Committee to rescind student driving policy, says parking rules are operational and remain in the handbook

Board member John Paradiso told the Policy Committee on Sept. 29 that legal counsel recommended rescinding policy 5131.3 (student driving and parking) because parking rules are operational and are better handled through the high school handbook and administrative procedures.

"This policy has not in any way referred to anything about the permitting process, the fees process other than empowering our administration to make those decisions in line with our budgetary requirements," Paradiso said, adding that rescinding the policy does not remove parking privileges or preclude future operational discussion of fees.

Superintendent Susie Dilva confirmed that families seeking details on parking should consult the student handbook and that privileges such as junior and senior parking can change based on available space; she noted that budgetary decisions related to parking would be part of the December/January budget discussions.

Nut graf: The committee framed rescission as an effort to keep the policy manual aligned with legal counsel and to avoid prescribing operational minutiae in board policy. The administration emphasized that expectations and procedures for student parking remain in the handbook and under administrative control.

The committee agreed to forward the rescission recommendation to the full board for a first read.

Next steps: The item will be considered at the full-board level for a first reading; any changes to parking fees or privileges will be handled administratively and in conjunction with budget planning.