Policy BBCA: Prolonged Absence of a Member

It is the expectation that School Committee members will fully participate in School Committee meetings by arriving on time and staying for the duration of the meeting.  School Committee members are expected to attend every School Committee meeting and to attend the meetings of the sub-committees to which they are assigned.  The School Committee recognizes that occasionally a member may have to be absent from a meeting; however, persistent absences interfere with the continuity of the work of the School Committee.  Also, the persistent absence of a member at Regional School Committee meetings decreases that town’s representation and vote at the Regional School Committee meetings.

If a member of the Amherst School Committee or Pelham School Committee will be absent from regular meetings for three or more months because he/she will be living out-of-town for work, sabbatical, family obligations, vacation, or other reasons, the respective School Committee may, by majority vote, request that the member resign from the School Committee.

If such an absence is planned, the member will inform the Chair of his/her elementary School Committee, the Chair of the Amherst-Pelham Regional School Committee, and the Superintendent as soon as possible.

If a member of the Amherst School Committee or Pelham School Committee living in town misses two consecutive months of regular meetings, the Chair will request an explanation for the absences. If a member misses three months of regular meetings out of six, the respective School Committee may, by majority vote, request that the member resign from the School Committee. (See policies BBBC and BBBE)

Region Voted to Approve:
Amherst Voted to Approve: 5/24/11
Pelham Voted to Approve: 8/11/11
Effective Date: