Douglas County High School
A Douglas County School
An International Baccalaureate School
SAC - School Advisory Council
The purpose of the School
Advisory Council (SAC) is to inform,
to encourage, and to provide
opportunities for parents and
community members to be involved
in the planning and evaluation of the
school's instructional program and
quality improvement processes.
By definition, the School Advisory
Council is an advisory body. Final
authority of any decision rests with
the principal.
District Advisory Committee (DAC)
The District Advisory Committee
shall make recommendations on
accountability to the Board of
Education. The areas of study by the
DAC shall be cooperatively determined
annually by the committee and the
Board of Education.
Each school's SAC shall select a parent
representative for the DAC. Additional
membership of the DAC shall consist of
one teacher, one school administrator,
and one local business person. DAC
members will be expected to attend
three meetings each year.
Naming the Council
To use standard language throughout the district, the council shall be called the School Advisory Council.
The School Advisory Council can be a combination of the former building advisory accountability committees and/or site councils.
Areas of Responsibility
• Adopt goals and objectives for the improvement of education in the school; • adopt a plan to improve the educational achievement in the school, focusing on methods of maximizing graduation rates from the district's secondary schools, and increasing the ratings of the school's accreditation category; • make recommendations to the school's principal relative to the prioritization of the school budget;• discuss the means for determining whether decisions affecting the educational process are advancing or impeding student achievement; • report to students, parents, and the Board of Education on the educational performance of the school and provide data for the appraisal of the school's performance; • make recommendations to the school's principal on the expenditure of school grants; and • discuss safety issues related to the school environment.
Membership and Method of Selection
Each School Advisory Council should consist of a minimum of seven members, designated, appointed, or elected as follows: •
The principal of the school or the principal's designee; • one teacher who provides instruction at the school, elected by a vote of all licensed professionals who provide instruction at the school or who have an office in the school; • three parents or legal guardians of students enrolled in the school, elected by a vote of the parents and legal guardians of students enrolled in the school; • one adult member designated by an organization of parents, teachers, and students recognized by the school (e.g. PTA, PTO, etc.); and • a local business person who is appointed by the principal. A school may choose to have more than seven members on its council, but the ratio of one teacher to three parents must be observed. Parents and community members should not be employed by or related to anyone employed by the district. As defined in State Statute, "related" means a person's spouse, son, daughter, sister, or brother; "employee" means anyone receiving pay from the school district, where taxes are deducted from their pay. Elections of parents and teachers must be conducted on or before October 31 of each school year. Notification of elections should be communicated in advance. The PTO representative and business person shall be appointed by the principal on or before September 1 of each school year.Term Limits
All council members should serve two-year terms. Except for the principal, no member of the council should serve more than two consecutive full terms. Any vacancies as a result of a member's resignation or for any other reason should be filled by majority action of the remaining members of the council. When a council is newly formed, an election is held for a designated number of seats (a minimum of one teacher and three parents, but no maximum number). Half of those seats (those receiving the most votes) should be designated for a three-year term to enable a staggering of representation.
Open Meetings
All meetings are required to be open to the public and should be posted in advance and advertised in compliance with Colorado's open meeting laws. A council may develop bylaws allowing or disallowing public comment/statement times at the meetings.
Because the meetings are public, no confidential information shall be discussed at these meetings (e.g. disciplinary policy may be discussed, but a specific instance of enforcement of the policy may not be discussed). Minutes of each meeting should be posted at the school and made available to anyone who requests them.
Meetings should be held no less than four times per school year. Subcommittees designated by the council can meet as necessary and will report at monthly council meetings.
Page updated: September 21, 2009
