SAC Election Packet

2014-2015

TIMELINE FOR 2014-2015 SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL ELECTIONS

  • Election Window:April 14—May 14, 2014
  • Results to District:May 21, 2014
  • School Board meeting:Board Meeting in June 2014

Checklist: Preparing For Your School Advisory Council Election

Review the election procedures and guidelines.

Determine the best date(s) for your election within the election window (consider pairing elections with a highly attended event at your school).

Determine election times of day that accommodate needs (such as early morning and early evening).

Determine number of vacancies & length of term in each role group category.

  • Parents/guardians & community members must compose 51% of the team
  • Parents/guardians & community members may not be employed at your school

Communicate the date(s) and procedures to all candidates/voters. Consider communicating information through the following avenues. Keep records of all communications.

faculty/staff meetingsschool bulletin boards

school newsletterscommunity centers, stores

school marqueeschool banners

local newspapersfamilies/community

Distribute orientation packets to all potential candidates (packet should include information about your SAC, expectations of members, and candidacy request form).

Establish election committee (see district packet).

Prepare ballots with candidates listed alphabetically.

Prepare separate ballots for parents, teachers, support personnel, and students (required in high school).

Distribute requested absentee ballots.

Prepare area(s) where elections will take place.

Provide conditions that support the secret ballot concept.

Consider off-campus site(s).

Hold elections: check off voters' names on eligible voter list and keep list in archives.

Count ballots after all polling booths close.

Appoint community members with input from School Advisory Council.

Submit results to district school improvement coordinator by May 21, 2014 using the template provided by the district(please remove all red reminder notes). The principal's and SAC Chairman’s signatures attest to the fact that the team reflects the ethnic, racial, and economic community served by the school and meet the 51% requirement for parents and community members not employed by the district.

SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL (SAC) ELECTION PROCEDURES & MEMBER COMPOSITION

Election Procedures

  • Elections for 2014-2015 will take place between the following dates: April 14—May 14, 2014.
  • Names will appear on ballots in alphabetical order in each category: parents, teachers, support personnel, and students.
  • The principal, following input from the existing School Advisory Council, will open the appropriate number of vacancies for the election and announce those vacancies in the orientation packet.
  • Each school will select an appropriate election date within the window. Election times will be varied to accommodate voters. All voters must sign off on a master list of eligible voters for each voting group.
  • Parents shall be elected by parents. Teachers shall be elected by teachers. Support personnel shall be elected by support personnel. Students shall be elected by students.
  • Voters will vote for one candidate for each vacancy. For example, if there are two vacancies for teacher representatives, teachers will vote for two teacher candidates whose names appear on the ballot.
  • The ballot box at each site will be supervised by the School Advisory Council election committee. All elections will be held by secret ballot.
  • The SAC election committee may consist of the principal or designee, the teacher of the year, a parent representative selected by the current School Advisory Council members, a student (where appropriate), and a member of the support personnel selected by the principal.
  • Those receiving the most votes in each category will be recommended to serve on the School Advisory Council.
  • Community Members that wish to serve on the SAC may be appointed by the principal, with approval of the existing SAC to be included under the appointed members section of the SAC Roster.
  • The principal will submit the School Advisory Council Elections Results Form (page 9), as verified by the election committee, to the district School Improvement Office (email Detrice Toby) by May 21, 2014. The school board will act upon the SAC membership recommendations at the June School Board meeting.
  • Those elected do not become official members of the 2014-2015 SAC Committee until July 1, 2014.

SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP

  1. The principal, following input from the existing School Advisory Council, will establish the size and membership make-up of the 2014-2015 team as follows:

The principal shall serve on the School Advisory Council as an appointed member.

At least fifty-one percent (51%) of the School Advisory Council shall be parents and community representatives not employed by the school district.

Each team must include at least one member from the school's support personnel.

School Advisory Councils in high schools shall include students. School Advisory Councils in middle and elementary schools may include students at the discretion of the principal.

The principal, following input from the existing School Advisory Council, may appoint Business and Community stakeholders.

Membership of the School Advisory Council will reflect the ethnic, racial, and economic community served by the school.

  1. Should the principal determine that membership elected by the school is not representative of the ethnic, racial, and economic community served by the school, the principal (following input from the School Advisory Council) shall recommend additional members to the school board to achieve proper representation.
  1. Members will serve on the School Advisory Council for a period of one or two years as outlined in the school’s SAC Bylaws.
  1. The principal will select business and community members for inclusion on the 2014-2015 SAC following input and approval of the current School Advisory Council.

SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL CANDIDACY REQUEST FORM

NAME OF SCHOOL: ______

NAME: ______

ADDRESS: ______

TELEPHONE: ______(DAY)

______(EVENING)

I am seeking to represent the following group of individuals on our School Advisory Council.

Check one: Teachers Staff Students Parents

Are you currently employed by Volusia County Schools? Yes No

(Please note: Substitute teaching is considered employed by the district even if you only sub 1 day during the school year.)

Please describe why you are interested in serving on our School Advisory Council: ______

I have read and understand the expectations of SAC Members including the importance of attending ALL SAC Meetings and actively participating in the School Improvement process.

Signature: ______Date: ______

Volusia County Schools2004-179-VCS

Curriculum & School Improvement Services Created: 6/94 – revised 5/10

EXPECTATIONS FOR

SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL (SAC) MEMBERS

  1. Actively participate in the school improvement process and attend all SAC meetings
  1. Develop/Review the school’s mission statement
  1. Use Florida’s education goals and the district’s goals as guiding principles
  1. Examine all aspects of the school when developing the School Improvement Plan (SIP)
  1. Prioritize the needs of the school
  1. Develop strategies for improving the areas of need
  1. Develop a plan for measuring the results of the SIP
  1. Assist in the preparation and evaluation of the SIP
  1. Assist in the preparation of the school’s annual budget
  1. Decide how to spend the SAC funds to meet the SIP goals
  1. Assist in recruiting and retaining other SAC members
SAMPLE BALLOT

(Insert TEACHER, STAFF, or STUDENT) BALLOT

Please vote for (insert number of vacancies) candidates by marking the space next to the name of the candidate(s) of your choice.

(List candidates in alphabetical order – Be sure to indicate if any of the parent candidates are a VCS Employee)

_____Name A, length of term

_____Name B, length of term

_____etc.

School Advisory Council Membership

Election Results 2014-2015

(Term: July 1, 2014-June 30, 2015)

We recommend the following elected or appointed individuals for service on the 2014-2015 School Advisory Council (SAC) at (insert school name). The people on this list represent the diverse ethnic, racial, and economic community served by this school. At least fifty-one percent (51%) of the SAC are parents and community members not employed by the District of Volusia County. At least one member represents support personnel who are employed at this school site. Students are members where appropriate.

Membership Composition

Number of VCS Employees

______= ______%

Total Number of SAC Members

Elected MEMBERS

(Elected during formal SAC election window – Includes only parents, teachers, staff, and students.)

Name
/
Representative Group
/
Length of Term
/
VCS Employee
(Note Y or N)

Appointed MEMBERS

(Appointed with approval of the SAC Committee and noted in SAC meeting minutes. Principal, community members and business partners are always appointed.)

Name
/
Representative Group
/
Length of Term
/
VCS Employee
(Note Y or N)

* SAC Chair ** Support Staff

PLEASE FOLLOW THESE GUIDELINES:

  • Please designate the School Advisory Council Chairperson(s) with an * in front of their name.
  • Please designate the School Advisory Council Support Staff with an ** in front of their name.
  • Add additional rows as needed by tabbing through the fields.
  • Representative groups are ONLY principal, administrator, teacher, parent, student, community member, business partner, or support staff.
  • Community members/business partners are always appointed UNLESS they are also a parent and go through the SAC parent elections. They would then be labeled parent/Community Member and be listed under elected members.
  • Ensure the lengths of terms are staggered – some are for one year and some for two years.
  • Elected members serve a 2 year term
  • Appointed members serve a 1 year term
  • Community Members & Business Partners serve a 2 year term.

REMOVE EVERYTHING IN RED BEFORE SUBMITTING

______

Principal’s SignatureDateSAC Chairman SignatureDate

VOLUSIA COUNTY SCHOOLS VISION STATEMENT

Through the individual commitment of all, our students will graduate with the knowledge, skills, and values necessary to be successful contributors to our democratic society.

School Board approved and adopted April 14, 1992

SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT IN VOLUSIA COUNTY SCHOOLS

To ensure that the district is unified in mission and focus, a strategic plan, based on a best practices model, has been developed to provide the overarching framework that will serve as a catalyst to accelerate student achievement. The strategic plan is intended to guide the decision-making process, promote a coordinated effort and maximize the use of resources. An additional strength of the strategic plan is that it concentrates the goals and objectives of the district while aligning the school improvement plan. It is the expectation that the strategic plan will unify the district’s effort to achieve its mission of increasing student achievement.

School Improvement Process

Each school will complete a comprehensive self-evaluation annually. In the self-evaluation, the school will analyze its performance on achievement, archival, and perceptual data as well as a thorough program evaluation addressing the areas of focus with the accompanying best practices and essential indicators using instruments provided by the district. Utilizing the internal assessments, the school’s School Advisory Council (SAC) will identify strengths, weaknesses, and prioritize areas of need from which they will develop their school goals and accompanying school improvement plan. The school will implement the plan along with an ongoing monitoring timeline to regularly assess progress toward attainment of the school’s goal(s). The plan will be modified as needed to ensure appropriate strategies are in place to improve performance and successfully achieve the goal(s). The school’s ratings/performance on all areas of focus will be reassessed regularly to determine the school’s overall performance.To support the schools as they plan interventions to assist in accomplishing the goal(s), the district provides a comprehensive menu of resources aligned with each essential indicator that schools may access. Additionally, staff development opportunities in the strategic plan will be provided to all stakeholders.

School Implementation

The School Advisory Council (SAC) facilitates the school improvement process at each school.

Step 1:Conduct a comprehensive self-evaluation

  • Adequate Progress Performance Appraisal (data analysis)
  • Perceptual data (climate surveys)
  • Program evaluation (best practices and essential indicators)

Step 2:Celebrate strengths and prioritize needs based on the results of the comprehensive self-evaluation

Step 3:Identify 1 – 3 school goals

Step 4:Select the best practices and essential indicators that focus on achieving the school goal(s)

Step 5:Select the district support necessary to assist in achieving the school goal(s)

Step 6:Develop an implementation plan that integrates school-based and district-based support to reach the school goal(s)

Step 7:Develop an ongoing monitoring plan

Step 8:Identify evaluation criteria

Step 9:Identify standard for adequate progress

FORMULARIO PARA LA CANDIDATURA AL CONSEJO ASESOR ESCOLAR

NOMBRE DE LA ESCUELA: ______

NOMBRE: ______

DIRECCIÓN: ______

TELÉFONO: ______(DÍA)

______(TARDE/NOCHE)

Deseo representar al siguiente grupo de individuos en nuestro Consejo Asesor Escolar.

Marque uno: Maestros Personal Estudiantes Padres

¿Trabajas actualmente para el Distrito Escolar de Volusia? Sí No

(Aviso: Los maestros sustitutos son empleados del distrito, aun si solo fueron maestros sustitutos por un día durante el año escolar.)

Por favor explique por qué usted desea ser miembro en el Consejo Asesor Escolar: ______

He leído y entiendo las expectativas que tienen para los miembros del SAC, incluso la importancia de asistir a TODAS las reuniones del SAC y participar activamente en el proceso de Mejoramiento Escolar.

Firma: ______Fecha: ______

EXPECTATIVAS PARA LOS MIEMBROS DEL

CONSEJO ASESOR ESCOLAR (SAC)

  1. Participar activamente en el proceso de mejoramiento escolar y asistir a todas las reuniones del SAC
  1. Elaborar/Revisar la declaración misional de la escuela
  1. Utilizar las metas educativas de la Florida y del distrito como principios a seguir
  1. Examinar todos los aspectos de la escuela al elaborar el plan de mejoramiento escolar (SIP, por sus siglas en inglés)
  1. Priorizar las necesidades de la escuela
  1. Desarrollar estrategias para mejorar las áreas de necesidad
  1. Elaborar un plan para medir los resultados del SIP
  1. Ayudar en la preparación y evaluación del SIP
  1. Ayudar en la preparación del presupuesto anual de la escuela
  1. Decidir cómo dedicar los fondos del SAC para lograr los objetivos

del SIP

  1. Ayudar en reclutar y conservar otros miembros del SAC
PAPELETA DE MUESTRA

PAPELETA (indique si es para MAESTRO/A, PERSONAL, o ESTUDIANTE)

Por favor vote por (indique el número de vacantes) candidatos marcando el espacio al lado del nombre del candidato (o candidatos) de su elección.