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Board accepts policy committee memo; several policy updates advance to additional review
Summary
The board accepted the policy committee's memo on multiple policy reviews: GBB (employee—aculty relations) recommended for adoption; JK tabled for counsel review; EHB-R updated for Google-account retention; EBCC (emergency planning) updated to allow superintendent to control access; animals-in-classroom moved to second read; agenda-setting language (EEDB) remains under review.
The Brookline School Board accepted the policy committee's memo May 27 and heard updates on a suite of policy reviews.
The committee recommended GBB (employee—aculty relations) for adoption after a fourth read with no substantive changes. JK (student discipline/related code) was tabled to allow review of correspondence from legal counsel. EHB-R (records/Google accounts) was updated to clarify account retention timing and was returned for a first read with that minor change.
The board discussed EBCC (emergency planning), which had not been updated since 2013. The update adds a line allowing the superintendent to deny access to emergency planning and safety procedures on file; the safety committee will further review response-action language such as "lockdown" terminology and coordination between buildings. Members asked the safety committee to bring back recommendations about response-action wording.
Board members also discussed EEDB (agenda-setting) at length. Several members, including Allison, said the current draft contains contradictory language about a board member's right to place items on the agenda versus the process for suggesting items. Allison said she had been streamlining agenda procedures to avoid missed items and proposed funneling suggestions through the chair for tracking and clarity. The policy committee will rework the language and bring the draft back for additional readings; some members suggested adopting later in the summer after further edits.
Other items on the memo included ECA (building/grants and security) and JICJ (cell-phone policy), which were carried forward with no substantive change recommended. Animals in the classroom (policy draft) was moved to second read with a clarified paragraph limiting animal presence to school hours and school-sanctioned events.
The board accepted the memo and the recommended next steps; detailed language changes will return to the policy committee for wordsmithing and additional reads before final adoption.
