All Board of Education meetings will be open to the public except those portions of the meetings which qualify as executive sessions. Reasonable efforts shall be made to ensure that all meetings are held in an appropriate facility which can adequately accommodate any and all members of the public who wish to attend.
Regular meetings of the Board of Education of Niskayuna Central School District shall take place on the day and time designated by the Board at the Annual Organizational Meeting, except as modified at subsequent meetings of the Board.
Whenever such a meeting is to take place, there must be at least seventy-two (72) hours advance notice in accordance with the provisions of the Open Meetings Law. Notice of other meetings shall be given as soon as is practicable in accordance with law. Notice of the time and place of a meeting shall be posted on the District’s website and sent to the District newspaper.
District records available to the public under FOIL, as well as any proposed rule, regulation, policy or amendment, scheduled to be discussed at a Board meeting, shall be posted on the website to the extent practicable, prior to the meeting.
If videoconferencing or online technology is used to conduct a meeting, the public notice for the meeting shall inform the public that videoconferencing will be used, identify all the locations for the meeting, and state that the public has the right to attend the meeting at any of the locations. Voting may be done through videoconferencing, provided that members can be both seen and heard voting and participating from remote locations.
It is the responsibility of the Superintendent to prepare the agenda and review it with the Board officers for each meeting of the Board. The agenda shall be distributed to Board members no later than the Friday before each regular meeting. Whenever members of the Board, employees of the District or community members wish to suggest that a matter be brought to the attention of the Board, the request should be made to the Superintendent for consideration on the agenda.
The District Clerk shall notify the members of the Board of Education in advance of each regular meeting. Such notice, in writing, shall include an agenda and the time of the meeting.
In the event that a meeting date falls on a legal holiday, interferes with other area meetings, or there is an inability to attend the meeting by Board members to the extent that a quorum would not be present, the Board shall select a date for a postponed meeting no later than the previous regular meeting, and shall direct the Clerk to notify all members.
Any meeting of the Board may be adjourned to a given future date and hour if voted by a majority of the Board present.
The Superintendent and members of his/her staff at the Superintendent’s discretion shall attend all meetings of the Board. The Superintendent shall attend all executive session meetings of the Board except those that concern his/her evaluation, employment status, and salary determination. The Board may request the attendance of additional persons as it desires.
The Board may, upon the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools, utilize a consent agenda to deal with routine business items which require no discussion. If any member wants to discuss such an item, it shall be transferred to the regular portion of the agenda for discussion and action.
The Superintendent shall be given an opportunity to evaluate and discuss all information presented to the Board and to recommend appropriate action before the Board makes a decision.
Recording of Meetings
The Board recognizes that advances in technology allow public meetings to be photographed, broadcast, webcast and/or otherwise recorded, by means of audio or video, in a non-disruptive manner and supports the use of such technology to facilitate the open communication of public business.
Quorum
The quorum for any meeting of the Board shall be four (4) members. No formal action shall be taken at any meeting at which a quorum is not present. Unless otherwise required by law, official action will only be taken by approval of the majority of the full Board.
Use of Parliamentary Procedure
The business of the Board of Education shall be conducted in accordance with the authoritative principles of parliamentary procedure as found in the latest edition of Robert’s Rules of Order, so long as those principals are in accordance with Board policy, state laws and regulations.
Education Law Sections 1708 and 2504
General Construction Law Section 41
Public Officers Law Article 7, Sections 103(d), 104 and 107
NOTE: Refer also to:
- Policies #1520 – Special Meetings of the Board of Education
- #1540 – Executive Sessions
- #3130 – Public Comment at Board Meetings
- #6211 – Employment of Relatives of Board of Education Members
Adopted September 12, 2017