006.  MEETINGS

Section 1.    Parliamentary Authority 

      65 P.S. 701 et seq

All Board meetings will be conducted in an orderly and business-like manner. Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised, including group rules shall govern the Board in its deliberations in all cases in which it is not inconsistent with statute, regulations of the State Board, or Board procedures.

Section 2.    Quorum 

      SC 422

A quorum shall be five (5) Board members present at a meeting. No business shall be transacted at a meeting without a quorum, but the Board members present at such a meeting may adjourn to another time.

Section 3.    Presiding Officer 

      SC 405, 426, 427,           428

The President shall preside at all Board meetings. In the absence, disability or disqualification of the President, the Vice-President shall act instead. If neither person is present, a Board member shall be elected President pro tempore by a plurality of those present to preside at that meeting only. The act of any person so designated shall be legal and binding.

Section 4.    Notice 

      65 P.S. 703, 709

Notice of all open public Board meetings, including committee meetings and discussion sessions, shall be given by publication of the date, place, and time of such meetings in the newspaper(s) of general circulation designated by the Board and the posting of such notice at the administrative offices of the Board.

      65 P.S. 703, 709

a.    Notice of regular meetings shall be given by publication and posting of a schedule showing the date, place and time of all regular meetings for the calendar year at least three (3) days prior to the time of the first regular meeting.

 65 P.S. 703, 709

 b.    Notice of all special meetings shall be given by publication and posting of  notice at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to the time of the meeting, except that such notice shall be waived when a special meeting is called to deal with an actual emergency involving a clear and present danger to life or property.

      65 P.S. 703, 709

c.    Notice of all rescheduled meetings shall be given by publication and posting of  notice at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to the time of the meeting.

      65 P.S. 703

d.    Notice of all recessed or reconvened meetings shall be given by posting a  notice of the place, date and time of meeting and sending copies of such notice to interested parties.

      65 P.S. 709

e.    Notice of all public meetings shall be given to any newspaper(s) circulating in  Berks County and a radio or television station which so requests. Notice of all public meetings shall be given to any individual who so requests and provides a  stamped, addressed envelope for such notification.

      SC 423

Notice of all regular and special Board meetings shall be given to Board members by mail prior to the time of the meeting.

Notice of executive sessions, if not previously announced, shall be provided in writing to Board members at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to the executive session.

Section 5.    Regular Meetings 

      65 P.S. 701 et seq

      SC 421

Regular Board meetings shall be public. The regular meeting of the Board of School Directors shall be held at the Administration Building on the fourth Wednesday of each month at 7:00 p.m., unless changed according to Section 4 of this policy.

a.    Agenda 

       It shall be the responsibility of the Superintendent, in cooperation with the Board President and Committee Chairperson as well as members of his/her administrative team, to prepare an agenda of the items of business to come before the Board at each regular meeting. The agenda, together with all relevant reports, shall be provided each school director prior to the Board          meeting in order to give them sufficient time to go over items of business in the agenda. At regular Board meetings, the agenda shall be made available to the press, public, staff, and others who shall attend that meeting.

b.    Order Of Business 

       The order of business for regular meetings shall be as follows, unless altered by the President or two-thirds of those present and voting:

       Convening of meeting

       Call to order

       Pledge of allegiance

       Roll call

       Public comments

       Approval of minutes

       Superintendent's report

       Communications

       Old business

       Committee reports

               Personnel/Negotiations/Benefits

               Programs

               Co-curricular/Athletics

               Finance/Legal/MIS

               Facilities/Museum

               Ad Hoc Committees

               Community Relations/Policy

               General Resolutions

       Special Committee Reports

               Legislative

               Berks County IU

               Reading-Muhlenberg AVTS

       Adjournment

Section 6.    Special Meetings 

      65 P.S. 701 et seq

Special meetings shall be public and may be called for special or general purposes.

      SC 426

The President may call a special meeting at any time and shall call a special meeting upon presentation of the written requests of three (3) school directors. Upon the President's failure or refusal to call a special meeting, such meeting may be called at any time by a majority of the Board members.

The order of business for special meetings shall be as follows unless altered by the President or a majority of those present and voting:

               Call To Order

               Roll Call 

               Announcement

               Reading of Notice of Meeting

               Transaction of business for which  meeting was called

               Adjournment

Section 7.    Hearing Of The Public 

      Pol. 903

      65 P.S. 701 et seq

A member of the public present at a Board meeting may address the Board in accordance with law and Board policy and procedures.

Section 8.    Voting 

All motions shall require for adoption a majority vote of those Board members present and voting, except as provided by statute or Board procedures.

All voting of the Board of School Directors shall be by roll call.

a.    The following actions require the recorded affirmative votes of two-thirds of  the full number of Board members:

      SC 609, 687

       1.    Transfer of budgeted funds.

      SC 687

       2.    Transfer of any unencumbered balance, or portion thereof, from one appropriation to another, or from one spending agency to another.

      SC 634

       3.    Incur a temporary debt or borrow money upon such obligation.

      SC 687

       4.    Incur a temporary debt to meet an emergency or catastrophe.

      SC 324

       5.    Elect to a teaching position a person who has served as a Board member and who has resigned.

      SC 707

       6.    Convey land or buildings to the municipality co-terminus with the school district.

      SC 803

       7.    Adopt or change textbooks without the recommendation of the Superintendent.

      SC 1129

       8.    Dismiss, after a hearing, a tenured professional employee.

      SC 671

       9.    Fix the fiscal year to begin on the first day of January.

      Pol. 003

       10. Adopt, amend, or repeal a Board procedure.

      SC 508

b.    The following actions require the recorded affirmative votes of a majority of the full number of Board members:

       1.    Fixing the length of school term.

      Pol. 108

       2.    Adopting textbooks recommended by the Superintendent.

      SC 1071, 1076

       3.    Appointing the district Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent(s).

       4.    Appointing teachers and principals.

      Pol. 604

       5.    Adopting the annual budget.

      Pol. 005, 606

       6.    Appointing tax collectors and other appointees.

      Pol. 605

       7.    Levying and assessing taxes.

      SC 508

       8.    Purchasing, selling, or condemning land.

      SC 508

       9.    Locating new buildings or changing the location of old ones.

      Pol. 107

       10.  Adopting planned instruction.

       11.  Establishing additional schools or departments.

      SC 621

       12.  Designating depositories for school funds.

       13.  Expending district funds.

      Pol. 610

       14.  Entering into contracts of any kind, including contracts for the purchase of  fuel or any supplies where the amount involved exceeds $100 (including  items subject to $10,000 bid requirements).

       15.  Fixing salaries or compensation of officers, teachers, or other appointees of  the Board.

      SC 224

       16.  Combining or reorganizing into a larger school district.

       17.  Entering into contracts with and making appropriations to the intermediate unit for the district's proportionate share of the cost of  services provided or to be provided by the intermediate unit.

      SC 514, 1080

       18.  Dismissing, after a hearing, a nontenured employee.

      SC 212

       19.  Adopting a corporate seal for the district.

      SC 702

       20.  Determining the location and amount of any real estate required by the school district for school purposes.

      SC 708

       21.  Vacating and abandoning property to which the Board has title.

      SC 1503

       22.  Determining the holidays, other than those provided by statute, to be  observed by special exercises and those on which the schools shall be closed for the whole day.

      Pol. 004

       23.  Removing a school director.

      Pol. 004

       24.  Declaring that a vacancy exists on the Board by reason of the failure or neglect of a school director to qualify.

      Pol. 005

       25.  Removing an officer of the Board.

      Pol. 005

       26.  Removing an appointee of the Board.

      Pol. 003

       27.  Adopting, amending or repealing Board policy.

Section 9.    Conflict Of Interest 

The Board of School Directors shall not have any direct interest in a bid or a contract with the school district.

If any member of the Board of School Directors is an employee of a firm or company that is supplying goods or services to the school district, that member should abstain from voting on a resolution directly connected with his/her firm.

It is the intent of each and every Board member to observe the rules and procedures of the district and at all times to refrain from acting unilaterally in order to enhance one's interest. 

Section 10.    Minutes

      65 P.S. 706

      SC 518

The Board shall cause to be made, and the Board Secretary shall retain as a permanent record of the district, minutes of all open Board meetings. Said minutes shall be comprehensible and complete and shall show:

a.    The date, place, and time of the meeting.

b.    The names of Board members present.

c.    The presiding officer.

d.    The substance of all official actions.

e.    Actions taken.

      65 P.S. 705

f.     Recorded votes and a record by individual members of all roll call votes taken.

g.    The names of all citizens who appeared officially and the subject of their testimony.

The Board Secretary shall provide each Board member with a copy of the minutes of the last meeting prior to the next regular meeting.

      SC 433

The minutes of Board meetings shall be approved at the next succeeding meeting and signed by the Board Secretary.

It is the policy of the Reading School District that the Board Secretary shall be responsible to the Board for the security and maintenance of all records, documents, files, and related materials which are the property of the district.

Notations and any tape or audiovisual recordings shall not be the official record of an open public Board meeting and should be destroyed once they have served their purpose.

Section 11.   Adjournment 

      Pol. 006

      65 P.S. 703, 709

The Board may at any time recess or adjourn to an adjourned meeting at a specified date and place, upon the majority vote of those present. The adjourned meeting shall take up its business at the point in the agenda where the motion to adjourn was acted upon. Notice of the rescheduled meeting shall be given as provided in Board policy. 

Section 12.   Executive Session

      65 P.S. 707, 708

The Board may hold an executive session, which is not an open meeting, before, during, at the conclusion of an open meeting, or at some other time. The presiding officer shall announce the reason for holding the executive session; the announcement can be made at the open meeting prior to or after the executive session.

The Board may discuss the following matters in executive session:

a.    Employment issues.

b.    Labor relations.

c.    Purchase or lease of real estate.

d.    Consultation with an attorney or other professional advisor regarding potential litigation or identifiable complaints that may lead to litigation.

e.    Matters that must be conducted in private to protect a lawful privilege or confidentiality.

Official actions based on discussions held in executive session shall be taken at a public meeting. Executive sessions shall be closed to the public and press. All executive sessions held shall be recorded in the minutes of the preceding or subsequent regular meeting. Board members and any persons attending the session are duty bound not to disclose the topic or the details of discussion at executive sessions. The Superintendent or his/her designated representative shall attend all executive sessions except those which pertain to the Superintendent's employment.

Section 13.    Smoking 

      Pol. 903, 904

Smoking is not permitted in Reading School District buildings. For more information, please refer to the Reading School District Smoking Policy.

Section 14.    Recording Devices 

To assure public awareness of the proceedings of the Board, monthly meetings of the Reading School Board shall be videotaped for rebroadcast to the public as directed by the Board and as access is provided on Schoolcasting (Cable TV).

In order that the Reading School District may conduct its business in an orderly and expeditious manner, and to enable the public to observe the proceedings of the Board safely and without interruption, the following rules shall apply to the use of recording devices by the public at any open meeting of the Reading School Board or its committees:

a.      The term recording devices shall include but not be limited to audio equipment, video cameras, and still cameras.

b.     The presiding officer of the Board shall request that any persons intending to use recording devices identify themselves with name, address, and purpose in general terms to the Board Secretary.

c.      Recording devices must be hand held, need no external power source, and not pose a safety hazard.

d.     Disruptive behavior will be dealt with in an appropriate manner by the Board President or presiding officer.

e.      The Board reserves the right to impose additional rules and regulations at any meeting as are reasonably required.

Section 15.   Work Sessions 

      65 P.S. 701 et seq

The Board may meet as a Committee of the Whole in an open meeting to vote on or to discuss issues. Public notice of such meetings shall be made.

A meeting of the Committee of the Whole, not regularly scheduled, may be called at any time by the President; the President shall call such a meeting when requested to do so by Board members. Public notice of the meeting shall be made in accordance with Pol. 006, 4.b.

Section 16.    Committee Meetings 

      65 P.S. 703, 709

Committee meetings may be called at any time by the Committee Chairperson, with proper public notice, or when requested to do so.

      65 P.S. 701 et seq

A majority of the total membership of a committee shall constitute a quorum.