Addressing the Board
Procedures for Speaking Before the Board
- Any person desiring to be on the Board agenda must submit a request to the Superintendent’s office at least 24 hours prior to the meeting. Requests may be submitted through the online form. A printable form is also available for download on our website.
- Any materials the speaker desires the Board to receive related to their remarks shall be given to the Superintendent or designee for distribution to the Board.
- Items which are excluded from the Open Meetings Act will not be discussed in public during open session. This includes matters such as real estate, individual student matters and personnel items. You may request to address the Board in Executive Session (Student, Personnel, Attorney/Client, or Land Matter ONLY).
- A speaker shall be allowed five (5) minutes for presentation, but when an issue is going to be addressed by several speakers, this time shall be limited to three (3) minutes. When several persons are part of the same group or organization, only one may be heard.
Rules When Appearing Before the Board
Per Policy BCBD: Board Meeting Agendas, the following procedures govern speakers at Board meetings:
Meetings of the Board of Education are held to conduct the affairs and business of the school district. Although these meetings are not meetings of the public, the public is invited to attend all meetings, and citizens may address the Board following the procedures outlined in this policy. All comments to the Board are intended for the Board to hear from citizens but not to take action.
Members of the public shall conduct themselves in a respectful manner that is not disruptive to the conduct of the Board's business. Citizens may not bring signs, flags, banners, and similar items inside the Board meeting or on Board property. Loud and boisterous conduct or comments by speakers or members of the audience are not allowed.
Only residents of Houston County, District employees, and representatives of businesses or organizations may address the Board during public participation.
Timely Request
Any person desiring to be heard by the Board must submit a request to the Superintendent’s office at least 24 hours prior to the meeting. These forms shall be available in the Superintendent’s office and are also available to download from the District website for electronic submittal. The Board reserves the right to hear representatives of the State Department of Education, county commissioners or other county governing authority, or other state or county official(s) on official business on shorter notice. Otherwise, any person who fails to comply with this Section shall not be heard by the Board.
Items which are excluded from the Open Meetings Act will not be discussed in public during open session. This includes matters such as real estate, individual student matters, and personnel items. If necessary, a speaker may request to address the Board in Executive Session.
A speaker shall be allowed five (5) minutes for presentation, but when an issue is going to be addressed by several speakers, this time shall be limited to three (3) minutes. When several persons are part of the same group or organization, only one may be heard. The chairperson shall enforce these limitations.
In regard to called meetings, the topics for addressing the Board will be limited to items that are part of the agenda for said called meeting.
Rules When Appearing Before the Board
- State your name. All remarks shall be made to the Board within five (5) minutes unless the Chair determines to shorten each speaker’s time due to multiple speakers or other time constraints.
- No person shall conduct themselves such that the person engages in Disorderly Conduct as defined in O.C.G.A. 16-11-39 and shall not:
- Be allowed to act in a violent or tumultuous manner toward another person whereby such person is placed in reasonable fear of the safety of such person’s life, limb or health when addressing the Board.
- Without provocation, uses to or of another person in such other person’s presence, opprobrious or abusive words which by their very utterance tend to incite to an immediate breach of the peace, that is to say, words which as a matter of common knowledge and under ordinary circumstances will, when used to or of another person in such other person’s presence, naturally tend to provoke violent resentment, that is, words commonly called “fighting words.”
- Without provocation, uses obscene and vulgar or profane language in the presence of a person under the age of 14 years which threatens an immediate breach of the peace.
- No person shall be allowed to disrupt or interfere with the orderly Board meeting agenda.
- Questions from the Board members and/or Superintendent may be asked for clarification of the speaker’s input for the Board’s future consideration.
- Any person willfully violating these rules may be prohibited from appearing before the Board for up to sixty (60) days. A speaker who violation causes an actual disruption may be removed from the public meeting.