Resolutions Committee Report now available; Proposals will be voted on at Delegate Assembly

The 2019 IASB Resolutions Committee Report is being mailed to member districts this week. The report is also posted on the IASB website.

The Resolutions Committee met August 2 to consider and make recommendations on new proposals and amendments to current position statements brought forth by Association member districts. The report summarizes proposed resolutions for 2019, and rationales and the Committee’s recommendations on each. IASB membership will vote on these at the Delegate Assembly, November 23 at the Joint Annual Conference in Chicago.

For 2019, the Committee recommends adoption of 10 proposed resolutions. The Committee also recommends amendments to five current position statements and one reaffirmation of a current position statement.

Four proposed resolutions are related to school safety and security; the Resolutions Committee recommends "Do Adopt" for all four.

One is an update of a proposal that did not pass the membership vote last year, which calls for IASB to support legislation that would provide local school boards the option to decide if they will allow for properly trained staff to be armed in school buildings as part of the district’s overall student safety and protection. A second proposed resolution would address school safety and security by calling for IASB to support legislation that would create and fund a program that would assist school districts in hiring school resource officers. Two other safety-related resolutions, one regarding a school district police force and another on school zone traffic safety, are also recommended for adoption.

A proposal relating to the process of conducting background checks on teachers is also recommended as “Do Adopt” by the Committee.

Adoption is also recommended on a proposal that IASB will support changes to legislation to allow school districts to consider social responsibility goals, including preferences for businesses owned by minorities, women, persons with disabilities, and veterans, in selecting companies to service contracts.

Two proposed resolutions impact school districts that host State Authorized Charter Schools. One would call for IASB to support allowing a school district to be part of the charter renewal process. A second would support defining the expectations of such schools to educate at-risk students. The Resolutions Committee recommends “Do Adopt” to both.

The Committee recommends adoption of two measures regarding the timing of seating and terms of newly elected school board members. A third election-related proposal, on who can swear a new member in, received a “Do Not Adopt” from the Committee. A measure aimed at compensating school board members is also recommended as “Do Not Adopt.”

Full details of the 2019 recommendations, including the amendments and reaffirmation, are available in the Resolutions Committee Report.

Resolution proposals are submitted each year by school boards that are members of the Association. IASB staff works with the proposing school board(s) as needed, by reviewing and researching proposed resolutions to provide background on current law. Then, each proposed resolution is reviewed by the Resolutions Committee, made up of 21 school board members representing each of the Association’s divisions.

IASB membership votes on the recommendations each year at the Delegate Assembly, held in November in conjunction with the Joint Annual Conference in Chicago. The decisions reached by member boards of education determine the direction of the Association’s advocacy efforts on behalf of its members.