Peoria Unified board approves membership in Arizona School Risk Retention Trust, buys model policy services

Peoria Unified School Districtboard members voted unanimously June 25 to join the Arizona School Risk Retention Trustand to purchase the Trust's prepaid legal services and model policy program services.

The action authorizes the district to buy a prepaid legal indemnity program and to pay an annual $7,500 fee for the Trust's model policy hosting and services for a three-year term. District staff and the Trust told the board the initial estimated cost to join the prepaid legal program and the model policy program is about $85,002.50; that includes a $70,000 figure for the prepaid legal component and $7,500 for the policy services plus processing fees. Jennifer McLennan, a representative of the Trust, said the Trust also sets a liability cap for the prepaid legal coverage at $300,000.

Why it matters: Board members framed the move as a way to centralize and control legal costs while gaining access to a statewide panel of vetted attorneys and to a model-policy platform that will host the district's policy manual. Supporters said the change could streamline procurement of legal advice, reduce duplicate vendor work, and provide regular policy updates and training.

What the Trust told the board: Jennifer McLennan described the prepaid legal program as a longstanding Trust service that lets districts consult vetted attorneys for many day-to-day legal questions. McLennan said the prepaid panel does not automatically cover adversarial proceedings such as most lawsuits or certain state and federal administrative actions (examples given included OCR and EEOC matters), which require additional approvals. She also described an online management tool called Origami the Trust uses to open files, track attorney time and approvals, and provide transparent reporting to districts.

Board questions and clarifications: Board members pressed how the initial price is set, whether transition work to move the district's existing policies into the Trust system would count against the prepaid legal bank, and how ongoing costs would be calculated. McLennan said the Trust sets the initial premium using the districtstudent count; usage over the first three years will determine future pricing adjustments. She told the board the transition work to move the district's policy manual could be billed through the prepaid legal program and that the $7,500 model policy fee covers housing the manual on the Trust platform and routine updates.

Training and implementation: The Trust said it offers a one-day policy summit and additional trainings. The vendor representatives and district staff told the board they aim to provide a Trust-formatted policy manual for Peoria Unified for consideration at the board's July meeting and recommended a phased, campus-by-campus personalization of district-unique policies.

Board action: A motion to approve the Arizona School Risk Retention Trust membership agreement was made by Mrs. Bowles and seconded by Mrs. Proudfit; a voice vote recorded five ayes and the motion carried. A separate motion to approve the Trust's model policy program services agreement (three-year term, $7,500 annual fee) was also approved by voice vote, five ayes.

Next steps: District staff and the Trust will proceed with onboarding steps, prepare the initial Trust-formatted policy manual for board review, and work with campus and district administrators on timing and specific policy customizations.