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Ashland City board adopts Parents Bill of Rights, updates attendance and phone rules as school year begins
Summary
The Ashland City School Board adopted a 'Parents Bill of Rights' policy and was briefed on back-to-school operations. Superintendent Paramore outlined attendance threshold changes, a state-driven ban on phone use during instructional time, and encouraged families to complete free-and-reduced lunch forms.
The Ashland City School Board on Aug. 25 adopted a new district policy titled the Parents Bill of Rights (policy 57 80.01) and heard a broad back-to-school report from Superintendent Mr. Paramore.
Paramore told the board the policy will publish information about medical care provided in schools, list online curriculum providers and give parents an ability to review course materials and request alternate assignments when content raises concerns. "We've had, our reading of the Parents Bill of Rights," Paramore said, "...this allows parents to have the utmost knowledge of what we are educating their students about." He said K–3 content of the type named is already banned in the district and that high‑school curricular materials have been catalogued for parental review.
In the same report, Paramore outlined administrative updates the board will adopt to align with state requirements. He said the district will update student handbooks to reflect attendance thresholds set in state guidance: a "friendly nudge" notice at 30 hours (about five days), a required absence‑intervention meeting at 48 hours, and the possibility of court intervention at 72 hours. "At the 30 hour mark ... we need to send them a friendly nudge letter," he said, adding that the district will continue to handle medical exemptions and serious cases on an individual basis.
Paramore also said the state model policy requires changes to the district's personal communication device rules. Under the forthcoming policy, students will be prohibited from using personal devices during the instructional day, including lunch and class transitions; the district will keep exceptions for medical monitoring or emergencies and allow use during extracurricular events. The board was told the district will seek to adopt the updated policy at the regular September meeting with an expected effective date by Jan. 1.
The board voted to adopt the Parents Bill of Rights and acknowledged the attendance and device-policy updates as part of superintendent recommendations. No further public testimony was offered on the item. Paramore urged families to complete final forms for free-and-reduced lunch so students remain eligible for athletics and the district receives the appropriate reimbursements.
