§ 16-2-9 - General powers and duties of school committees.
SECTION 16-2-9
§ 16-2-9 General powers and duties ofschool committees. – (a) The entire care, control, and management of all public school interests ofthe several cities and towns shall be vested in the school committees of theseveral cities and towns. School committees shall have, in addition to thoseenumerated in this title, the following powers and duties:
(1) To identify educational needs in the community.
(2) To develop education policies to meet the needs of thecommunity.
(3) To provide for and assure the implementation of federaland state laws, the regulations of the board of regents for elementary andsecondary education, and of local school policies, programs, and directives.
(4) To provide for the evaluation of the performance of theschool system.
(5) To have responsibility for the care and control of localschools.
(6) To have overall policy responsibility for the employmentand discipline of school department personnel.
(7) To approve a master plan defining goals and objectives ofthe school system. These goals and objectives shall be expressed in terms ofwhat men and women should know and be able to do as a result of theireducational experience. The committee shall periodically evaluate the effortsand results of education in light of these objectives.
(8) To provide for the location, care, control, andmanagement of school facilities and equipment.
(9) To adopt a school budget to submit to the localappropriating authority.
(10) To adopt any changes in the school budget during thecourse of the school year.
(11) To approve expenditures in the absence of a budget,consistent with state law.
(12) To employ a superintendent of schools and assign anycompensation and other terms and conditions as the school committee andsuperintendent shall agree, provided that in no event shall the term ofemployment of the superintendent exceed three (3) years. Nothing contained inthis chapter shall be construed as invalidating or impairing a contract of aschool committee with a school superintendent in force on May 12, 1978.
(13) To give advice and consent on the appointment by thesuperintendent of all school department personnel.
(14) To establish minimum standards for personnel, to adoptpersonnel policies, and to approve a table of organization.
(15) To establish standards for the evaluation of personnel.
(16) To establish standards for conduct in the schools andfor disciplinary actions.
(17) To hear appeals from disciplinary actions.
(18) To enter into contracts.
(19) To publish policy manuals which shall include all schoolcommittee policies.
(20) To establish policies governing curriculum, courses ofinstruction, and text books.
(21) To provide for transportation services which meet orexceed standards of the board of regents for elementary and secondary education.
(22) To make any reports to the department of education asare required by the board of regents for elementary and secondary education.
(23) To delegate, consistent with law, any responsibilitiesto the superintendent as the committee may deem appropriate.
(24) To address the health and wellness of students andemployees.
(25) To establish a subcommittee of the school board orcommittee to decrease obesity and address school health and wellness policiesfor students and employees consistent with § 16-21-28.
(b) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit orinterfere with the rights of teachers and other school employees tocollectively bargain pursuant to chapters 9.3 and 9.4 of title 28 or to allowany school committee to abrogate any agreement reached by collective bargaining.
(c) The school committees of each city, town, or regionalschool district shall have the power to bind their successors and successorcommittees by entering into contracts of employment in the exercise of theirgovernmental functions.
(d) Notwithstanding any provisions of the general laws to thecontrary, the requirement defined in subsections (d) through (f) of thissection shall apply. The school committee of each school district shall beresponsible for maintaining a school budget which does not result in a debt.
(e) The school committee shall, within thirty (30) days afterthe close of the first and second quarters of the state's fiscal year, adopt abudget as may be necessary to enable it to operate without incurring a debt, asdescribed in subsection (d).
(f) In the event that any obligation, encumbrance, orexpenditure by a superintendent of schools or a school committee is in excessof the amount budgeted or that any revenue is less than the amount budgeted,the school committee shall within five (5) working days of its discovery ofpotential or actual over expenditure or revenue deficiency submit a writtenstatement of the amount of and cause for the over obligation or overexpenditure or revenue deficiency to the city or town council president and anyother person who by local charter or statute serves as the city or town'sexecutive officer; the statement shall further include a statement of theschool committee's plan for corrective actions necessary to meet therequirements of subsection (d). The plan shall be approved by the auditorgeneral.
(g) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, whether ofgeneral or specific application, and notwithstanding any contrary provision ofany city or town charter or ordinance, the elected school committee of anycity, town and regional school district shall be, and is hereby authorized toretain the services of such independent legal counsel as it may deem necessaryand convenient. Any counsel so retained shall be compensated out of funds dulyappropriated to the school committee, and in no event shall the independentcounsel be deemed to be an employee of the pertinent city or town for anypurpose.