The Ocean Gate Board of Education encourages volunteers and/or residents of the community who are especially qualified because of training, experience, or personal characteristics to take an active part in school affairs. Such persons may be invited to act as advisers both as groups and individually in:

A. Clarifying the general ideas and attitudes held by our residents regarding school;

B. Determining the purposes of courses of study and special services to be provided for pupils; evaluating
the extent to which these purposes are being achieved by present practices;

C. Giving active assistance to the professional staff in the actual operation of classes and services where the chief school administrator and staff deem such aid valuable;

D. Offering suggestions on a specific problem or set of closely related problems about which the board must make a decision;

E. Coordinating the delivery of social services to students.

Volunteers carrying out prescribed functions under the supervision of designated professional staff members shall be covered by the board’s liability insurance policy.

The board may waive the criminal history background check for volunteers. If the board determines to exercise its discretion and require such checks, it must pay the fee for the volunteer to be printed as well as all administrative costs.

The chief school administrator/principal shall supervise development of programs and procedures to enlist community participation in school events and deliberations. He/she shall keep on file information on all volunteers and documentation that requirements of law have been fulfilled.

The board, chief school administrator/principal, and the staff shall give substantial weight to the advice that they receive from individuals and community groups interested in the school, especially those individuals and groups that have been invited or created to advise them regarding selected problems. The board, chief school administrator, and staff shall use their own best judgment in arriving at decisions.

The chief school administrator/principal shall report to the public annually on all aspects of community support of the educational program.

Adopted: December 19, 2007
NJSBA Review/Update: August 2008, October 2017
Readopted: January 21, 2009
Reviewed:

Key Words

Community Volunteers, Volunteers, Public Participation

Legal References: N.J.S.A. 18A:11-1 General mandatory powers and duties
N.J.S.A. 18A:54-20 Powers of board (county vocational schools)

Possible
Cross References: *1000/1010 Concepts and roles in community relations; goals and objectives
*1120 Board of education meetings
1210 Community organizations
*1220 Ad hoc advisory committees
*5020 Role of parents/guardians
*6162.4 Community resources

*Indicates policy is included in the Critical Policy Reference Manual.