Policy committee to forward Title IX–related AC series policies to full board after legal review

The School Board Policy Committee reviewed several district policies in the AC series on Wednesday and agreed to forward them toward board action after legal review, while also agreeing to change when minutes are posted and to add meeting recordings to minutes.

Board Chair said the committee must meet the public-record deadline for minutes, noting that “we technically have 5 business days,” and asked staff to aim for a Tuesday-by-noon posting schedule so there is time to review and produce a record for anyone who requests it in person.

The committee’s Title IX coordinator summarized why the AC policies were being revised: federal guidance has shifted and the district must align procedures with the current federal rule. She explained that the department of education’s prior 2024 rule was overturned in the Eastern District of Kentucky and that the district is following the 2020 rule’s procedures for handling certain cases. “A case of [Title IX] harassment would have to be severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive,” the Title IX coordinator said, describing the higher bar under the current rule and the resulting need to move material about procedures into the ACAC policy.

The coordinator recommended approving most AC policies in a single read so the district’s written procedures match how staff are already conducting investigations and to minimize risk to federal funding. “I would recommend all of the ACs as single reads,” she said. She also described ACAC as “much more prescriptive” than the older language and said it contains required timelines (for example, multiple references in the packet to 5- and 10-day response windows).

Committee members asked about specific policy language and the district’s ability to retain nondiscrimination statements. The Title IX coordinator said nondiscrimination commitments remain in other district policies and that certain discrimination or misconduct that does not meet the Title IX threshold would still be addressed under bullying, discipline, or other policies.

The committee discussed changing the phrasing in ACN from “nursing mothers” to “people with lactation needs.” The coordinator said NHSBA (the New Hampshire School Board Association) told districts that “nursing mothers” reflects state statute language but that the district could use “people with lactation needs” for clarity; committee members agreed to return ACN with that wording.

Members also reviewed a recommended policy addressing accommodations for pregnant students (IHBCA), explaining it had been pulled out of Title IX by recent rule changes and is presented now as a separate recommended policy to ensure pregnant students retain protections.

The committee discussed NHIAA (New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association) guidance after state RSA language (cited in the packet) and an NHIAA suspension of a bylaw; the coordinator said NHSBA recommended districts consult their own counsel because the risk and consequences of noncompliance with the state statute depend on district circumstances. Committee members agreed to refer NHIAA-related language to district legal counsel and to place that issue on the full board agenda in April for legal advice and broader discussion.

On administrative matters, staff and the chair agreed to try posting meeting minutes by Tuesday at noon after meetings to allow review time and preserve the district’s obligation to provide minutes to in-person requesters. The committee also agreed to record meetings and link the recordings within the minutes rather than post separate video pages, a change staff said would reduce web-space demands.

The committee scheduled follow-up work for the next policy meeting and planned to present the AC-series policies, the pregnancy-accommodations draft, and any NHIAA/state-law guidance to the full board after the district’s attorney reviews them. April 16 was set as the date to bring legal counsel and continue the conversation.

The discussion included repeated requests from some members for clearer legal citations in the packet and for the policy packet to be easier to review ahead of meetings; staff said NHSBA updated legal references and that the spring NHSBA update will follow. Members emphasized they did not intend to remove nondiscrimination protections from district practice and asked staff to preserve concise nondiscrimination language in the district notice where appropriate.

The committee did not take formal votes on policy adoptions at this meeting; it directed staff to (1) present the revised AC policies as single reads to the board after legal review, (2) adjust ACN wording to “people with lactation needs” if acceptable to counsel, (3) refer the NHIAA/state statute section for legal advice and bring that advice to the full board in April, and (4) post minutes within five business days with an internal target of Tuesday by noon and include a link to recorded meetings in the minutes.

Looking ahead, committee members said larger policy projects such as dress code review and any midyear curriculum or certification changes should be scheduled and discussed with administrators and legal counsel so the board can weigh implementation timing and certification risks for staff.