It is a goal of the Board and the District to be responsive to the community it serves and to continuously improve the educational program offered in its schools. The Board or the District welcomes constructive criticism when it is offered with the intent of improving the quality of the system’s educational program or the delivery of the District’s services.

The Board formulates and adopts policies to achieve the District’s vision and elects a Superintendent to implement its policies. The administrative functions of the District are delegated to the Superintendent who is responsible for the effective administration and supervision of the District. Individuals with complaints concerning personnel, curriculum, discipline (including specific discipline policies), coaching, or the day to day management of the schools need to address those complaints according to the following sequence:

• Teacher, coach, or other staff member against whom the complaint is directed
• Principal
• Superintendent

Other than in the few instances where statutorily allowed or required, student discipline and personnel matters may not be discussed in Board meetings. Individuals with complaints regarding such matters need to follow the sequence outlined above.

The Board will consider hearing citizen complaints when they cannot be resolved by the administration. Matters referred to the Board must be in writing and should be specific in terms of the action desired. The Board will not consider or act on complaints that have not been explored at the appropriate administrative level. See Board Policy 1.14 for more specific guidance with this matter.

Unless authorized by the Board as a whole for a specific purpose, no individual Board member has any authority when acting alone. District constituents are reminded that the Board serves as a finder of fact, not unlike a jury, in matters such as student suspensions initiated by the Superintendent, expulsions, and personnel discipline. For this reason, the board may not be involved or informed prior to a board hearing on particular disciplinary matters.

Complaints that are related to district use or administration of federal funds generated through specific programs identified by the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and authorized in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act may be taken directly from a patron or by referral from the DESE. If taken directly from a patron, the complaint may be submitted by either a signed statement or by a certified, recorded deposition or statement in which the complainant is identified. The complaints shall be addressed in the following manner.

1. The complaint shall be referred to the Superintendent or his designees, who shall assemble a team of at least two (2) people to investigate the complaint.
2. Throughout the investigation, sufficient notes and records will be taken and maintained to substantiate the position of the findings of the investigation.
3. The team will interview the complainant and others as necessary to enable the team to make a determination of the validity of the complaint. The team may consult with individuals with knowledge or expertise in the matter which is the subject of the complaint, including legal counsel.
4. The investigation of complaints referred by the DESE shall be completed within thirty (30) calendar days of receipt of the complaint, unless a longer time period has been approved by the DESE.
5. The investigation of complaints made directly to the district shall be completed within forty (40) calendar days unless there are extenuating circumstances; in such a case, a preliminary report shall be made within forty (40 ) calendar days of receipt of the complaint, which shall include an explanation of the unusual circumstances requiring additional time to complete the investigation.
6. The report of the conclusions of the investigation shall be given to the complainant.
   • A summary of the allegations of the complaint;
   • A summary of the investigative actions taken by the team;
   • A summary of the findings concerning each alleged violation or implied violation; and
   • A statement of corrective actions needed to resolve the issues involved in each allegation and finding of the complaint.