Secondary Programming and Curriculum Committee (SPCC) Description
Original Creation Date: July 2018
Last Approved By: PACT Charter School Board of Directors
Last Approved Date: March 5, 2020
Year Reviewed: 2019-2020
PRIMARY OBJECTIVE
The primary purpose of the Secondary Programming and Curriculum Committee (SPCC) is to preserve the integrity of the secondary education program at PACT Charter School while supporting the vision and mission of the school as it applies to the curriculum. SPCC works collaboratively, as needed, to enhance the K-12 academic program. The Secondary Programming and Curriculum Committee is an advisory committee to the School Board.
MEMBERSHIP CRITERIA
SPCC is an open committee, with membership being defined by being a stakeholder at PACT. A stakeholder includes secondary parents, teachers, staff, and students. All stakeholders are encouraged to attend meetings and participate when recognized by the chair. All attendees will have their vote recorded on all recommendations to the School Board.
The Principal of Building Operations acts as a participatory advisor and can make motions without voting.
Note: Parents of students enrolled for an upcoming school term or teachers hired for a forthcoming school term may attend and participate in meetings before the school term to become familiar with the school and community, but they may not vote until the school term begins.
MEMBER RESPONSIBILITIES
All members must be familiar with PACT’s 202 - Conflict of Interest Policy and 214- Code of Conduct.
The Secondary Programming and Curriculum Committee chair and co-chair should be elected by their committee annually, in May. To foster parental involvement, leadership, and collaboration, the chairperson will be a parent, while the co-chair will be a teacher. The chair and co-chair should collaborate with the administration on setting the agenda.
COMMITTEE DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
- SPCC is authorized by the PACT School Board to preserve the integrity of the secondary programs, course materials and their method of delivery. Exceptions may be made by the administration when deemed necessary due to the controversial or legal nature or significant financial impact of such decisions.
- SPCC should review and select curriculum and educational materials that provide a rigorous foundation of core academics; align with MN state standards and benchmarks; align with and support the character traits emphasized in the school; and develop critical thinking, study, and organizational skills
- SPCC should review course documents (new and revised) including class syllabi and common course outlines
- SPCC will determine the necessary tasks and delegate ImPACT teams on an as-needed basis.
- SPCC shall review and make suggested changes to policies as deemed necessary. Such suggested changes to policies shall be subject to Board approval.
- SPCC may make recommendations to the administration regarding the building requirements and/or required floor space needed to implement program requirements.
- SPCC shall submit an annual budget request, for the following year, following the 314 - Annual Budget Process Policy and timeline.
- Each member with fiscal responsibility will track expenditures to ensure that they are remaining within budgeted allocations. If additional funds are necessary beyond the overall budget for the program, a request may be made to the Budget and Finance Committee and forwarded to the PACT School Board.
- SPCC shall approve reallocations between and within departments within the SPCC budget for amounts over $1000. The Principal of Building Operations shall approve reallocations within departments for costs of $1000 or less, as needed.
- Minutes must be taken at all meetings. Approved Minutes will be posted within five school days of approval and distributed according to the 105 - Document Management Policy.
- Meeting dates must be posted in advance on the school calendar. A committee calendar will be published before the upcoming school year, which will cover August through June.
- Meeting times – At the conclusion of the Community ImPACT, SPCC will meet from 6:30 p.m.-8:00 p.m. To extend the meeting time past 8:00 p.m., there must be a unanimous vote. The meeting must end by 9:00 p.m.
- All Committees will comply with the 1 - Advanced Notice of Agenda Policy, and MN Open Meeting Law by posting the agenda a minimum of 48 hours in advance of any meeting and indicating which items will require a vote at the meeting. The SPCC Chair and Co-Chair and Secondary Programming Director will review the SPCC agenda before distribution/posting. Note: Any member wishing to have an item considered for inclusion on the SPCC agenda should communicate with the committee chair and co-chair at least seven school days in advance of the meeting. It will be essential to provide as much documentation as possible so that the chair and co-chair can determine where to place the item on the agenda and how best to approach the topic.
Note: See 205 - Governing Entities of PACT Charter School Policy for General Rules of Conduct, Authority and Accountability, which also apply to the Secondary Programming Committee.
ADMINISTRATIVE OVERSIGHT
One of the responsibilities of the Executive Director and Principals is to advise committees in their work, and they are to be generally aware of all committee recommendations (through attendance and/or minutes).
VOTING
Voting on Recommendations to the Board:
Members of EPCC shall exercise one vote and must be present to cast that vote. All votes shall be public (whether by a show of hands or voice vote) and will be recorded. Votes will be recorded for/against in the following three categories: parent, staff, student. Concerns expressed during the discussion will also be documented and shared with the School Board.
Voting on Curriculum Approval and for Other Items under the purview of SPCC:
Each parent, and teacher who are present at an SPCC meeting shall exercise one vote and must be present to cast that vote. Student council will have one vote. All votes shall be public (whether by a show of hands or voice vote) and will be recorded. Items will be approved by a simple majority vote.
QUORUM REQUIREMENTS
A quorum is required to ensure decisions occur with adequate input from parents, teachers, administration, staff, and students. A quorum is necessary to start or continue a meeting and is a minimum of three members, with at least one parent member and one teacher member. Meetings may be held without meeting the “quorum for voting purposes.” This meeting would be for information and discussion purposes only. If recommendations must be made to meet emergency timelines (as agreed to by the unanimous vote of the committee and administration), the committee may vote on each item it determines to meet this criterion and the non-quorum status would be clarified in the minutes for Board information and decision-making. An emergency is a decision that cannot wait until the next SPCC meeting.
JOINT SESSION WITH ANOTHER COMMITTEE
Joint Sessions are two different Board Committees meeting together to consider a common agenda item. The Chairs and Co-chairs for each committee shall collaborate to determine the Agenda for the Joint Session. Joint Session Agenda items shall appear on each committee’s regular agenda. Whenever two committees convene for a joint session, votes shall be recorded by each committee separately on matters considered. When voting the member will notify the chairs as to which committee he/she will be casting their vote.
ImPACT TEAM GUIDELINES
SPCC may commission an ImPACT Team to accomplish a specific task(s) and to report back to SPCC. Before establishing a task force, the oversight committee should review and follow the guidelines for an ImPACT Team outline in the 205 - Committees of PACT Charter School Policy.
SETTING GOALS
SPCC should establish goals for each school year that work toward the School Board’s goals by their October meeting. These goals should be reviewed in December and April each year.
ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION TOOLS
Communication groups may be established (according to 716 - Internet Groups Policy) to maintain efficiencies in the document and information distribution.