15-341

15-341. General powers and duties; immunity;
delegation

A. The governing board shall:

1. Prescribe and enforce policies and procedures for the governance of the schools,
not inconsistent with law or rules prescribed by the state board of education.

2. Exclude from schools all books, publications, papers or audiovisual materials of
a sectarian, partisan or denominational character.

3. Manage and control the school property within its district.

4. Acquire school furniture, apparatus, equipment, library books and supplies for
the use of the schools.

5. Prescribe the curricula and criteria for the promotion and graduation of pupils
as provided in sections 15-701 and 15-701.01.

6. Furnish, repair and insure, at full insurable value, the school property of the
district.

7. Construct school buildings on approval by a vote of the district electors.

8. Make in the name of the district conveyances of property belonging to the
district and sold by the board.

9. Purchase school sites when authorized by a vote of the district at an election
conducted as nearly as practicable in the same manner as the election provided in section
15-481 and held on a date prescribed in section 15-491, subsection E, but such
authorization shall not necessarily specify the site to be purchased and such
authorization shall not be necessary to exchange unimproved property as provided in
section 15-342, paragraph 23.

10. Construct, improve and furnish buildings used for school purposes when such
buildings or premises are leased from the national park service.

11. Purchase school sites or construct, improve and furnish school buildings from
the proceeds of the sale of school property only on approval by a vote of the district
electors.

12. Hold pupils to strict account for disorderly conduct on school property.

13. Discipline students for disorderly conduct on the way to and from school.

14. Except as provided in section 15-1224, deposit all monies received by the
district as gifts, grants and devises with the county treasurer who shall credit the
deposits as designated in the uniform system of financial records. If not inconsistent
with the terms of the gifts, grants and devises given, any balance remaining after
expenditures for the intended purpose of the monies have been made shall be used for
reduction of school district taxes for the budget year, except that in the case of
accommodation schools the county treasurer shall carry the balance forward for use by the
county school superintendent for accommodation schools for the budget year.

15. Provide that, if a parent or legal guardian chooses not to accept a decision of
the teacher as provided in section 15-521, paragraph 2, the parent or legal guardian may
request in writing that the governing board review the teacher's decision. Nothing in
this paragraph shall be construed to release school districts from any liability relating
to a child's promotion or retention.

16. Provide for adequate supervision over pupils in instructional and
noninstructional activities by certificated or noncertificated personnel.

17. Use school monies received from the state and county school apportionment
exclusively for payment of salaries of teachers and other employees and contingent
expenses of the district.

18. Make an annual report to the county school superintendent on or before October 1
in the manner and form and on the blanks prescribed by the superintendent of public
instruction or county school superintendent. The board shall also make reports directly
to the county school superintendent or the superintendent of public instruction whenever
required.

19. Deposit all monies received by school districts other than student activities
monies or monies from auxiliary operations as provided in sections 15-1125 and 15-1126
with the county treasurer to the credit of the school district except as provided in
paragraph 20 of this subsection and sections 15-1223 and 15-1224, and the board shall
expend the monies as provided by law for other school funds.

20. Establish bank accounts in which the board during a month may deposit
miscellaneous monies received directly by the district. The board shall remit monies
deposited in the bank accounts at least monthly to the county treasurer for deposit as
provided in paragraph 19 of this subsection and in accordance with the uniform system of
financial records.

21. Prescribe and enforce policies and procedures for disciplinary action against a
teacher who engages in conduct that is a violation of the policies of the governing board
but that is not cause for dismissal of the teacher or for revocation of the certificate
of the teacher. Disciplinary action may include suspension without pay for a period of
time not to exceed ten school days. Disciplinary action shall not include suspension with
pay or suspension without pay for a period of time longer than ten school days. The
procedures shall include notice, hearing and appeal provisions for violations that are
cause for disciplinary action. The governing board may designate a person or persons to
act on behalf of the board on these matters.

22. Prescribe and enforce policies and procedures for disciplinary action against an
administrator who engages in conduct that is a violation of the policies of the governing
board regarding duties of administrators but that is not cause for dismissal of the
administrator or for revocation of the certificate of the administrator. Disciplinary
action may include suspension without pay for a period of time not to exceed ten school
days. Disciplinary action shall not include suspension with pay or suspension without pay
for a period of time longer than ten school days. The procedures shall include notice,
hearing and appeal provisions for violations that are cause for disciplinary action. The
governing board may designate a person or persons to act on behalf of the board on these
matters. For violations that are cause for dismissal, the provisions of notice, hearing
and appeal in chapter 5, article 3 of this title shall apply. The filing of a timely
request for a hearing suspends the imposition of a suspension without pay or a dismissal
pending completion of the hearing.

23. Notwithstanding sections 13-3108 and 13-3120, prescribe and enforce policies and
procedures that prohibit a person from carrying or possessing a weapon on school grounds
unless the person is a peace officer or has obtained specific authorization from the
school administrator.

24. Prescribe and enforce policies and procedures relating to the health and safety
of all pupils participating in district sponsored practice sessions, games or other
interscholastic athletic activities, including the provision of water.

25. Prescribe and enforce policies and procedures regarding the smoking of tobacco
within school buildings. The policies and procedures shall be adopted in consultation
with school district personnel and members of the community and shall state whether
smoking is prohibited in school buildings. If smoking in school buildings is not
prohibited, the policies and procedures shall clearly state the conditions and
circumstances under which smoking is permitted, those areas in a school building that may
be designated as smoking areas and those areas in a school building that may not be
designated as smoking areas.

26. Establish an assessment, data gathering and reporting system as prescribed in
chapter 7, article 3 of this title.

27. Provide special education programs and related services pursuant to section
15-764, subsection A to all children with disabilities as defined in section 15-761.

28. Administer competency tests prescribed by the state board of education for the
graduation of pupils from high school.

29. Ensure that insurance coverage is secured for all construction projects for
purposes of general liability, property damage and workers' compensation and secure
performance and payment bonds for all construction projects.

30. Keep on file the resumes of all current and former employees who provide
instruction to pupils at a school. Resumes shall include an individual's educational and
teaching background and experience in a particular academic content subject area. A
school district shall inform parents and guardians of the availability of the resume
information and shall make the resume information available for inspection on request of
parents and guardians of pupils enrolled at a school. Nothing in this paragraph shall be
construed to require any school to release personally identifiable information in
relation to any teacher or employee, including the teacher's or employee's address,
salary, social security number or telephone number.

31. Report to local law enforcement agencies any suspected crime against a person or
property that is a serious offense as defined in section 13-706 or that involves a deadly
weapon or dangerous instrument or serious physical injury and any conduct that poses a
threat of death or serious physical injury to employees, students or anyone on the
property of the school. This paragraph does not limit or preclude the reporting by a
school district or an employee of a school district of suspected crimes other than those
required to be reported by this paragraph. For the purposes of this paragraph, "dangerous
instrument", "deadly weapon" and "serious physical injury" have the same meanings
prescribed in section 13-105.

32. In conjunction with local law enforcement agencies and local medical facilities,
develop an emergency response plan for each school in the school district in accordance
with minimum standards developed jointly by the department of education and the division
of emergency management within the department of emergency and military affairs.

33. Provide written notice to the parents or guardians of all students affected in
the school district at least thirty days prior to a public meeting to discuss closing a
school within the school district. The notice shall include the reasons for the proposed
closure and the time and place of the meeting. The governing board shall fix a time for
a public meeting on the proposed closure no less than thirty days before voting in a
public meeting to close the school. The school district governing board shall give notice
of the time and place of the meeting. At the time and place designated in the notice, the
school district governing board shall hear reasons for or against closing the school.
The school district governing board is exempt from this paragraph if it is determined by
the governing board that the school shall be closed because it poses a danger to the
health or safety of the pupils or employees of the school.

34. Incorporate instruction on Native American history into appropriate existing
curricula.

35. Prescribe and enforce policies and procedures allowing pupils who have been
diagnosed with anaphylaxis by a health care provider licensed pursuant to title 32,
chapter 13, 14, 17 or 25 or by a registered nurse practitioner licensed and certified
pursuant to title 32, chapter 15 to carry and self-administer emergency medications,
including auto-injectable epinephrine, while at school and at school sponsored
activities. The pupil's name on the prescription label on the medication container or on
the medication device and annual written documentation from the pupil's parent or
guardian to the school that authorizes possession and self-administration is sufficient
proof that the pupil is entitled to the possession and self-administration of the
medication. The policies shall require a pupil who uses auto-injectable epinephrine while
at school and at school sponsored activities to notify the nurse or the designated school
staff person of the use of the medication as soon as practicable. A school district and
its employees are immune from civil liability with respect to all decisions made and
actions taken that are based on good faith implementation of the requirements of this
paragraph, except in cases of wanton or wilful neglect.

36. Allow the possession and self-administration of prescription medication for
breathing disorders in handheld inhaler devices by pupils who have been prescribed that
medication by a health care professional licensed pursuant to title 32. The pupil's name
on the prescription label on the medication container or on the handheld inhaler device
and annual written documentation from the pupil's parent or guardian to the school that
authorizes possession and self-administration shall be sufficient proof that the pupil is
entitled to the possession and self-administration of the medication. A school district
and its employees are immune from civil liability with respect to all decisions made and
actions taken that are based on a good faith implementation of the requirements of this
paragraph.

37. Prescribe and enforce policies and procedures to prohibit pupils from harassing,
intimidating and bullying other pupils on school grounds, on school property, on school
buses, at school bus stops and at school sponsored events and activities that include the
following components:

(a) A procedure for pupils to confidentially report to school officials incidents
of harassment, intimidation or bullying.

(b) A procedure for parents and guardians of pupils to submit written reports to
school officials of suspected incidents of harassment, intimidation or bullying.

(c) A requirement that school district employees report suspected incidents of
harassment, intimidation or bullying to the appropriate school official.

(d) A formal process for the documentation of reported incidents of harassment,
intimidation or bullying and for the confidentiality, maintenance and disposition of this
documentation. If a school maintains documentation of reported incidents of harassment,
intimidation or bullying, the school shall not use that documentation to impose
disciplinary action unless the appropriate school official has investigated and
determined that the reported incidents of harassment, intimidation or bullying occurred.

(e) A formal process for the investigation by the appropriate school officials of
suspected incidents of harassment, intimidation or bullying.

(f) Disciplinary procedures for pupils who have admitted or been found to have
committed incidents of harassment, intimidation or bullying.

(g) A procedure that sets forth consequences for submitting false reports of
incidents of harassment, intimidation or bullying.

38. Prescribe and enforce policies and procedures regarding changing or adopting
attendance boundaries that include the following components:

(a) A procedure for holding public meetings to discuss attendance boundary changes
or adoptions that allows public comments.

(b) A procedure to notify the parents or guardians of the students affected.

(d) A process for placing public meeting notices and proposed maps on the school
district's website for public review, if the school district maintains a website.

(e) A formal process for presenting the attendance boundaries of the affected area
in public meetings that allows public comments.

(f) A formal process for notifying the residents and parents or guardians of the
affected area as to the decision of the governing board on the school district's website,
if the school district maintains a website.

(g) A formal process for updating attendance boundaries on the school district's
website within ninety days of an adopted boundary change. The school district shall send
a direct link to the school district's attendance boundaries website to the department of
real estate.

(h) If the land that a school was built on was donated within the past five years,
a formal process to notify the entity that donated the land affected by the decision of
the governing board.

39. If the state board of education determines that the school district has
committed an overexpenditure as defined in section 15-107, provide a copy of the fiscal
management report submitted pursuant to section 15-107, subsection H on its website and
make copies available to the public on request. The school district shall comply with a
request within five business days after receipt.

40. Ensure that the contract for the superintendent is structured in a manner where
at least twenty per cent of the total annual compensation and benefits included for the
superintendent in the contract is classified as performance pay. Nothing in this
paragraph shall be construed to require school districts to increase total compensation
for superintendents. Unless the school district governing board votes to implement an
alternative procedure at a public meeting called for this purpose, the performance pay
portion of the superintendent's total annual compensation shall be determined as follows:

(a) Twenty-five per cent of the performance pay shall be determined based on the
percentage of academic gain determined by the department of education of pupils who are
enrolled in the school district compared to the academic gain achieved by the highest
ranking of the fifty largest school districts in this state. For the purposes of this
subdivision, the department of education shall determine academic gain by the academic
growth achieved by each pupil who has been enrolled at the same school in a school
district for at least five consecutive months measured against that pupil's academic
results in the 2008-2009 school year. For the purposes of this subdivision, of the fifty
largest school districts in this state, the school district with pupils who demonstrate
the highest statewide percentage of overall academic gain measured against academic
results for the 2008-2009 school year shall be assigned a score of 100 and the school
district with pupils who demonstrate the lowest statewide percentage of overall academic
gain measured against academic results for the 2008-2009 school year shall be assigned a
score of 0.

(b) Twenty-five per cent of the performance pay shall be determined by the
percentage of parents of pupils who are enrolled at the school district who assign a
letter grade of "A" to the school on a survey of parental satisfaction with the school
district. The parental satisfaction survey shall be administered and scored by an
independent entity that is selected by the governing board and that demonstrates
sufficient expertise and experience to accurately measure the results of the survey. The
parental satisfaction survey shall use standard random sampling procedures and provide
anonymity and confidentiality to each parent who participates in the survey. The letter
grade scale used on the parental satisfaction survey shall direct parents to assign one
of the following letter grades:

(i) A letter grade of "A" if the school district is excellent.

(ii) A letter grade of "B" if the school district is above average.

(iii) A letter grade of "C" if the school district is average.

(iv) A letter grade of "D" if the school district is below average.

(v) A letter grade of "F" if the school district is a failure.

(c) Twenty-five per cent of the performance pay shall be determined by the
percentage of teachers who are employed at the school district and who assign a letter
grade of "A" to the school on a survey of teacher satisfaction with the school. The
teacher satisfaction survey shall be administered and scored by an independent entity
that is selected by the governing board and that demonstrates sufficient expertise and
experience to accurately measure the results of the survey. The teacher satisfaction
survey shall use standard random sampling procedures and provide anonymity and
confidentiality to each teacher who participates in the survey. The letter grade scale
used on the teacher satisfaction survey shall direct teachers to assign one of the
following letter grades:

(i) A letter grade of "A" if the school district is excellent.

(ii) A letter grade of "B" if the school district is above average.

(iii) A letter grade of "C" if the school district is average.

(iv) A letter grade of "D" if the school district is below average.

(v) A letter grade of "F" if the school district is a failure.

(d) Twenty-five per cent of the performance pay shall be determined by other
criteria selected by the governing board.

B. Notwithstanding subsection A, paragraphs 7, 9 and 11 of this section, the county
school superintendent may construct, improve and furnish school buildings or purchase or
sell school sites in the conduct of an accommodation school.

C. If any school district acquires real or personal property, whether by purchase,
exchange, condemnation, gift or otherwise, the governing board shall pay to the county
treasurer any taxes on the property that were unpaid as of the date of acquisition,
including penalties and interest. The lien for unpaid delinquent taxes, penalties and
interest on property acquired by a school district:

1. Is not abated, extinguished, discharged or merged in the title to the property.

2. Is enforceable in the same manner as other delinquent tax liens.

D. The governing board may not locate a school on property that is less than
one-fourth mile from agricultural land regulated pursuant to section 3-365, except that
the owner of the agricultural land may agree to comply with the buffer zone requirements
of section 3-365. If the owner agrees in writing to comply with the buffer zone
requirements and records the agreement in the office of the county recorder as a
restrictive covenant running with the title to the land, the school district may locate a
school within the affected buffer zone. The agreement may include any stipulations
regarding the school, including conditions for future expansion of the school and changes
in the operational status of the school that will result in a breach of the agreement.

E. A school district, its governing board members, its school council members and
its employees are immune from civil liability for the consequences of adoption and
implementation of policies and procedures pursuant to subsection A of this section and
section 15-342. This waiver does not apply if the school district, its governing board
members, its school council members or its employees are guilty of gross negligence or
intentional misconduct.

F. A governing board may delegate in writing to a superintendent, principal or head
teacher the authority to prescribe procedures that are consistent with the governing
board's policies.

G. Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, a school district governing
board shall not take any action that would result in a reduction of pupil square footage
unless the governing board notifies the school facilities board established by section
15-2001 of the proposed action and receives written approval from the school facilities
board to take the action. A reduction includes an increase in administrative space that
results in a reduction of pupil square footage or sale of school sites or buildings, or
both. A reduction includes a reconfiguration of grades that results in a reduction of
pupil square footage of any grade level. This subsection does not apply to temporary
reconfiguration of grades to accommodate new school construction if the temporary
reconfiguration does not exceed one year. The sale of equipment that results in a
reduction that falls below the equipment requirements prescribed in section 15-2011,
subsection B is subject to commensurate withholding of school district capital outlay
revenue limit monies pursuant to the direction of the school facilities board. Except as
provided in section 15-342, paragraph 10, proceeds from the sale of school sites,
buildings or other equipment shall be deposited in the school plant fund as provided in
section 15-1102.

H. Subsections C through G of this section apply to a county board of supervisors
and a county school superintendent when operating and administering an accommodation
school.