(a) The district school board shall establish an advisory council for each school in the district and shall develop procedures for the election and appointment of advisory council members. Each school advisory council shall include in its name the words “school advisory council.” The school advisory council shall be the sole body responsible for final decisionmaking at the school relating to implementation of ss. 1001.42(18) and 1008.345. A majority of the members of each school advisory council must be persons who are not employed by the school district. Each advisory council shall be composed of the principal and an appropriately balanced number of teachers, education support employees, students, parents, and other business and community citizens who are representative of the ethnic, racial, and economic community served by the school. Career center and high school advisory councils shall include students, and middle and junior high school advisory councils may include students. School advisory councils of career centers and adult education centers are not required to include parents as members. Council members representing teachers, education support employees, students, and parents shall be elected by their respective peer groups at the school in a fair and equitable manner as follows:
1. Teachers shall be elected by teachers.
2. Education support employees shall be elected by education support employees.
3. Students shall be elected by students.
4. Parents shall be elected by parents.
The district school board shall establish procedures to be used by schools in selecting business and community members that include means of ensuring wide notice of vacancies and of taking input on possible members from local business, chambers of commerce, community and civic organizations and groups, and the public at large. The district school board shall review the membership composition of each advisory council. If the district school board determines that the membership elected by the school is not representative of the ethnic, racial, and economic community served by the school, the district school board shall appoint additional members to achieve proper representation. The commissioner shall determine if schools have maximized their efforts to include on their advisory councils minority persons and persons of lower socioeconomic status. Although schools are strongly encouraged to establish school advisory councils, the district school board of any school district that has a student population of 10,000 or fewer may establish a district advisory council which includes at least one duly elected teacher from each school in the district. For the purposes of school advisory councils and district advisory councils, the term “teacher” includes classroom teachers, certified student services personnel, and media specialists. For purposes of this paragraph, “education support employee” means any person employed by a school who is not defined as instructional or administrative personnel pursuant to s. 1012.01 and whose duties require 20 or more hours in each normal working week.
(b) The district school board may establish a district advisory council representative of the district and composed of teachers, students, parents, and other citizens or a district advisory council that may be comprised of representatives of each school advisory council. Recognized schoolwide support groups that meet all criteria established by law or rule may function as school advisory councils.
(c) For those schools operating for the purpose of providing educational services to youth in Department of Juvenile Justice programs, district school boards may establish a district advisory council with appropriate representatives for the purpose of developing and monitoring a district school improvement plan that encompasses all such schools in the district, pursuant to s. 1001.42(18)(a).
(d) Each school advisory council shall adopt bylaws establishing procedures for:
1. Requiring a quorum to be present before a vote may be taken by the school advisory council. A majority of the membership of the council constitutes a quorum.
2. Requiring at least 3 days’ advance notice in writing to all members of the advisory council of any matter that is scheduled to come before the council for a vote.
3. Scheduling meetings when parents, students, teachers, businesspersons, and members of the community can attend.
4. Replacing any member who has two unexcused consecutive absences from a school advisory council meeting that is noticed according to the procedures in the bylaws.
5. Recording minutes of meetings.
The district school board may review all proposed bylaws of a school advisory council and shall maintain a record of minutes of council meetings.
(2) DUTIES.—Each advisory council shall perform functions prescribed by regulations of the district school board; however, no advisory council shall have any of the powers and duties now reserved by law to the district school board. Each school advisory council shall assist in the preparation and evaluation of the school improvement plan required pursuant to s. 1001.42(18). With technical assistance from the Department of Education, each school advisory council shall assist in the preparation of the school’s annual budget and plan as required by s. 1008.385(1). A portion of funds provided in the annual General Appropriations Act for use by school advisory councils must be used for implementing the school improvement plan.
History.—s. 1, ch. 2002-49; s. 59, ch. 2002-387; s. 73, ch. 2004-357; s. 10, ch. 2008-108; s. 5, ch. 2008-235.
