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School Site Council 101 Basics

Office of Family and Community Advancement

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Boston Teachers Union

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Parents, Community Members, BTU Members and Administrators

Please Introduce yourself by sharing your name and school

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What do you know about School Site Council (SSC)?

What do you want to know?

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Something I know about SSC	Something I want to know

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Objectives

By the end of the session, participants will be able to:

Explain the role and purpose of the SSC
Differentiate between the responsibilities and authorities of the SSC
Know how to determine the number of SSC reps a school needs
Understand what a quorum is
Understand the purpose of and how to create by-laws
Learn techniques for building consensus

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Role and Purpose

School Site Council (SSC)/ Governing Board Facts

Every School must have a SSC or Governing Board, according to the MA Reform Act and the BSC/BTU Bargaining Agreement

SSCs in Boston are NOT advisory, they are the decision-making body in each school.

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Role and Purpose

School Site Council (SSC)/ Governing Board Facts

Every SSC and Governing Board must have bylaws that are reviewed, approved at the first meeting of the year, and submitted to the Office of Student, Family and Community Advancement (formerly Office of Engagement). Any changes to existing bylaws must follow the protocol described in the BTU contract including votes of the schools BTU members and parents in parent council.

SSCs and Governing Boards are subject to the MA Open Meeting Law and must adhere to the requirements for meeting notification, meeting date submission, meeting/notes submission. All documents must submitted to the the Office of Student, Family and Community Advancement (formerly Office of Engagement).

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Important Dates

By October 15th

School Parent Council election for SSC representatives should be complete
BTU bargaining unit election for SSC representatives should be complete
Student Representative election should be complete

By October 31st

First SSC meeting held; bylaws reviewed/approved(If changes proposed follow procedure to do so in contract) and annual meeting dates set (at least one meeting per month during school year)
Meeting dates, bylaws, meeting notes/agendas submitted to the Office of Student, Family and Community Advancement through the SIS Family Engagement portal

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Need to Know

Before every meeting

Meeting notice and agenda must be posted publicly at least 48 hours prior to the meeting

After every meeting

Publish and distribute meeting notes available to school community in 5 school days
Submit meeting notes/agenda to Office of Family and Community Advancement through through SIS family Engagement portal

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Roles and Responsibilities

School Site Council/Governing Board

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Membership

School Site Council/Governing Board

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Introduction to the SSC Manual

Organized into sections so you can get the information in multiple ways.

Manual is translated into Spanish, Chinese, Haitian, French, and Portuguese (more to come)

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What does the BTU contract say?

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Steering Committee Joint Problem-Solving Article II, Section B(2)	� The joint Steering Committee : Co-shared by BPS Superintendent and BTU President Includes FIVE PARENT and TWO STUDENT representatives, and up to FIVE ADDITIONAL representatives selected by the co-chairs. Includes a subcommittee to address complaints from school communities. The five parent representatives are chosen by Citywide Parent Council and the two student representatives are chosen by the Boston Student Advisory Council.
Student Voice on the SSC School-Based Decision Making Article III, Section B(1.a)	The SSC in high schools will include TWO voting students, elected by the student body. Student voice, at the high school level, is valued and respected in school-based decision making.

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What does the BTU contract say?

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Diversity on the SSC School-Based Decision Making Article III, Section B(1.b.2)	Each represented group should try to elect individuals who represent the racial and ethnic diversity of their constituents, (BTU members) Including parents of special education and English Language Learners. The definition of diversity should not be limited to racial and ethnic identities. All constituents should be represented in the SSC, whenever possible.
SSC and School Budgets School-Based Decision Making Article III, Section B(2.a)	The SSC reviews, comments and approves (signs off on) the ENTIRE SCHOOL BUDGET, including General Fund and External Funds budgets. The SSC is the central governing body of the school, therefore has to ensure the budget is aligned to School Quality School Plan goals.

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What does the BTU contract say?

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Role of the ILT School-Based Decision Making Article III, Section B(2.c)	� The ILT serves as an ADVISORY COMMITTEE, and all recommendations of the ILT that may have a major effect on the school community requires the APPROVAL OF THE SSC.
Monitoring the SSC School-Based Decision Making Article III, Section C(2.c)	The monitoring subcommittee will consist of two members appointed by the BTU President, two by the Superintendent, TWO PARENT MEMBERS (appointed by CPC) and TWO STUDENT MEMBERS (appointed by BSAC). A NOTICE OF ALL ACTIONS taken by SSCs will be published and distributed WITHIN FIVE DAYS following a council meeting.

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What does the BTU contract say?

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Training for the SSC School-Based Decision Making Article III, Section C(3)	The training of SSC members is a SHARED RESPONSIBILITY between the BTU and BPS. Upon request, BPS will provide the BTU, CPC, and BSAC with a list of ALL SSC MEMBERS. Note: In order for BPS to provide the BTU with a list of all SSC members, schools and school representatives must submit all rosters, including names of parent, teacher, and student representatives, to BPS in a timely manner.
School Staffing Scope of Authority Article III, Section C(4)	Decisions around the hiring of school based school based teacher unit bargaining members will be made by the personnel subcommittee composed of two teachers, one parent, ONE STUDENT in high schools, and the Principal/Head of Schools/Director. Student voice, especially at the high school level, is valued and respected in school-based decision making.

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Responsibilities of the School Site Council: What the School Site Council HAS to do	Authorities of the School Site Council What the School Site Council CAN do
Use a consensus decision-making model to manage school operations Review and approve the School Improvement Plan (QSIP) Review and approve the school’s budget Oversee sub-committees such as the Instructional Leadership Team, Personnel Sub-committee, and Engagement Action Team Adopt and adhere to bylaws that govern SSC procedures Endeavor to reflect the racial, diversity of the school’s BTU and staff Endeavor to reflect the linguistic & special student body by parents Include two elected student representatives at the high school level Develop a calendar of scheduled SSC meetings for the school year, including the dates, times and location Publish minutes of all meetings within 5 working days of the meeting, and make them available to all members of the school community o Post on school website, send to entire school community, send to Student, Family, Community Advancement office Comply with Massachusetts Open Meeting Laws	Approve waivers related to policies such as length and timing of the school day; class size, number of parent-teacher meetings; and curriculum Identification and solicitation and use of outside professionals and social service resources Collaborate with community organizations to support schools’ instructional goals Coordinate fundraising that is aligned to schools’ academic goals Set dress code for students Determine most effective use of school space

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Pop Quiz: Responsibilities Verse Authorities

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SSC Representatives in a School

(1) In General. The number of members of the BTU bargaining unit to be elected to a School Site Council shall be determined as follows, using enrollment figures as of October 1 of the year of the election:

Schools with 30 or less BTU bargaining unit members: 4,
Schools with at least 31 BTU bargaining unit members but not more than 60 bargaining unit members: 5,
Schools with 61 or more BTU bargaining unit members: 6.

(2) Goal of Diversity. The Union and the Committee believe that School Site Councils will be less effective if any constituency groups are left out of the process. Therefore each represented group should endeavor to elect individuals who are representative of the racial diversity of the BTU member constituents; and the linguistic & special education diversity of the students of their parent constituents.

(3) Definition. Racial groups referred to in this section include: African- American/Black, Asian-American/Pacific Islander, LatinX, Native American,

and White.

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SSC Representatives in a School continued...

(4) Election Procedures. Any racial group that constitutes at least 5% of the eligible BTU membership at a school site and which has candidates who run for a seat on the School Site Council shall have the candidate with the highest number of votes seated (as an add-on) on the Council. All other seats shall be filled by candidates who received the highest number of votes.

If the highest vote-getting candidate from any racial group is not among the highest overall vote-getting candidates, the number of seats of the School Site Council shall be as follows: the highest vote-getting candidate from each eligible racial group and all of the highest overall vote-getting candidates shall be seated, after the eligible number of highest vote getting candidates are seated.

(c) Parent Members. The number of parents elected to the School Site Council shall equal the number of professional educators, including the principal, on the Council. Strive for programmatic diversity (Special Education, ELL, etc).

(d) Students. At the High School level, two (2) students must be elected to the School Site Council.

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What is a Quorum?

Quorum Requirements

To constitute a quorum of members at a School Site Council meeting, the principal/Head of School (or their administrative designee) must be present as well as at least two BTU members and two parents for site councils with 9 to 12 members, or three parents and three educators for site councils with 13 or more members.

Schools with 30 or less BTU bargaining unit members: 2 parents and 2 educators,
Schools with at least 31 BTU bargaining unit members but not more than 60 BTU bargaining unit members: 2 parents and 2 educators.
Schools with 61 or more BTU bargaining unit members: 3 parents and 3 educators.

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Each Council shall be required to pass by-laws to govern its School Site Council. The by-laws must be approved or amended by two-thirds of the BTU members of the bargaining unit in the school eligible to vote for the School Site Council and by two-thirds of the parents who come to a parent meeting. There must be at least two weeks notice for the parent meeting. The by-laws may be approved the same night that elections are held. Copies of the by-laws will be distributed to all members at the first meeting of each newly elected council.

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How to Create By-laws

By-laws content

The By-laws must at least include provisions which address the following matters:

– How will elections be held?

– When will meetings be held?

– What are the notice procedures for announcing meetings?

– Who is responsible for co-chairing the Council and for recording minutes?

– What are the terms of office and how will they be staggered?

– What is the policy in regards to members who fail to attend regularly without notification of absence?

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Building Consensus

^{Adapted from The Director’s Toolbox- A Management Series for Early Childhood Administrators by Paula Jorde Bloom, Spring 1999}

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Technique	How to use it
Five Finger Voting	5 fingers - I agree 100%. This is the best solution. 4 fingers - I agree this is a good solution and I will support it. 3 fingers - Okay with me. I am willing to support it. 2 fingers - This is not my choice, but I can live with it. 1 finger - I don’t agree with this choice. Let’s find an alternative. Fist - No way! I can’t support this at all.
Hand Acclamation	Ask for a show of hands by everyone who is in agreement with the solution and then a show of hands for anyone who is opposed. Depending on the results, a discussion may be opened to hear the reasons and allow voices to be heard on both sides.
Negative Voting	When several solutions to a problem are generated, ask individuals to indicate which options they could not live with. Eliminate the items that are unacceptable. Focus on the choices with the least opposition.
Plus & Minus Tally	List each alternative on a separate piece of flipchart paper. The group can then discuss the positive (+) aspects of each proposal and the negative (-) aspects of each proposal.
Essential Features	Identify the elements of each proposal that the group agrees on. Use these as a basis for seeking other agreements, combinations, or acceptable refinements of the original proposals.
Rank Order	List each alternative that has been presented on a separate slip of paper. Ask individuals to rank order the slips. The slips of paper can then be collected and tallied by order.
Dot Voting	Alternatives generated from a group discussion are written on flipchart paper and posted on the wall. Agree on a number of dot stickers (preferably no more than 3) and distribute to each person. Team members will use the dots to “vote” for the ideas listed. If they feel strongly about a particular item, they can put more than one dot next to it. The items with the highest number of dots are prioritized and written out on a clean sheet of paper.
1-2-6 Problem Solving	Ask individuals to write down their solutions to a problem on separate pieces of paper. Then have them pair up with another individual, share their ideas, and agree on a solution. Combine three pairs into a single group, share ideas, and generate a single solution. Ideas from the six member groups are then shared to generate a final solution by the entire group.

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What did you learn from today’s session?

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Something I know about SSC	Something I want to know	Something I’ve learned

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If you have questions….

Office of Family and Community Advancement

617-635-7750

Noel Green

ngreen2@bostonpublicschools.org

Boston Teachers Union

617-288-2000

Caren Carew 617-291-1268

ccarew@btu.org

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What do you know about School Site Council (SSC)?

What do you want to know?

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Something I know about SSC	Something I want to know
not much decides a lot of what happens during the year Committee made up of people from different roles	more Calendar of meetings learn what I can do to help what our roles are specifically and how to be on the same page difference between governing board and SSC information to help people want to be elected how to create personnel hiring committees find a voice and organize better shared decision making-what does it mean difference between SPC SSC

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SSC Manual Scavenger Hunt

In small groups, search through the SSC Manual to find answers to your “want to know” statements from the beginning of this session.

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