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Tempe board approves joining Trust model policy services for $500 annual fee
Summary
After a presentation from the Arizona Risk Retention Trust, the Tempe School District governing board approved a $500-per-district annual agreement to adopt the Trust's model policy platform and transition support.
The Tempe School District Governing Board on Wednesday approved an agreement to join the Arizona Risk Retention Trust's model policy program, a service that provides template policies and a hosted policy-management platform for participating districts.
The board voted to approve the trust policy services agreement after Lillian Lee, a model policy program manager with the Arizona Risk Retention Trust, described the program and its transition process. "What the trust created essentially [is] a set of policies and procedures that are rooted in state and federal law," Lee said. She said a team of education attorneys produced about "220 ish policies and procedures" and that the Trust's materials are customizable by districts.
Lee told the board the annual fee for the program is $500 per district and that the fee includes platform access, transition support, technical support after adoption, and policy-update notices. She said the platform (Microscribe) can translate manuals into multiple languages and that the Trust will host adopted manuals on its site.
Board members asked whether the Trust would coordinate with district attorneys if a district was sued over an adopted policy. Lee said legal cases would go through the district's attorney and the Trust would "work with your attorney." She said there would not be an additional fee for that coordination.
Board members also discussed timing and transition logistics. Lee and board members described a recommended workflow: preserve existing policies, sign an agreement, perform a transition with a district team and Trust staff, customize the template, and have the board approve the final manual. Lee said the platform upload after the board approves policies takes about two weeks.
The motion to approve the agreement passed on a voice vote. The board also discussed keeping membership in the Arizona School Boards Association for other services; joining the Trust would replace only the district's current paid policy-service contract.
The Trust presentation and board discussion included details about training, annual legislative update coverage, an option for a comprehensive policy audit (cost quoted at $1,000), and an annual conference for members. Lee said most districts completing transition aimed to be live on the Trust's site by July 1.
What happens next: District staff will coordinate a transition timeline with the Trust, preserve the district's existing policies, and bring the customized policy manual back to the board for formal adoption during a public meeting.
