Policy BAAA
School Board Policies and Administrative Procedures
School Board Approved: April 4, 2016
The Board recognizes its responsibility for properly managing the resources of the School District. This
responsibility includes concern for safety of students, employees, and the public, as well as concern for
protecting the District’s property from loss. No new policy or procedure will be adopted or approved by the
Board without first giving careful consideration to the School District’s risk exposure.
The policies of the Board are intended to establish the general and overall rules within which day-to-day
operations of the School District are to be governed. Procedures for carrying out and implementing the broad
policies of the Board on a day-to-day basis are to be fashioned and adopted by the administration, under the
direction of the Superintendent. As applicable, members of the District community are expected to comply with
both Board policy and administrative procedures, subject to the limitations and exceptions set forth herein.
However, the failure of the Board or the Administration to comply with policy shall not invalidate any lawful
action taken.
Contents of Board Policy and Administrative Procedure
The policies of the Board shall be composed of:
Administrative procedure is not part of Board policy and may be altered by the administration without Board
action. Administrative procedure, however, may not conflict with Board policy. The Board may from time to
time review the administrative procedures to ensure conformance with Board Policy.
Limitations of Policy
Neither the policies of the Board nor the procedures of the administration are intended, nor shall they be
construed, to supersede or preempt any applicable laws, whether constitutional, statutory, regulatory, or
common in origin. Consequently, all Board policies and administrative procedures shall be given both an
interpretation and application which is lawful. The Board shall have the final interpretation of its policies and
the administration shall have the final interpretation of its procedures.
As the Board policies and administrative procedures are limited by legal constraints, so too are the rights of those to whom the Board policies and administrative procedures apply. Neither the policies of the Board nor the procedures of the administration are intended to expand the rights of individuals beyond those established by law or to give to any individual a cause of action not independently established in law. Enforcement of Board policy shall rest exclusively with the Board, and enforcement of administrative procedures shall rest exclusively with the administration.
Board policy and administrative procedure shall not preempt, create, supplant, expand or restrict the rights or
liabilities of students, employee, taxpayers, or others within the School District beyond those that are
established in law and are not intended to restrict or limit students, employees, or other members of the School
District community from pursuing any claims or defenses available under law.
Exceptions
Exceptions to any policy or the application of any policy may be made if requested or recommended in
accordance with the following procedures:
Any person may request an exception to any Board policy or the application of same by submitting a letter to the Superintendent. The request shall identify:
The Superintendent or his/her designee, shall conduct a sufficient investigation of any request for an
exception so as to be able to formulate a recommendation for the Board. Among the factors to be
evaluated are the relevant facts related to the request, the rationale of both the policy and the request for
the exception and the disposition of prior requests for exceptions to the same or similar policies.
Following the Superintendent’s investigation, the Superintendent shall place the request for exception on
the agenda and shall report to the Board the circumstances surrounding the request and his/her
recommended disposition. The person requesting the exception shall be notified in advance of this
agenda item, and shall be given a reasonable opportunity to address the Board before the Board
determines whether to grant the request for an exception.
The Board shall have final and exclusive authority to determine whether to grant any request for an
exception and shall be the sole judge of whether the rationale for the exception is sufficient, taking into
consideration the recommendation of the Superintendent. Moreover, the granting of exceptions in the
same or similar cases shall not constitute binding precedent or practice in as much as the prior grant of
an exception may establish that the granting of an exception is ill advised.
Exceptions to administrative procedures shall be made at the discretion of the Superintendent.
Legal References:
NH Code of Administrative Rules, Section Ed. 303.01 (a), Substantive Duties of School Boards