Harrisonville Cass R-IX School District

The role of the District’s Board is to govern the community’s public schools by making the major decisions for the District. For the District to operate efficiently and effectively, the Board as a whole will perform its role by working together as a governance team with the Superintendent in the best interest of the District’s students.  As the elected governing body, the Board will be accountable to the public by faithfully fulfilling the following five responsibilities:

1. Setting the strategic direction for the district;
2. Establishing a system of district policies and rules;
3. Overseeing the employment of the superintendent;
4. Exercising final decision-making authority for Board matters; and
5. Serving as a liaison between the district and the community.

This role belongs to the Board as a whole and not to the any Board member individually, or to the Superintendent individually.  The Board as a whole, by working with the Superintendent to make decisions that will best serve the District’s students, will govern the community’s schools.

1. Setting the Strategic Direction

The Board sets the strategic direction for the district by establishing and maintaining the district’s strategic or long-term plan that includes district priorities, goals and objectives.  The Board allocates the resources and oversees the employment of the superintendent to ensure this plan is accomplished.

2. Establishing a System of District Policies and Rules

The Board establishes the major district policies and rules and delegates the authority to make any other rules to the administration under the superintendent’s direction.

3. Overseeing the Employment of the Superintendent

The Board hires, directs and evaluates the performance of the superintendent.

4. Exercising Final Decision-Making Authority for Board Matters

The Board exercises final decision-making authority for matters that:

1. Are identified by law as exclusively within the province of the Board;
2. Have potential significant impact on the district as a whole;
3. Have important financial consequences for the district; or
4. Are reserved for the Board to decide, either through district policy or Board action.
5. Serving as a Liaison between the District and the Community

The Board acts as a liaison between the District and the community by promoting school programs in the community and channeling concerns from community members to the appropriate District points of contact, in accordance with the District’s chain of command.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

Unless authorized to act on behalf of the Board as a whole, individual Board members have no authority or power to act as a school official.  Board members are expected to act as one member of a decision-making team of eight individuals consisting of seven elected Board members and one Superintendent.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

The Superintendent of Schools shall be the chief executive officer of the Board and the administrative leader of the District.  The Superintendent is responsible to the Board for the execution and implementation of its policies and decisions.  The execution of all decisions made by the Board concerning the internal operation of the District shall be delegated to the Superintendent.  The Superintendent shall then be responsible for the delegation of responsibility and authority for the operations of the District.  The Board will channel all directives from the Board to its employees or students through the Superintendent.  The Superintendent also provides direction on all District matters not covered by the Board policies or decisions.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

Each principal or director will be responsible for and have authority over the actions of students, employees, volunteers, visitors, or any other person present in the school, subject to the direction of the Superintendent.  The principal or director will enforce the rules and decisions of the Superintendent and the Board, and may implement and enforce additional rules as deemed appropriate for the operation of the school.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

The Board President will perform the duties pertaining to the office under applicable law and any duties that may be directed by the Board.  The President will:

1. Preside at all meetings of the Board, and call special meetings of the Board.
2. Sign all written contracts and documents to which the District may be party that have been authorized by the Board, except as otherwise delegated by the Board and permitted by applicable law.
3. Use parliamentary procedure to conduct meetings and encourage Board member engagement in Board deliberations and decisions.
4. Assume the role as the liaison between the remaining Board members, the community and Superintendent.
5. Take a leadership role in addressing allegations of Board member misconduct.

In the absence of the President, the Vice President shall have the power of the President and perform such duties.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

On or before July 15th of each year, the Board shall elect a school District Secretary, Treasurer and other Board officials deemed necessary and advisable.  The Board will set the terms of service and compensation unless the Secretary or Treasurer is a member of the Board, in which case no compensation for services will be received.  Vacancies in Board officer positions shall be filled by Board election of replacements.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

The Board Secretary will perform the duties as may be required by law or authorized by the Board.  The following are among the duties of the Board Secretary unless properly delegated to others:

1. Be present at, and keep accurate records of, all regular and special meetings of the Board, including minutes and Board member attendance. 
2. Ensure correspondence directed to the Board and notice of any Board meeting is provided to all Board members and all notices of Board meetings are posted as required by law.
3. Issue and/or sign all official documents as required by law or determined by the Board.
4. Ensure that copies of all documents relating to the business of the District are properly kept by the District.
5. Obtain and record the election results of all District elections submitted to voters, including the election of Board Members and propositions.  
6. Issue certificates of election to the county clerk.
7. Ensure bonds and interest coupons are properly destroyed and a District record is properly maintained reflecting such destruction.
8. Maintain, certify and report all District documents to any outside entity as required by law. 
9. In the absence of both the President and Vice President of the Board, call Board meetings to order.    
10. Prepare and maintain an annual Board calendar.
11. Maintain a correct plat of the District and promptly notify the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the county clerk of each county affected of any boundary changes of the District.
12. Transmit to the county commission and to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education the Annual Secretary Board Report (“ASBR”).

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020; Updated July 1, 2023

The Board may select an attorney(s) and/or law firm(s) for purposes of providing such legal services to the District.  Unless the interests of the Superintendent are adverse to the Board in a legal matter, the Superintendent or designee will be the District’s representative to seek legal counsel or advice on behalf of the District or Board.  Only the Superintendent or designee, the Board President, or the Board as a whole is authorized to seek legal advice or counsel on behalf of the District or Board.  Individual employees, other than the Superintendent or designee, are not authorized to seek legal advice on behalf of the District or Board.  Individual Board members, other than the Board President, are not authorized to seek legal advice on behalf of the District or Board without specific permission by the Board.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

Unless the law requires others to sign documents on behalf of the District or Board, the Superintendent or designee may sign documents on behalf of the District or Board.  If Board approval of a document is required by law, the Superintendent or designee may sign only after Board approval.  The Superintendent will establish controls to ensure that official documents are signed by the appropriate persons and steps are taken to prevent mistakes, fraud, embezzlement and District liability.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

All meetings of the Board shall be open to the public except for when the Board meets in executive session.  A quorum must be present at all meetings where business is conducted.  The Board may meet in regular meetings, special meetings, and work sessions.  Meetings will be noticed as required by law.  The Board will meet monthly on the third Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m., in the Board Room at 503 S. Lexington, with the exceptions of March, June and August when the meetings will be held on the last Tuesday of those months.  Special meetings may be called as needed, and may be called by the Board President or a quorum of the Board.  Board members may participate electronically if they can hear and be heard throughout the discussion.  Electronic participation will be documented in the meeting minutes in accordance with law.  The Board Secretary will publish an annual calendar of tentative Board meeting dates.  The Board Secretary will also post all Board meetings as prescribed by law.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

The Board will evaluate the Superintendent annually by utilizing an evaluation tool that incorporates the evaluation principles adopted by the Missouri State Board of Education.  The job performance of the Superintendent should be linked to the District’s goals in the Strategic Plan.  The Board may also include other factors in the evaluation.  The Superintendent will provide a progress update to the Board at least quarterly.  The Board may take this time to address other job evaluation related issues with the Superintendent during this formative stage of the process.  The summative evaluation incorporates the information utilized in the formative stage of the process.  Each Board member will prepare an individual evaluation, then the Board President and Vice President will collect these evaluations and prepare a final consensus evaluation.  The Board will meet with the Superintendent to share the evaluation results, discuss other pertinent job performance related issues, and determine contract related issues.  The Board may determine compensation issues at the time of the summative evaluation, or at a later time, no later than June 30th.  The evaluation process does not preclude the Board from addressing job related issues as they arise.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

To act effectively as the elected governing body of the District, the Board and individual Board members must be well trained regarding significant education policy issues and all items over which the Board exercises decision-making authority.  The Board will annually assess its training and development needs and develop a training program to ensure all Board members and officers are sufficiently trained to successfully fulfill their responsibilities.

New Board members must successfully complete eighteen and one half hours of orientation and training within one year of the date of election or appointment.  This training shall include at least two hours and thirty minutes of training that provides up-to-date and reliable information on identifying signs of sexual abuse in children and danger signals of potentially abusive relationships between children and adults, as required by law.

Any school board member serving a term as of August 28, 2019, or elected or appointed after August 28, 2019, shall complete at least one hour of refresher training each year of any term in office related to the prevention of sexual abuse of children as required by law; except that, the refresher training shall not be required in the year in which the member completes initial orientation and training.

All programs providing the orientation and training must be offered by a statewide association organized for the benefit of members of Boards of education or be approved by the state Board.

The District will invest in the development of the Board as a whole, Board officers, and Board members individually to ensure the successful performance of the Board’s role and responsibilities.  The costs of all such training and development will be paid by the District.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

The Board may place issues on the ballot as needed or as required by law.  In accordance with law, the Superintendent or designee will notify the election authority of the ballot issue and provide the Board-approved language for the ballot no later than 5:00 p.m. on the tenth Tuesday prior to the election.

In accordance with law, no expenditure of District public funds will be made to advocate, support or oppose any ballot measure or candidate for public office.  To the extent allowed by law, Board members or the Superintendent or designee may adopt resolutions, make public appearances or communicate information concerning ballot measures or candidates.

Once the District receives the results, the official election results will be presented to the Board at the next regular meeting.  The Board will vote to either accept the results or take action to challenge the results.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

The voters of the District will annually elect two directors for terms of three years each on the municipal Election Day in April.  An additional director will be elected triennially.

Candidate Filing

Before the seventeenth Tuesday preceding the election, the Board shall publish in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the District the opening filing date, the offices to be filled, the place for filing, the closing date for filing and a statement that candidates filing on the first day of filing will be listed on the ballot in random order.

Qualified applicants for the Board may file a declaration of candidacy during business hours in the Superintendent’s office commencing at 8:00 a.m. on the seventeenth Tuesday prior to the election and ending at 5:00 p.m. on the fourteenth Tuesday prior to the election.  The candidate shall declare his or her intent to become a candidate in person and in writing to the Secretary of the Board or designee.  The District will designate a location where candidates will form a line to file the necessary paperwork in order to determine the order of such filings for ballot placement.

The names of qualified candidates shall be placed on the ballot in order of filing.

The notice of election and certification of candidates must be submitted to the election authority by the tenth Tuesday prior to the election in the manner provided by law.  After the tenth Tuesday prior to the election, the candidate list may only be modified pursuant to court order, in accordance with law.

Prior to the District’s certification of candidates to the election authority, a candidate may withdraw from the election by presenting to the District a notarized written statement of his or her intention to withdraw.  After the deadline for certification of candidates to the election authority, a candidate may only withdraw pursuant to court order, in accordance with law.

The District will provide each candidate a copy of the Notice of Candidate’s Obligation to File a Financial Interest Statement and a plain language summary of the applicable laws provided by the Missouri Ethics Commission as required by law.  Candidates must comply with laws concerning eligibility, campaign financing and campaign disclosures.

Filing by Certified Mail

In accordance with law, candidates may file by certified mail if they are unable to file the declaration of candidacy and other necessary paperwork in person due to a physical disability or because they are members of the U.S. Armed Forces on active duty.  Upon request, the District will provide potential candidates the necessary paperwork prior to the opening date of candidate filing and during the filing period.

The candidate must personally sign the declaration of candidacy and other documents necessary for filing that require a signature and the signatures must be notarized.  In addition, the declaration of candidacy of a person with a physical disability who is filing by certified mail must be accompanied by a notarized statement from a licensed physician verifying the disability.  A candidate on active duty military service who is filing by certified mail must include a notarized statement from the candidate’s commanding officer verifying the candidate’s active duty status.

A candidate’s completed declaration of candidacy and other necessary documents must be received by the District during the official candidate filing period in order for the candidate to appear on the ballot.  If these documents are received by the District before 8:00 a.m. on the first day of filing or after 5:00 p.m. on the last day of filing, the District will not accept them and will return them to the candidate.

The declaration of candidacy and other necessary documents must be sent to the District by certified mail in accordance with law. The District will list the candidate on the ballot in the order the declaration of candidacy and other necessary documents are physically received by the District.  If two or more candidates file by certified mail on the same day and the filings are received at the same time, the District will list the candidate with the earlier postmark date first.  If two or more postmark dates are identical, the candidates will be listed in the order the mail is processed.

If the required paperwork is received after candidate filing has closed for the day or on a day the District’s offices are closed, the candidate will be considered to have filed first on the next day filings are received.

Write-In Candidates

If candidates have filed for a position, a person interested in becoming a write-in candidate must file a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate with the proper election authority prior to 5:00 p.m. on the second Friday immediately preceding the Election Day in order for the votes to be counted.  If no candidates have filed for the position, filing a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate is not necessary but is recommended.

No Election Held

No election will be held if, after the last date of candidate filing, the number of candidates who have filed is equal to the number of positions to be filled by the election. However, if the number of candidates filing exceeds the number of positions, the election will be held even if a sufficient number of candidates withdraw so that the number of candidates remaining after the filing deadline is equal to the number of positions to be filled.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020; Updated October 19, 2021

Board members must:

1. Be citizens of the United States;
2. Be a resident taxpayer of the District;
3. Have resided within the District for the one year immediately preceding their election;
4. Be at least 24 years of age;
5. Not be delinquent in state income, or personal property tax or real property on their residence. If the Board member is a corporate officer of a fee office, that office can’t be delinquent on any state tax;
6. Not have been guilty of a felony or misdemeanor under federal law, or in another state that would be considered a felony in Missouri;
7. Not be a registered sex offender; and
8. Be in compliance with all Missouri Ethics Commission requirements.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020; Updated August 11, 2021; Updated November 15, 2022

Successful Board candidates shall take an oath of office to faithfully perform the duties of the office as required by law to support the Constitution of the United States, the Constitution of Missouri and laws made pursuant thereto.  The oath shall be administered by the Board Secretary or by an officer/designee authorized to administer the oath of office as determined by the Board.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

Each Board member will:

1. Make all Board decisions based upon the best interests of the students of the district.
2. Exercise authority in the limited manner described by the district’s policy regarding the Board’s role and responsibilities.
3. Delegate administrative authority to the superintendent and avoid actions that may undermine the authority of the administration.
4. Never speak or act for the Board without appropriate Board authorization to do so.
5. Avoid conflicts of interest or the appearance thereof.
6. Refrain from using Board membership for the benefit of special interest groups or select individuals, including self, family members, and business associates.
7. Learn about, consider and vote upon the items to be decided at each regularly scheduled Board meeting.
8. Avoid abstaining from Board votes unless required by law or there is an actual or apparent conflict of interest.
9. Voice opinions as part of the Board’s deliberations but accept the will of the majority once the Board has made a decision.
10. Maintain the confidentiality of information discussed during closed sessions unless disclosure is required by law.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

Board members will not vote to employ or appoint any person who is related to them within the fourth degree by blood or marriage.  “Employ” in this context includes hiring persons to be employees of the District and approving independent contractors who provide services to the District.  Persons who are related “within the fourth degree” include parents, grandparents, great‑grandparents, great‑great‑grandparents, spouse, children, siblings, grandchildren, great‑grandchildren, great‑great‑grandchildren, nieces, nephews, grand‑nieces, grand‑nephews, aunts, uncles, great‑aunts, great‑uncles, and first cousins by virtue of a blood relationship or by marriage.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

Board members will avoid situations in which their responsibilities as a Board member conflict with their private financial interests. Board members will follow all applicable laws regarding conflicts of interest.  The phrase a “Business with Which a Board Member Is Associated” as used in this policy means:

1. A sole proprietorship owned by the Board member, his or her spouse or any dependent children in the Board member’s custody;
2. A partnership or joint venture in which the Board member or his or her spouse is a partner, other than as a limited partner of a limited partnership, and any corporation or limited partnership in which the Board member is an officer or director or of which the Board member or his or her spouse or dependent children in the Board member’s custody, whether singularly or collectively, own more than ten percent of the outstanding shares of any class of stock or partnership units; or
3. Any trust in which the Board member is the trustee or settlor or in which the Board member or his or her spouse or dependent children in his or her custody, whether singularly or collectively, are beneficiaries or holders of a reversionary interest of ten percent or more of the corpus of the trust.

Statement of Interest

Before voting, Board members who have a substantial personal or private interest in a decision before the Board will provide a written statement of the nature of the interest to the Board Secretary as described in G-275-P.

Self-Dealing

Board members may not act or fail to act due to any payment, offer to pay, promise to pay or receipt of anything of actual pecuniary value, whether received or not, to themselves or any third person.  This prohibition includes a gift or campaign contribution made or received in relationship to or as a condition of the performance of any official act.

Board members will not act favorably on any matter that is specifically designed to provide a special monetary benefit to them, their spouses or dependent children in their custody.   A “special monetary benefit” means being materially affected in a substantially different manner or degree than the manner or degree in which the public in general will be affected or, if the matter affects only a special class of persons, then affected in a substantially different manner or degree than the manner or degree in which such class will be affected.

Board members will not use their decision-making authority for the purpose of obtaining a financial gain that materially enriches them, their spouses or dependent children in their custody by acting or refraining from acting for the purpose of coercing or extorting anything of actual pecuniary value.

Board members will not offer, promote or advocate for a political appointment in exchange for anything of value to any political subdivision.

Board members will not accept gifts with a value in excess of $100 from a vendor who does or is attempting to do business with the District.

A Board member will not attempt to directly or indirectly influence or vote on a decision when the Board member knows the result of the decision may be the acceptance by the District of a service or the sale, rental or lease of property to the District and the Board member, his or her spouse, dependent children in his or her custody or any business with which the Board member is associated will benefit financially.  If such a transaction is presented to the Board, the Board member will abstain and leave the room during any deliberation.

Confidential Information

Board members will not use or disclose confidential information obtained in the course of or by reason of their official capacities in any manner with intent to result in financial gain for themselves, their spouses, dependent children in their custody, any business with which the Board member is associated or any other person.

Sale, Rental or Lease of Property

Property Other Than Real Estate:  No Board member will sell, rent or lease any personal property to the District for consideration in excess of five hundred dollars’ value per transaction or five thousand dollars’ value per year to the Board member, to his or her spouse, to a dependent child in his or her custody or to any business with which he or she is associated unless the transaction is made pursuant to an award on a contract let or sale made after public notice and competitive bidding, provided that the bid or offer accepted is the lowest received.

Real Estate:  No Board member will perform a service or sell, rent or lease any real property to the District for consideration in excess of five hundred dollars’ value per transaction or five thousand dollars’ value per year to the Board member, to his or her spouse, to a dependent child in his or her custody or to any business with which he or she is associated unless the transaction is made pursuant to an award on a contract let or sale made after public notice.

Employment

The District will not employ a Board member for compensation, even on a substitute or part-time basis.  Board members may provide services as a volunteer without remuneration.

Independent Contractor Services

No Board member  will perform a service as an independent contractor for consideration in excess of five hundred dollars’ value per transaction or five thousand dollars’ value per year to him or her, to his or her spouse, to a dependent child in his or her custody or to any business with which he or she is associated unless the transaction is made pursuant to an award on a contract let or sale made after public notice and competitive bidding, provided that the bid or offer accepted is the lowest received.

Businesses That Employ Board Members

A Board member may participate in discussions and vote on motions for the District to do business with entities that employ the Board member so long as the business is not owned by the Board member and the Board member will not receive any financial benefit from the transaction.  The Board member may need to provide a statement describing his or her personal or private interest as described in G-275-P.

Purchases Involving Federal Funds

In addition to the requirements of this policy, Board members must follow the of the District’s purchasing rules and are also subject to the conflict of interest provisions of federal law.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020

The Board hereby adopts this regulation as its policy establishing and making public its own method of disclosing financial interests of Board members, candidates and specified administrators, in accordance with law.  Financial interest statements (also known as personal financial disclosure statements) as described below will be filed with the Missouri Ethics Commission (MEC) and the Board on or before May 1st for the preceding calendar year, unless the person filing is a Board candidate.  Candidates must file their reports within 14 days after the last day to file for office.  If a candidate fails to file a financial interest statement by the close of business on the 21st day after the last day for filing for election, the District will notify the official who accepted the candidate’s declaration of candidacy that the candidate is disqualified. The reports will be made available for public inspection and copying during normal business hours. If a candidate fails to timely submit their report, they are disqualified from the election and removed from the ballot. The District will contact the County Clerk regarding the candidate’s removal from the ballot.

This policy dealing with the financial interest statement will be adopted in an open meeting every other year by September 15th.  A certified copy of this policy will be sent to the MEC within ten days of adoption.

School Board members and candidates will report the following transactions if they occurred during the previous calendar year.  If no such transactions occurred, the Board member or candidate will still file, but will mark the items as not applicable.

1. Each transaction in excess of $500 per year between the District and the individual or any person related within the first degree by consanguinity or affinity to the individual. The statement does not need to include compensation received as an employee or payment of any tax, fee or penalty due the District and other transfers for no consideration to the District.  The statement will include the dates and identities of the parties in the transaction.
2. “First degree of consanguinity or affinity” includes parents, spouse or children by virtue of a blood relationship or marriage.
3. Each transaction in excess of $500 between the District and any business entity in which the individual has a substantial interest. The statement does not need to include any payment of tax, fee or penalty due the District or payment for providing utility service to the District and other transfers for no consideration to the District.  The statement will include the dates and identities of the parties in the transactions.

Before voting, Board members who have a substantial personal or private interest in a decision before the Board will provide a written statement of the nature of the interest to the Board Secretary.  The written statement will be recorded in the minutes.  Board members who have disclosed the interest in a financial interest statement filed or amended prior to the vote will be in compliance with this requirement.  A substantial personal or private interest exists when the Board member or his or her spouse or dependent children in his or her custody, either singularly or collectively, directly or indirectly:

1. Own(s) ten percent or more of any business entity; or
2. Own(s) an interest having a value of $10,000 or more in any business entity; or
3. Receive(s) a salary, gratuity or other compensation or remuneration of $5,000 or more from any individual, partnership, organization or association within any calendar year.

Adoption Date(s): July 28, 2020; Updated August 24, 2021; Updated June 28, 2022; Updated November 15, 2022; Updated August 22, 2023

Any member of the Board of Education failing to attend three consecutive regular meetings of the Board, unless excused by the Board for reasons satisfactory to the Board, shall be deemed to have vacated their Board seat.  The secretary of the board shall certify to the Board that a vacancy exists.  The vacancy shall be filled in the same manner as other vacancies occurring on the board.

A board member attending a regularly scheduled meeting electronically, either by phone, videoconference, or other electronic means, shall be considered as being in attendance for purposes of this policy.

Adoption Date(s): August 11, 2021