Issued 11/15,
Purpose: To establish the basic structure for public participation in board meetings.
The public is cordially invited to attend board meetings. The board conducts meetings for the purpose of carrying on the official business of the
school district. Themeetings are not public forum meetings but are meetings held in public. Orderly conduct of a meeting does not permit
spontaneous discussion from the audience. Regular, special, and emergency meetings are open to the general public, news media, and school
staff.
In order that the board may fairly and adequately discharge its overall responsibility, citizens wanting an item to be placed on the agenda for a
specific board meeting should direct requests to the superintendent or board chairman. Agenda
The board urges all persons to participate through established procedures. These procedures are designed to encourage participation and
ensure the orderly management of the school district. The board is committed to compliance with the South Carolina Freedom of Information
Act as well as all other federal and state laws which regulate or impinge on board actions and policy. A citizen must submit a written request to the Superintendent for an item to be placed on the agenda no later than 5:00 p.m. on the fifth
calendar day prior to a regularly scheduled meeting of the board. That request will state the name of the individual or group submitting the
request, the address, the purpose of the request, and the topic to be addressed.
The chairman of the board will introduce speakers who have previously submitted a request to the board at the appropriate time during the agenda
and invite them to make comments on agenda topics. The presentation should be as brief as possible.
Unless an extension of time is granted, a speaker should limit him/herself to five minutes. Speakers may offer objective comments on school
operations and programs that concern them. The board will not permit in public session any expression of personal complaints about school
personnel nor against any person connected with the school system. The number of speakers will be limited to the first five (5) citizens who
timely and properly submit their requests. No profane or vulgar language or personal abuse against any person will be permitted.
The board vests in its chairman or other presiding officer authority to terminate the remarks of any individual when he/she does not adhere to
the rules established above. Persons appearing before the board are reminded, as a point of information, that members of the board are without authority to act
independently as individuals in official matters; thus, questions may be directed to the board members but answers must be deferred pending
consideration by the board.
Adopted 9/10/90; Revised 5/11/04,11/10/15, 2/9/21
Legal references:
S.C. Code, 1976, as amended:
Section 30-4-10, et seq. - South Carolina Freedom of Information Act.