§ 53A-3-402. Powers and duties generally. (Effective 5/13/2014)

(1) Each local school board shall:

(a) implement the core curriculum utilizing instructional materials that best correlate to the core curriculum and graduation requirements;

(b) administer tests, required by the State Board of Education, which measure the progress of each student, and coordinate with the state superintendent and State Board of Education to assess results and create plans to improve the student's progress which shall be submitted to the State Office of Education for approval;

(c) use progress-based assessments as part of a plan to identify schools, teachers, and students that need remediation and determine the type and amount of federal, state, and local resources to implement remediation;

(d) develop early warning systems for students or classes failing to make progress;

(e) work with the State Office of Education to establish a library of documented best practices, consistent with state and federal regulations, for use by the local districts; and

(f) implement training programs for school administrators, including basic management training, best practices in instructional methods, budget training, staff management, managing for learning results and continuous improvement, and how to help every child achieve optimal learning in core academics.

(2) Local school boards shall spend minimum school program funds for programs and activities for which the State Board of Education has established minimum standards or rules under Section 53A-1-402.

(3)

(a) A board may purchase, sell, and make improvements on school sites, buildings, and equipment and construct, erect, and furnish school buildings.

(b) School sites or buildings may only be conveyed or sold on board resolution affirmed by at least two-thirds of the members.

(4)

(a) A board may participate in the joint construction or operation of a school attended by children residing within the district and children residing in other districts either within or outside the state.

(b) Any agreement for the joint operation or construction of a school shall:

(i) be signed by the president of the board of each participating district;

(ii) include a mutually agreed upon pro rata cost; and

(iii) be filed with the State Board of Education.

(5) A board may establish, locate, and maintain elementary, secondary, and applied technology schools.

(6) Except as provided in Section 53A-1-1001, a board may enroll children in school who are at least five years of age before September 2 of the year in which admission is sought.

(7) A board may establish and support school libraries.

(8) A board may collect damages for the loss, injury, or destruction of school property.

(9) A board may authorize guidance and counseling services for children and their parents or guardians prior to, during, or following enrollment of the children in schools.

(10)

(a) A board shall administer and implement federal educational programs in accordance with Title 53A, Chapter 1, Part 9, Implementing Federal Programs Act.

(b) Federal funds are not considered funds within the school district budget under Title 53A, Chapter 19, School District Budgets.

(11)

(a) A board may organize school safety patrols and adopt rules under which the patrols promote student safety.

(b) A student appointed to a safety patrol shall be at least 10 years old and have written parental consent for the appointment.

(c) Safety patrol members may not direct vehicular traffic or be stationed in a portion of a highway intended for vehicular traffic use.

(d) Liability may not attach to a school district, its employees, officers, or agents or to a safety patrol member, a parent of a safety patrol member, or an authorized volunteer assisting the program by virtue of the organization, maintenance, or operation of a school safety patrol.

(12)

(a) A board may on its own behalf, or on behalf of an educational institution for which the board is the direct governing body, accept private grants, loans, gifts, endowments, devises, or bequests that are made for educational purposes.

(b) These contributions are not subject to appropriation by the Legislature.

(13)

(a) A board may appoint and fix the compensation of a compliance officer to issue citations for violations of Subsection 76-10-105(2).

(b) A person may not be appointed to serve as a compliance officer without the person's consent.

(c) A teacher or student may not be appointed as a compliance officer.

(14) A board shall adopt bylaws and rules for its own procedures.

(15)

(a) A board shall make and enforce rules necessary for the control and management of the district schools.

(b) All board rules and policies shall be in writing, filed, and referenced for public access.

(16) A board may hold school on legal holidays other than Sundays.

(17)

(a) Each board shall establish for each school year a school traffic safety committee to implement this Subsection (17).

(b) The committee shall be composed of one representative of:

(i) the schools within the district;

(ii) the Parent Teachers' Association of the schools within the district;

(iii) the municipality or county;

(iv) state or local law enforcement; and

(v) state or local traffic safety engineering.

(c) The committee shall:

(i) receive suggestions from school community councils, parents, teachers, and others and recommend school traffic safety improvements, boundary changes to enhance safety, and school traffic safety program measures;

(ii) review and submit annually to the Department of Transportation and affected municipalities and counties a child access routing plan for each elementary, middle, and junior high school within the district;

(iii) consult the Utah Safety Council and the Division of Family Health Services and provide training to all school children in kindergarten through grade six, within the district, on school crossing safety and use; and

(iv) help ensure the district's compliance with rules made by the Department of Transportation under Section 41-6a-303.

(d) The committee may establish subcommittees as needed to assist in accomplishing its duties under Subsection (17)(c).

(18)

(a) Each school board shall adopt and implement a comprehensive emergency response plan to prevent and combat violence in its public schools, on school grounds, on its school vehicles, and in connection with school-related activities or events.

(b) The board shall implement its plan by July 1, 2000.

(c) The plan shall:

(i) include prevention, intervention, and response components;

(ii) be consistent with the student conduct and discipline policies required for school districts under Title 53A, Chapter 11, Part 9, School Discipline and Conduct Plans;

(iii) require inservice training for all district and school building staff on what their roles are in the emergency response plan;

(iv) provide for coordination with local law enforcement and other public safety representatives in preventing, intervening, and responding to violence in the areas and activities referred to in Subsection (18)(a); and

(v) include procedures to notify a student, to the extent practicable, who is off campus at the time of a school violence emergency because the student is:

(A) participating in a school-related activity; or

(B) excused from school for a period of time during the regular school day to participate in religious instruction at the request of the student's parent or guardian.

(d) The State Board of Education, through the state superintendent of public instruction, shall develop comprehensive emergency response plan models that local school boards may use, where appropriate, to comply with Subsection (18)(a).

(e) Each local school board shall, by July 1 of each year, certify to the State Board of Education that its plan has been practiced at the school level and presented to and reviewed by its teachers, administrators, students, and their parents and local law enforcement and public safety representatives.

(19)

(a) Each local school board may adopt an emergency response plan for the treatment of sports-related injuries that occur during school sports practices and events.

(b) The plan may be implemented by each secondary school in the district that has a sports program for students.

(c) The plan may:

(i) include emergency personnel, emergency communication, and emergency equipment components;

(ii) require inservice training on the emergency response plan for school personnel who are involved in sports programs in the district's secondary schools; and

(iii) provide for coordination with individuals and agency representatives who:

(A) are not employees of the school district; and

(B) would be involved in providing emergency services to students injured while participating in sports events.

(d) The board, in collaboration with the schools referred to in Subsection (19)(b), may review the plan each year and make revisions when required to improve or enhance the plan.

(e) The State Board of Education, through the state superintendent of public instruction, shall provide local school boards with an emergency plan response model that local boards may use to comply with the requirements of this Subsection (19).

(20) A board shall do all other things necessary for the maintenance, prosperity, and success of the schools and the promotion of education.

(21)

(a) Before closing a school or changing the boundaries of a school, a board shall:

(i) hold a public hearing, as defined in Section 10-9a-103; and

(ii) provide public notice of the public hearing, as specified in Subsection (21)(b).

(b) The notice of a public hearing required under Subsection (21)(a) shall:

(i) indicate the:

(A) school or schools under consideration for closure or boundary change; and

(B) date, time, and location of the public hearing; and

(ii) at least 10 days prior to the public hearing, be:

(A) published:

(I) in a newspaper of general circulation in the area; and

(II) on the Utah Public Notice Website created in Section 63F-1-701; and

(B) posted in at least three public locations within the municipality or on the district's official website.

(22) A board may implement a facility energy efficiency program established under Title 11, Chapter 44, Facility Energy Efficiency Act.

Amended by Chapter 202, 2014 General Session