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Students to be added to committee discussions under proposed representation policy
Summary
After a proposal and student testimony, the committee agreed student council members should have nonvoting representation on committees; Policy 004 already contains an authorization line and the committee will draft formal guidelines for April.
The policy committee agreed to pursue formal student representation on committee meetings after hearing from student council members and reviewing existing policy language.
Committee members discussed a proposal to appoint one or two student council representatives to each committee to provide a student perspective. One member noted an existing line in Policy 004: "the board authorizes student representation on the board in order to facilitate effective communication and to provide an opportunity for students to participate in school governance." The committee agreed staff would draft guiding language and present it at the April work session and then to the full board at the next voting meeting.
Student council members who spoke said inclusion would provide useful perspectives on how board decisions affect students. Board members agreed the students should be nonvoting and that guidelines should clarify whether students may attend executive sessions (they may not) and how logistics (transport, Zoom access) will be handled for evening meetings. "I think it's wonderful," one member said of student participation, while another urged a phased trial with clear guidelines and chair oversight.
The committee planned to prepare a draft policy amendment and recommended starting with committee participation as a trial; the item is scheduled for the April work session and a board vote thereafter.
