2:20 - Powers and Duties of the Board of Education

Powers and Duties of the Board; Indemnification

The Board’s powers and duties include the broad authority to adopt and enforce all necessary policies for the management and governance of public schools and generally include, but are not limited to:

  1. Organizing the Board after each consolidated election by electing officers and establishing its regular meeting schedule and, thereafter, taking action during lawfully called meetings to faithfully fulfill the Board’s responsibilities in accordance with state and federal law;
  2. Formulating, adopting, and modifying Board policies, at its sole discretion, subject only to mandatory collective bargaining agreements and state and federal law;
  3. Employing a superintendent and other personnel, making employment decisions, dismissing personnel, including determining whether an employee has willfully or negligently failed to report an instance of suspected child abuse or neglect as required by 325 ILCS 5/, and establishing an equal employment opportunity policy that prohibits unlawful discrimination;
  4. Directing through policy, the Superintendent’s charge of the District’s administration;
  5. Approving the annual budget, tax levies, major expenditures, payment of obligations, annual audit, and other aspects of the District’s financial operation; and making available a statement of financial affairs as provided in state law;
  6. Entering contracts in accordance with applicable federal and state law, including using the public bidding procedure when required;
  7. Providing, constructing, controlling, and maintaining adequate physical facilities; making school buildings available for use as civil defense shelters; and establishing a resource conservation policy;
  8. Establishing an equal educational opportunities policy that prohibits unlawful discrimination;
  9. Approving the curriculum, educational materials and educational services;
  10. Evaluating the educational program and approving School Improvement and District Improvement Plans;
  11. Presenting the District report card and school report cards to parents/guardians and the community; these documents report District, School, and student performance;
  12. Establishing and supporting student discipline policies designed to maintain an environment conducive to learning, including deciding individual student expulsion or suspension appeal cases brought before it;
  13. Establishing attendance units within the District and assigning students to the schools;
  14. Establishing the school year;
  15. Requiring a moment of silence to recognize veterans during any type of school event held at a school district school on November 11;
  16. Providing student transportation services pursuant to state law;
  17. Entering into joint agreements with other boards to establish cooperative educational programs or provide educational facilities;
  18. Complying with requirements in the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act (ANCRA). Specifically, each individual member of the Board must, if an allegation is raised to the member during an open or closed Board of Education meeting that a student is an abused child as defined in ANCRA, direct or cause the Board to direct the Superintendent or other equivalent school administrator to comply with ANCRA’s requirements concerning the reporting of child abuse;
  19. Notifying the State Superintendent of Education promptly and in writing of the name of a licensed employee who was convicted of a felony, along with the conviction and the name and location of the court where the conviction occurred;
  20. Notifying the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) of the State of Illinois Board of Trustees promptly and in writing when it learns that a teacher as defined in the Illinois Pension Code was convicted of any offense for which a sentence to death or a term of imprisonment for one or more years, along with the name and location of the court where the conviction occurred, and the case number assigned by that court to the conviction; and
  21. Communicating the school’s activities and operations to the community and representing the needs and desires of the community in educational matters.

Indemnification

To the extent allowed by law, the Board shall defend, indemnify, and hold harmless members of the Board, employees, volunteer personnel (pursuant to 105ILCS 5/10-22.34, 10-22.34a and 10-22.34b), mentors of certified staff (pursuant to 105 ILCS 5/2-3.53a, 2-3.53b, and 105 ILCS 5/21A-5 et. seq.), and student teachers who, in the course of discharging their official duties imposed or authorized by law, are sued as parties in a legal proceeding. Nothing herein, however, shall be construed as obligating the Board to defend, indemnify, or hold harmless any person who engages in criminal activity, official misconduct, fraud, intentional or willful and wanton misconduct, or acts beyond the authority properly vested in the individual.

Adopted: November 8, 1999
Revised: February 20, 2007, November 16, 2015, June 27, 2016; November 15, 2021; September 19, 2022; February 26, 2024
Reviewed: June 12, 2023