Superintendent will develop appropriate methods to keep staff fully
      informed of the Board’s problems, concerns and actions. Board member requests to meet with or require
      information from a staff member shall be at the direction of the Superintendent.
      If a bBoard member brings to the sSuperintendent a request or concern regarding bBoard governance or
      otherwise requiring full bBoard consensus, the request or concern will be referred to the bBoard cChair. Any
      responses by the Superintendent should be made through the Chair based on agreed communication channels
      to ensure that the response is shared with the full bBoard.
  C. Guidelines for Board Member Visits to Schools
      The ultimate responsibility for a school’s operation lies with the sSuperintendent. There are advantages for
      to obtaining knowledge about a school’s operation by individual bBoard members visiting the school. Board
      members are encouraged to visit schools during open houses and other times specially arranged for the
      general public. In addition, board members are encouraged to visit the schools to speak with, listen to, and
      observe the operations and procedures of the school to gain knowledge for policy-making decisions in the
      areas of finance, personnel, curriculum, facilities and transportation. The following guidelines apply when
      board members visit schools: 1. There should be no interruption of classes or other activities. 2. Class
      visitation or observation should be done only with the approval of the principal. 3. Review of evaluation
      information of any teacher or employee should be done only in executive session of a board meeting. 4. The
      board member should not act or speak independently in making decisions or commitments of a course of
      action of the board. However, some problems can be encountered by Board members visiting schools,
      including the following:
      1. It is impossible to separate the identity of a Board member from that of a private citizen.
      2. Evaluation of staff members and employees is an administrative responsibility, not a Board member’s
         responsibility.

      3. Board members must not make general statements or promises that could be construed to be the
         position of the Board.
      4. Board members should not make statements to teachers and employees which could be construed as a
         procedural directive.
D. Guidelines for Visiting Schools
   Board members are encouraged to visit schools during open houses and other times specially arranged for the
   general public. In addition, Board members are encouraged to visit the schools to speak with, listen to, and
   observe the operations and procedures of the school to gain knowledge for policy-making decisions in the
   areas of finance, personnel, curriculum, facilities and transportation.
   The following guidelines apply when Board members visit schools:

      1. There should be no interruption of classes or other activities.
      2. Class visitation or observation should be done only with the approval of the principal.
      3. Review of evaluation information of any teacher or employee should be done only in executive session
         of a Board meeting.
      4. The Board member should not act or speak independently in making decisions or commitments of a
         course of action of the Board.
   Board members must recognize that their presence in the schools could be subject to a variety of
   interpretations by school employees and the public. Such visits will be regarded as informal expressions of
   interest in school affairs and not as “inspections” or visits for supervisory or administrative purposes.
E. Enforcement
   This policy willshall be enforced in the manner set out in the Board Member Code of Ethics Policy, Descriptor
   Code BH, Paragraph F. Staff members who violate this policy shall be sanctioned as determined by the
   Superintendent.