ADMINISTRATIVE LETTER
NO. 16
POLICY CODE:
CBD
T0: Superintendents
of Schools and School Board Chairpersons
FROM: Susan
A. Gendron, Commissioner of Education
SUBJECT: Superintendents
of Schools -- Election or Reelection
DATE: November
1, 2004
Title 20-A M.R.S.A. section
1051 (2) requires that school boards of school administrative units meet during
December of the year preceding the expiration of the superintendent's contract
to elect a superintendent by majority vote of the full membership.
In addition, section 1051(5)
requires the chairman and secretary of the school board to certify under oath
to the commissioner, on forms provided by the commissioner, all facts relating
to the unit's selection of a superintendent.
Pursuant to the statute, this certification must be made both
annually and when a new superintendent is chosen. In the event that an existing
superintendent's contract is extended, or changes are made to the compensation
paid to the superintendent, that information must be reported to the Department
so that appropriate entries can be made on the Certificate of Employment
forms. Department of Education form
EF-A-605 should be used for this purpose. Copies of the minutes of the board action,
and a copy of the superintendent’s contract must accompany the Certificate of
Employment form filed with the Commissioner. Superintendents are reminded that they may
not legally be paid until the Commissioner has approved the Certificate of
Employment.
Regarding school unions, it
should be noted that the union committee of each school union is required by
statute to meet annually in December to carry out the various duties set forth
in 20-A M.R.S.A. section 1902. This
obligation exists whether or not a superintendent is being selected.
In the event of a vacancy,
you may wish to contact the Maine School Management Association to obtain a
copy of "Selection Procedures for Superintendent of Schools."
In supervisory units where
more than one administrative unit employs the superintendent, voting at the
December meeting must be done on a weighted basis. The following are two examples of the method
to be used:
UNION 7
-- 9,925 votes are required to pass an article
UNION 108
Bancroft 3 60 20
Glenwood
Plt. 2 1 1
Orient 2 141 71
Vanceboro 3 141 47
S.A.D.
#14
Danforth 3 619 206
Weston 2 199 100
Codyville 1 18 18
Topsfield 3 219 73
-- 701 votes are required to pass an article
A complete
list of votes by unit is enclosed using the 2003 estimated census counts.
If you notice any errors in the number of
school board members in any of your units,
please contact us as soon as possible.
The day, place and time of
the meeting to consider employment of a superintendent shall be set by the
chairperson of the board in a single unit, and by agreement of the board
chairpersons of all towns in a school union.
The superintendent's office shall notify all board members of the day,
time and place of the meeting at least 7 days in advance of the meeting date.
Superintendents are elected
for specific terms not to exceed 5 years.
The term of office for any superintendent shall end on June 30, with the
year to be specified by board vote. The
superintendent must hold a valid superintendent's certificate when the board
votes to employ or the election shall be declared null and void and without effect. The motion to elect the superintendent and
set the superintendent's salary should specify the time frame within which the
offer must be accepted by the superintendent or candidate. Non-acceptance of the offer means that a
vacancy will occur at the expiration of the current contract agreement.
A copy of the completed
Certificate of Employment must be filed with the treasurer of each member town
of a school union. Forms may be
reproduced locally to meet needs.
SUGGESTED
AGENDA
FOR UNIONS,
CSDs, SADs, MUNICIPAL
SCHOOL UNITS:
1. The union committee or the school board
(SAD, CSD, municipal school unit)
shall meet to elect the superintendent by majority vote
of the full membership.
(This is a requirement during the December meeting of the
year preceding the
expiration of the
superintendent's contract. This is an
optional agenda item in
other years.)
2. The union committee or the school board (SAD, CSD, municipal
school unit)
shall adopt a budget for the operation of the office of
the superintendent of
schools including office assistants, supplies, utilities,
and other expenses.
3. The union committee or the school board (SAD, CSD, municipal
school unit) shall
fix the superintendent's salary.
4. (IF APPLICABLE)
Authorization is given for the superintendent to serve as agent
for town(s) ____________% of the time.
ADDITIONAL ITEM
FOR UNIONS AND
CSDs ONLY:
5. The union committee or the district school committee (CSD)
shall determine
the relative amount of service to be performed by the
superintendent in each unit.
ADDITIONAL ITEMS
FOR UNIONS ONLY:
6. The union committee shall organize by electing annually a
chairman and a secretary
who shall both be members of a school board.
7. The union committee shall determine the minimum number of
visits which the school
superintendent is to make each term to each school.
ADDITIONAL ITEM
FOR UNIONS, CSDs,
AND UNITS COMBINED
FOR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES:
8. The union committee, district school committee (CSD), or
governing body of other units combined for supervisory purposes shall adopt a
written plan of cost sharing for the
supervisory unit.
(Form enclosed for such purpose.)
A copy of the minutes showing the action of the
board and/or joint committee should be attached to the Certificate of Employment,
along with a copy of the superintendent’s contract which should be returned to
the Commissioner’s office directly after the December meeting of the year
preceding the expiration of the superintendent’s contract.
Superintendents of schools are responsible for delivering copies of
this Administrative Letter and appropriate materials to the chairperson of each
board. Questions concerning this letter
should be directed to Patrick Phillips, Deputy Commissioner at 624-6606.
SAG/PRP:gv
Enclosures