Elk Rapids Schools
Bylaws & Policies
 

9130 - PUBLIC COMPLAINTS

The Board of Education acknowledges that, although it has a duty to protect its staff from unnecessary harassment, it believes that any person or group of persons having a legitimate interest in the operation of the schools has the right to present requests, suggestions and complaints to the District and has the right to have them heard. It is the desire of the Board to provide a means to receive requests and suggestions from the public, to rectify any misunderstandings between the public and the District through direct, informal discussions among the interested parties and, whenever such informal discussions fail to resolve the problem(s), to provide the means of judging and seeking an appropriate remedy for each public complaint in a fair and impartial manner.

9130.1

District Complaint Procedure
   
 

Any person or group of persons having a complaint against the School District or any part of the school organization may bring it forward, except that no employee of the District who is a member of a collective bargaining unit may bring forth any complaint involving wages, hours or other conditions of employment recognized as legitimate bargaining subjects by the laws governing such agreements, as long as any collective bargaining agreement remains in effect between the employee's bargaining unit and the District.
   
 

A complaint shall be properly brought forward, except one regarding educational program content or instructional materials used in the schools.
   
 

The person or group of persons who believes he/she/it has a valid basis for a complaint shall first discuss the problem(s) informally and on a verbal basis with the school employee involved in the complaint.
 

If a complaint cannot be resolved through such discussion with the employee, the complainant shall next discuss it with the building principal or the designated supervisor under whose supervision the circumstances of the complaint are alleged to have occurred. The principal or supervisor shall investigate and reply with his/her verbal answer to the complaint within five (5) business days or written answer within ten (10) business days after the discussion occurred. If a verbal reply is not acceptable to the complainant(s), the complainant(s) shall be allowed five (5) business days to provide a written request for a written reply from the verbal respondent. The principal or supervisor shall provide a written reply within five (5) business days following receipt of such request. If the written reply is not acceptable to the complainant(s), the formal District Complaint Procedure may be initiated as follows:
   
 

Step 1. APPEAL TO THE SUPERINTENDENT
   
 

Within ten (10) business days of the receipt of the unacceptable answer from the principal or supervisor the complainant(s) may submit a signed, written statement of the complaint to the Superintendent. The statement must specify all pertinent facts and contentions of the complaint and the relief sought. The Superintendent shall then investigate the complaint further and, within fifteen (15) business days, shall reply to the complainant(s), in writing, stating his/her ruling and disposition of the complaint. If the Superintendent's answer includes denial of all or part of any relief sought, it shall also include the reason(s) for such denial. If the reason(s) for denial include (1) that it would be against a law, rule or regulation of the United States, the State of Michigan or the State Board of Education to grant the relief sought or (2) that it is beyond the powers of the Superintendent and the Board of Education to grant the relief sought, the Superintendent's disposition of the complaint shall be final.
 

Step 2. APPEAL TO THE BOARD OF EDUCATION
   
 

In the absence of any of the limitations in Step 1 above, the complainant(s) may appeal the Superintendent's decision to the Board of Education by submitting a signed statement requesting a place on the agenda of an official Board meeting for the purpose of presenting the complaint, appealing the decision and disposition made by the Superintendent and asking the Board to grant the relief sought. The statement must be addressed to "The Board of Education, Elk Rapids Schools", and received in the Superintendent's Office within fifteen (15) business days after the complainant(s) received the Superintendent's reply in Step 1. Included with it must be a copy of the complaint as originally filed with the Superintendent, or a similar, signed statement specifying all material facts and contentions pertaining to the complaint and the relief sought. If the written request meets these requirements and is received within the specified time, the complainant(s) shall be granted a place on the agenda of the next regular Board meeting which is more than ten (10) business days from the date of receipt of the statement at the Superintendent's Office but not more than forty-five (45) calendar days thereafter. A special Board meeting may be called within the forty-five (45) day limit to consider the complaint. Time allotted to the complainant(s) shall be limited to thirty (30) minutes and shall be for the purpose of elaborating the circumstances and contentions stated in the written complaint. At the conclusion of the complainant(s) presentation, the Board shall allow up to thirty (30) minutes for others present to contribute information, pro or con, concerning the complaint. The Board may then:
   
 

A.

Take immediate action to grant or deny the relief sought by the complainant(s) or otherwise settle the complaint based upon the facts presented and others known to it;
     
 

B.

Postpone action toward settlement to a future regular or special meeting of the Board in order to allow time for further, more thorough investigation of the complaint; or
     
 

C.

Call for and schedule a hearing to be held under its established rules, in order to more completely and more thoroughly determine the facts involved in the complaint.
 

Appeals not made within the stated time limits shall be considered to have been settled according to the last settlement decision rendered. Failure to receive a response to an appeal within the stated response time shall allow the complainant(s) to appeal immediately to the next step in the District complaint procedure.
   
 

Board resolutions made with regard to any complaint shall have the same authority and legal status as any other resolution passed by the Board.
   
 

Students, or parents on behalf of students, and employees of the District may initiate this complaint procedure as if they were members of the general public. Student complaints shall first be discussed with the employee most closely involved in the complaint (i.e., teacher, bus driver, librarian, aide, etc.), then if necessary with that person's immediate supervisor. District employees shall initiate the procedure with an informal discussion with his/her immediate supervisor, then if necessary with an appeal to the next higher authority.
   

9130.2

Matters Regarding the Superintendent
   
 

Should the matter be a concern regarding the Superintendent which cannot be resolved through discussion with the Superintendent, the complainant may submit a written request for a conference to the Board. This request should include:
   
 

A.

the specific nature of the complaint and a brief statement of the facts giving rise to it;
     
 

B.

the respect in which it is alleged that the complainant (or child of the complainant) has been affected adversely;
     
 

C.

the reason that matter was not able to be resolved with the Superintendent;
     
 

D.

the action which the complainant wishes taken and the reasons why it is felt that such action should be taken.
   
 

The Board, after reviewing the request, may grant a hearing before the Board or a committee of the Board or refer the matter to an executive session.
 

The complainant shall be advised, in writing, of the Board's decision within thirty (30) business days. The Board's decision will be final and not subject to appeal.
   
 

The complainant is not to discuss the matter with an individual Board member as a Board member has no authority except when the Board is in session.
   

9130.3

Complaints Regarding Instructional Materials and Course Content
   
 

The Superintendent shall prepare administrative guidelines to ensure that students and parents are adequately informed each year regarding their right to inspect instructional materials and the procedure for completing such an inspection. (see AG 9130A and Form 9130 F3)
   
 

Complaints regarding the content of or the instructional materials used in any course taught in any of the schools shall be made in writing addressed to the principal of the school involved. Instructional materials are textbooks, library books, reference works, motion pictures, audio tapes, video tapes and other instructional aids used in the District.
   
 

In order to be valid, the complaint shall include the following information regarding the material involved:
   
 

A.

the author of the material in question,
     
 

B.

the title(s),
     
 

C.

the name of the publisher,
     
 

D.

the complainant's familiarity with the material objected to,
     
 

E.

the sections objected to, by page and item, and
     
 

F.

the reasons for objection.
 

Complaints shall be handled in a timely manner by the principal who shall attempt to resolve each complaint by verbal discussion(s) with the complainant(s). If a matter cannot be resolved in this manner, the complainant(s) shall submit a written complaint to the principal within ten (10) business days of the last discussion. The principal shall forward such complaint to the Superintendent for administrative consideration and shall immediately appoint a review committee which shall consist of three (3) professional staff members approved in advance by the Superintendent. This committee shall evaluate the questioned material in regard to its accuracy, objectivity, appropriateness for the age and maturity level of the students with whom it is being used and the appropriateness of the use being made of it and shall report its findings and recommendations to the Superintendent within twenty (20) business days following receipt of the written complaint. No questioned material shall be withdrawn from the educational program of the District before this report reaches the Superintendent.
   
 

Within thirty (30) business days of receipt of the written complaint, the Superintendent shall render to the complainant(s) a report in writing of his/her decision for settlement of the matter, which shall be generally in agreement with the committee's recommendation(s). Where differences occur, the Superintendent shall include and may explain the reason(s) for those differences.
 

Complainants may appeal the decision of the Superintendent to the Board within fifteen (15) business days of its receipt by submitting a signed statement requesting a place on the agenda of an official Board meeting for the purpose of presenting the complaint, appealing the disposition made of it by the Superintendent and asking the Board to grant the relief sought. The statement must be addressed to "The Board of Education, Elk Rapids Schools", and be received in the Superintendent's office within the time specified. Included with it must be a copy of the complaint as originally given to the principal and a copy of every other piece of written material relating to the matter. If the written request meets these requirements, the complainant(s) shall be granted a place on the agenda of the next regular Board meeting which is more than ten (10) business days from the date of receipt of the statement at the Superintendent's office but not more than forty-five (45) calendar days thereafter. A special Board meeting may be called within the forty-five (45) day limit to consider the complaint. Time allotted to the complainant(s) shall be limited to thirty (30) minutes and shall be for the purpose of elaborating the circumstances and contentions stated in the written complaint. At the end of the presentation by the complainant(s), the Board shall allow up to thirty (30) minutes for others present to contribute information, pro or con, concerning the complaint. The Board may refuse to take any action and let the Superintendent's decision stand or it may either override or reinforce the Superintendent's decision by Board resolution.
   
 

No material shall be removed from the curriculum or from a collection of resource materials except by action of the Board. Any Board resolution made to remove material shall include the reason(s) for its removal.
   

9130.4

Suggestions and Requests
   
 

Suggestions and requests received by the principal shall be forwarded to the Superintendent for administrative consideration before any other action may be taken upon them.

20 U.S.C. 1232h

Revised 6/14/93
Revised 12/11/03