Collaborative School Committee By-Laws 2021-2022

CEC Early College

2650 Eliot St.

Denver, CO 80211

CEC MISSION 

The mission of the Career Education Center Early College is to ensure that 100% of our students make successful life choices by supporting and guiding them in real-world college and career experiences.

CEC VISION

Preparing all students for career success in a global economy.

PURPOSE

The purpose of these bylaws is to provide the CSC with an established set of rules and procedures under which to most effectively function.  In addition to these bylaws, the CSC will function within Board of Education Policy BDF-R4 which in many instances specifies CSC requirements and functions, and the Agreement between the Denver Classroom Teachers Association (DCTA) and the Denver Public School District, hereafter referred to as the Agreement.

The purpose and scope of the CSC is now found in Board of Education Policy BDF-R4.

SCOPE

The purpose and scope of the CSC shall be to focus on the Unified Improvement Plan as its primary responsibility at the school based on the “Multiple Measures”. 

These are district-established indicators of individual school performance and data in the following areas:  attendance, graduation-rate, school leadership, instructional quality, student respect, school safety, and other measures such as the School Accountability Rating.

In particular the CSC will work to provide guidance, evaluation, and recommendations regarding staffing allocations as it relates to the UIP, school budget, and school program design, including consultation regarding adjustments that may be made due to pupil-count issues.

COMPOSITION

Membership
The number of members of each CSC shall be determined by the principal. Individuals may volunteer for and/or nominate others for appointment to the CSC. Elections to appoint members to the CSC should be held as needed every year.  The composition of the CSC should be, at a minimum, as follows:

* Schools that have a student board of education are required to have two student board of education representatives on the school CSC 

The CEC CSC Co-Chair Positions – The CEC CSC Co-Chairs will set the CSC agenda in coordination with the principal and are responsible for running each CSC meeting and the CSC evaluation of the principal. The Co-Chair positions will be held by one CEC parent and one CEC student representative. 

Member Diversity

The diversity of the school community should be represented in the CSC membership.

Terms

CSC members are elected to a one or two-year term.  Members may be elected to no more than three (3) successive terms.  Staggered terms may be used to promote continuity.

ELECTIONS

Date

Election of CSC members shall be held in the month of May for the following school year or within the first two weeks of school.

Nominations

Persons nominated for the CSC must adhere to and sign a nomination form.  Nomination forms will clearly state due-dates and must be in the office by the date and time specified.  The CSC will be notified; the ballots will be prepared and sent to the appropriate constituents in accordance with the below election procedures.

Election

Transition of New Members

Orientation for new members should include the following:

Vacancies

If a vacancy occurs during the school year, the remaining members of the CSC shall fill the vacancy by majority vote (remaining CSC members should look to fill the vacancy with a representative of the constituent group that the vacating member represented).  Upon completion of his/her vacancy term, he/she may be re-elected for a full term.  The vacancy term served will not be counted as a successive term.  In case of vacancy of the business/employer or community representative position, a CSC committee member will recommend a business representative to the remaining CSC committee members for approval.

Removal

Grounds for Removal

A CSC member may be removed from the CSC if:

Removal Process

Appeal of Removal

Recall

Recall of CSC member elected by a constituency group

A CSC member elected by a constituency group (teachers, parents or guardians, classified employees, or students) may be recalled using the following process:

Step 1. A constituent from that group contacts the CSC to inform them of their intent to recall the member.

Step 2. The constituent circulates a petition to call for a recall election.  The required number of names for a petition to be valid will be 30% or greater of the eligible voters for a teacher or classified member, and 30% or greater of the actual number of votes cast to elect a parent/guardian or student representative.

Step 3. The constituent presents the petition for recall to the CSC, and the CSC verifies that the petition contains the required number of signatures. 

Step 4. If the CSC verifies that the petition contains the required number of signatures, the CSC will hold a recall election.

Step 5. The CSC member will be recalled by a majority of voting members of the relevant constituency group.

Step 6. If the CSC member is recalled, the remaining members of the CSC will fill the vacancy using the above vacancy procedures. 

Recall of CSC member elected by the other members of the CSC

A CSC member elected by the other members of the CSC (adult member of an organization of parents, teachers and students recognized by the school; or business/employer or community representative from the local community) may be recalled using the following process:

Step 1. A member of the CSC informs the full CSC of their intent to recall the member. 

Step 2. The CSC member circulates a petition to the CSC to call for a recall election.  The required number of names for a petition to be valid will be 30% or greater of the existing members of the CSC. 

Step 3. The CSC member presents the petition for recall to the CSC, and the CSC verifies that the petition contains the required number of signatures.

Step 4. If the CSC verifies that the petition contains the required number of signatures, the CSC will hold a recall election.

Step 5. The CSC member will be recalled by a majority of the CSC.

Step 6. If the CSC member is recalled, the remaining members of the CSC will fill the vacancy using the above vacancy procedures.  

MEETINGS

Date   

CSC meetings should be scheduled by the CSC and held a minimum of once a month.

Officers

Duties should be assigned at the beginning of the school year by consensus of the committee.  Leadership positions should consist of a CSC committee chairperson and a secretary.

Chairperson

The chairperson is responsible for maintaining order of each meeting.  This is achieved through effective facilitation of discussions, recognizing the individual who has the floor and conducting the collaborative resolution for issues under consideration by the CSC committee.

Secretary

The secretary is responsible for compiling the meeting minutes along with a list of decisions made for all meetings.  The CSC Secretary should compile minutes of each meeting in a notebook for each school year.

Agendas

Agendas should be made available to staff and the community at least one working day before the CSC meeting.

A partial agenda for the next meeting should be discussed at the conclusion of each meeting.  A final agenda will be prepared through consultation with the principal and chairperson with input from the committee members.  Agendas will be posted on the CSC communication board and/or other agreed-upon location.  Topics for consideration must be submitted to the CSC committee.  These may be submitted in writing or to a CSC committee member.  It is the responsibility of each CSC member to present issues conveyed to them with the intent that the information be shared with the CSC committee.

Minutes 

Minutes from the most recent meeting should be made available to staff and to the community in a timely fashion and put in CSC file for the school’s records.

Quorum

A quorum must be present at the CSC committee meeting in order to enact, or take action upon issues.

Decision-Making

Decisions should be made by consensus.  A consensus decision is either unanimous or a majority decision that the entire committee (including dissenter(s)) will implement and support.  The CSC will seek to operate in an environment marked by mutual support and respect.  Collaborative decision-making is based upon trust and on the belief in the strength of shared responsibility in decision-making.  All participants must be able to state their cases, be listened to, and have their points of view considered.

Conflict of Interest

Members of the CSC shall disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest and, to the extent necessary, shall recuse themselves from participating in a decision where an actual conflict of interest exists.

Open Meetings

Meetings shall be open to the public.

Notice of meetings shall be posted in a timely fashion in appropriate public places as well as published in the school calendar, newsletter or other appropriate medium.

Public Input 

At least once a month, CSC meetings should include time for public input.

COMMUNICATION

Constituency Meetings

To the extent possible, the CSC should communicate with the constituency groups they represent to inform them about the activities of the CSC.  Bi annual constituent meetings are recommended and should be scheduled in advance with the principal to avoid conflict with other activities.

COMMITTEES

To understand what is distinctive about Collaborative School Committees from other school committees (School Leadership Team, Personnel Committee and English Language Acquisition Parent Advisory Committee ELA PAC), we begin with the recognition that CSC is defined in Board of Education Policy BDF-R4, the SLT and PC are outlined in the contractual agreement between the Denver Classroom Teachers Association (DCTA) and the school district; and ELA-PACs are called for in the Order of the 1999 U.S. District Court – Denver Public Schools English Language Acquisition Program.

What the Agreement now affirms is that there will be a Collaborative School Committee at each school site. 

The CSC is one of 5 separate committees  

Understanding role and function of each committee, how each committee has a distinct task and how they inter-connect is important for each CSC member.

Personnel Committee

The Personnel Committee stands apart from the CSC and provides oversight for UIP staffing decisions. (Please note that there may be up to two parents on the Personnel Committee (PC), appointed by the CSC. The PC is defined in Article 13.8 of the Agreement).

School Leadership Team 

The School Leadership Team reviews data and collaborates on the development of the UIP and professional development among its responsibilities. More on responsibilities can be found in Articles 5.4 and 8 of the Agreement.  

Instructional Leadership Team (ILT)

The Instructional Leadership Team works with the principal to gather and analyze data key to meeting UIP goals and actions.  In addition, it plans for and leads professional development of staff related to instruction.  Representatives include teachers from each grade level team.  May also include SpEd, specials and interventionists

English Language Acquisition Parent Advisory Committee (ELA PAC)  

Every ELA Program school must have a Parent Advisory Committee (PAC), chosen by the parents of students receiving ELA Program services at the school. The purpose of the ELA PAC is to provide information regarding the ELA Program, increase communication between ELL parents and the District, review implementation of the ELA Program, and listen to concerns of parents. The ELA PAC may be a subcommittee of a larger committee.  At least 2 parent representatives must attend monthly District meetings and report back to the school committee. 

See full mandate on Chapter 6 Parental Oversight, of the 2012 Consent Decree of the U.S. District Court – Denver Public Schools English Language Acquisition Program

Communication among all school committees (Collaborative School Committee, Personnel Committee, School Leadership Team, ELA PAC) should flow concisely and regularly

They should understand their separate work, as well as common roles and functions and support what each is doing:

OTHER COMMITTEES

At any time, the CSC committee may create task forces, or standing subcommittees to facilitate the completion of the CSC committee’s work.  The CSC committee has final decision-making authority over all CSC-created subcommittees and task forces.  These subcommittees or task forces should consist of anyone within the school community including staff, parents, students and/or community members.

Decision Process

All subcommittee and task forces created by the CSC committee should follow the same collaborative decision-making guidelines for the decision-making process as the CSC committee within the boundaries of decision-making delegated to them by the CSC committee. 

AMENDMENTS

Amendments to Bylaws

Amendments to the bylaws should be made by consensus of the CSC committee in accordance with the DCTA and District Agreement, state laws, regulations, District policies and procedures.

Recording Amendments to Bylaws

Amendment(s) to these bylaws should be incorporated into the body of the bylaws resulting in a new set of bylaws.  The date of the amendment to these bylaws should appear on each page of the bylaws.  It is recommended that bylaws and procedures are reviewed annually.