Leadership Team By-Laws

The purpose of the Hunter Elementary School (HES) School Leadership Team (SLT) is to deal with issues directly and indirectly related to instruction, student performance, staff development, parent involvement, school safety and environment/improvement. It is a collaborative decision-making body that is guided by the overall vision and mission statements of Hunter Elementary School. At Hunter Elementary School, the School Leadership Team (SLT) and the School Improvement Team (SIT) are one in the same and will be referred to as the SLT for this document’s purpose.

Leadership teams work through a collaborative process with representation of all stakeholders which is supported through general statute 115C-105.72 of the North Carolina State Board of Education. The primary process of addressing all issues is focused through the development of a School Improvement Plan generated by the SLT. The team must ensure that the work done maximizes the two-way communication with and involvement of the entire school community and parent community in developing and implementing a school improvement plan. The SLT is responsible for the following:

• Facilitating the development of the School Improvement Plan
• Monitoring, assessing and amending the School Improvement Plan
• Planning Strategies utilizing SMART goals and objectives
• Advancing policies and procedures that enhance achievement and meet educational, safety and parent involvement goals.
• Facilitating decision-making related to HES’s Vision, Mission, and Core Values based upon available data.
• Upon request from the principal, the SLT may make recommendations on budgetary issues relating to staff development, instructional materials, staff positions, and faculty concerns.
• Decisions are binding on the school, provided the decision is within the authority of the school. The SLT is not designed to and does not usurp the legal authority of the principal.

The SLT serves in an advisory capacity regarding the school budget with the team providing collaboration, input and advice to the school principal who makes the final decision as defined by Guilford County School Policy.

By state law GS 115C-105.27(a) the principal and elected representatives of

• The assistant principal(s)
• Instructional personnel
• Instructional support personnel – as defined by references in state funding and Department of Public Instruction policy – school-based media coordinators, guidance and attendance counselors, social workers, psychologists, curriculum facilitators, instructional coaches, audiologists, speech language pathologists, and nurses.
• Teacher assistants, and
• Parents of children enrolled in the school

constitute the school improvement team (SLT). Those listed above are the voting members. Additionally,

• State Law 115C-105.27(a) specifies that each school-based group required to be represented on the SLT be voted in by secret ballot for their group’s representatives. The term of membership for any member is two years. Rotation of members off the team should be staggered to maintain consistency of purpose and membership on the SLT. There are no state or district term limits.
• If a staff member/parent volunteer leaves or resigns before his/her term has expired, then a new member will be ELECTED to complete the current school year and at least one additional school year. The new member must be elected by his/her constituency which he/she will represent.
• Parent representatives shall reflect the racial and socioeconomic composition of the HES community and shall not be members of the building level staff.
• State Law 115C-105.27(a) does not require that any group other than those specified in the law be included in the SLT. District procedure IN-P allows for a school to request a waiver from membership requirements with the approval of the Principal Supervisor, which could allow for the election of non-voting representatives from other school based non-instructional/classified staff (school secretaries, SIMS operators, bus drivers, cafeteria workers, custodians) not required by state law or state or district policy. This is also the policy for student representatives.
• The principal or the SLT may appoint a non-voting member to serve on the SLT if specified in the bylaws. HES bylaws allow for this appointment process.
• At HES, upon request of the Student Government Advisor, Student Council members may come to and address the SLT regarding school activities and ideas but do not serve as members.

Based on the NCDPI guidance, the ideal size of a SLT is between 7 and 12 members. The SLT must remember to balance the size of the team needed to efficiently represent the stakeholders in each school, with the effectiveness of the team. The current representation at HES is:

• Principal - 1
•  Administration – 1
• Curriculum Facilitator/Coach – 1
• Dual Language Program Representative - 1
• Classified Personnel – 1
• Certified Teachers – 9
• Parent Representative and/or HPPO President (if in effect) – 1

1.       April Meeting– Chairperson will appoint a nominating committee in order to produce a slate of candidates for election.

a.       All employees must have/or will be completing 2 years at HES

b.       Only persons who signify their consent to serve if elected shall be nominated for election

c.       If a department does not have an employee with at least 2 years of service at HES, the SLT may nominate a candidate from that department who consents to serve if elected.

2.       May Meeting - Nominating committee will present slate to SLT

3.       May Faculty Meeting – Ballot is presented to full faculty present.

a.       Nominations may be taken from the floor.

b.       Faculty member must be present to accept nomination.

c.       Vote is by secret ballot of the full faculty present.

d.       June Meeting – ALL current and new SLT members attend a meeting together – Set at the discretion of the chair.

1.       March - Begin recruiting parents to serve as members of the HES School Leadership Team. Recruiters will ensure that those volunteers nominated represent a

a.       diverse section (which may include but not limited to socio-economic, religious, racial, gender, in/out of district, EC,) of our school community

b.       Parents who serve cannot be employed by HES.

2.       HPPO will hold elections prior to the scheduled May SLT meeting

1.       Chairperson

a.       Preside at SLT meetings

b.       Meets regularly with principal to discuss school issues

c.       Reminds team members about meetings and solicits agenda items (ideally a week prior)

d.       Develops an agenda sent via email, prior to scheduled meetings

e.       Reviews previous meetings minutes

f.        Establishes and appoints temporary committees, as needed

g.       Ex-officio member of all committees, except nominating

2.       Vice-Chairperson

a.       Perform duties of the chairperson if absent or unable

b.       With help from the Secretary, insures the distribution of By-Laws and SLT Decision Chart to new members

3.       Secretary

a.       Record minutes of each meeting

b.       Provide draft of minutes to the chairperson and principal before distributing to SLT. All minutes to be distributed to SLT prior to meetings.

c.       Upload minutes to IndiStar.

d.       Maintains copies of By-Laws, Minutes of meetings, and other important documents.

4.       Timekeeper

a.       Helps chairperson monitor time during meetings

b.       Announces time during discussions – keeps discussions focused

5.       Engager

a.       Observes individual’s hands raised during discussion

b.       Keeps awareness of these hands and calls on each person to speak

General Statute 143-318.9, Public policy, states that public bodies that administer the legislative functions of North Carolina exist solely to conduct the people’s business and that it is the public policy of North Carolina that these actions be conducted openly; therefore, SLT which is defined as a public body and involves more than two members who serve in an advisory capacity or administrative role falls under the NC Open Meeting Law.

School Leadership Team regular meetings will be held the first Tuesdays of each month from 2:45-4:15 PM unless otherwise specified by the full team. Third Tuesday of each month from 2:45-4:15 for subcommittees. The Instructional Leadership Team, comprised of the principal, assistant principal, and curriculum facilitators, will meet weekly. . Meeting notices are posted on the school website, in IndiStar, and via weekly messages to parents.

“Special Meetings”

Meetings that are held on different days and at different times or places during the year are considered “special” meetings.

• Post a notice to every person who has requested notification – 48 hours prior to the meeting.

Any meeting or subcommittee meetings of the SLT are also subject to the Open Meetings Law and are therefore open to everyone.

• A quorum shall consist of 75% of the current SLT membership.
• A quorum is required for all decisions requiring a vote of the membership. The principal must be in attendance for all votes.
• In case of absence, a voting member may email a written vote to the chairperson.

These by-laws may be amended at any regular meeting by a 2/3 vote of the members present provided that notice of the proposed amendment shall have been given at least 30 days prior to the meeting, at which time the amendment(s) shall be voted on. The amendment shall be effective at the next set meeting.