About Board Meetings

Susan Wilson posted in Mapleton School District
About Board Meetings
## Hello Mapleton Community,  Sorry for the late message! We have had multiple questions today about how to participate in our Board Meetings; we put together some information below and wanted to share it in a timely manner.  It will live under the Board tab on our website.  Please reach out if you have specific questions.Thank you, SuePS: Amazing job to all the elementary talent show participants!  A giant thank you to students, staff, and families for making such fun performances! ## Thank you for your interest and participation in Mapleton School District
Mapleton SD Board of Directors meetings are scheduled for 6:00PM, and are held at Mapleton HS Room 5, 10868 E. Mapleton Road.  The last meeting of the year is held at the Deadwood Community Center.  In general, they are held on the 3rd Wednesday each month; please check the district calendar on the website or ParentSquare to confirm dates and location.  Board meetings will be available for viewing via live stream on YouTube with the YouTube link available in the posted agenda.  
As elected Mapleton SD board members, we are interested in your concerns and opinions and welcome you to the meetings where we conduct our business publicly.
Our hope is that this meeting will give you a better understanding of how Mapleton SD operates. We encourage public participation in our meetings through public comments. If you are interested in addressing the board, please review the procedure for public comment below. If you join only to listen and learn, that’s great!  We love when students and community are civically engaged.
## Mapleton SD Board Meetings
The board conducts business in monthly meetings that are open to the public and streamed/recorded on Youtube. Board meeting dates are announced in advance, the next meeting is [Wednesday March 20th](www.mapleton.k12.or.us/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/2024-03-20-Packet.pdf).  Special meetings, also open to the public, are scheduled when needed.  These sessions provide an opportunity for the Governing Board to examine specific issues more thoroughly. Please note the discussion item on this month’s agenda for finalizing planning for upcoming community listening sessions.  Executive meetings, in accordance with Oregon law, are closed to the public. Some of the items for executive session include: personnel matters, collective bargaining strategies, property purchases, or discussions with legal counsel. News media representatives may attend and report on public meetings; they may attend some classes of executive sessions, but cannot report on them. Any actions resulting from discussion in executive session must be voted on in a public meeting.
## What’s on the agenda?
The board agenda is available before each board meeting and can be obtained [here](www.mapleton.k12.or.us/?page_id=299); hard copies are available at the entrance to the meeting.  Background information on agenda items is available at board meetings and through communications with Superintendent Wilson ([swilson@mapleton.k12.or.us](mailto:swilson@mapleton.k12.or.us)) or Board Secretary Ricks ([jricks@mapleton.k12.or.us](mailto:jricks@mapleton.k12.or.us)).  
The agenda is divided into five major categories:

PUBLIC COMMENT provides opportunity for community members to share input about agenda and non-agenda items.  Public comment must not reference specific personnel or student matters, these should be addressed with the Superintendent or Principal. (swilson@mapleton.k12.or.us)

REPORTS are presented for the board’s information and require no formal action.

CONSENT AGENDA consists of routine items such as previous board minutes, routine personnel actions and routine financial transactions. Normally, there is little or no discussion on these items.

ACTION ITEMS are addressed individually by the board and may include recommendations from district administrators and invited guests.

DISCUSSION ITEMS are topics identified by the Board Chair for conversation between Board members and with district leadership.  This is Board work; discussions often lead to action items and ongoing updates.  
How to be heard
The Mapleton School Board encourages your comments! By hearing from the public, the board is able to make better-informed decisions. The Board welcomes comments from the public even if you are unable to attend the meeting. If you wish to comment in the meeting, [please submit the form](www.mapleton.k12.or.us/?page_id=2444) or e-mail jricks@mapleton.k12.or.us by 4:00pm the day of the meeting.  
When speaking to the board…
1.
Check with the board chair or superintendent to find out the preferred procedure.
2.
State your name and address at the start of your testimony. Identify the organization, if any, that you represent.
3.
Remarks should be under five minutes. 
4.
Prepare several copies of written testimony to hand out to the board, administrators and any media representatives.
Please reference [Policy BDDH](policy.osba.org/mapletn/search.asp?si=75853865&pid=r&nsb=1&n=0&_charset_=windows-1252&bcd=%F7&s=mapletn&query=public+comment) for more information. 
For those who prefer written comment, all community members are encouraged to email their thoughts with the Board at [board@mapleton.k12.or.us](mailto:board@mapleton.k12.or.us). Only the Board Chair responds to emails on behalf of the Board.
## Board response
Audience time is not intended as a forum for public debate. Questions raised may require further investigation. In some cases, the Board may choose to discuss further or open the floor for discussion.  Normally, the board will wait until its next meeting before responding.
## What does the Mapleton School Board do?
Mapleton SD is governed by a board elected by the county’s registered voters. The board is authorized to:

Establish policies that direct the school district

Employ and evaluate the superintendent

Negotiate with employee groups to determine salaries and benefits

Approve the annual budget

Authorize elections on bond proposals and other issues

Determine the long-range direction of the district

Communicate with the community
## Who can be a Board Member?
The board members are elected from Lane County to serve four-year terms. To be eligible for election, a person must be a qualified voter and reside in the representative area for one year immediately preceding the election. Members of the board serve without pay. Terms of office begin and end with the district’s fiscal year, July 1. Officers of the board are elected annually at the first regular meeting.
ADAPTED FROM THE OREGON SCHOOL BOARD ASSOCIATION FOR USE BY SCHOOL DISTRICTS.

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