::Ethics Training Anyone?
AB 1234, Regulation 18371 calls for local agencies to provide ethics training for their senior staff and board members, and somewhat ambiguously so. The operative question is:  Does it include public school districts? Peggy Marshburn, chief communications officer at Contra Costa County Office of Education, doesn’t think so, based upon her interpretation of the Institute for Local Government Web page: http://www.cacities.org/index.jsp?zone=ilsg&previewStory=24482. The following paragraph is an excerpt:

“Local agency” means “a city, county, city and county, charter city, charter county, charter city and county, or special district.”(Cal. Gov’t Code § 53234(b).)  Thus the training requirement does not include agencies on which local officials serve (for example, redevelopment agency governing boards or joint powers agencies), although many such officials will likely be covered by virtue of their status with cities, counties and special districts.   Note that it also does not include school districts.

Supporting Marshburn’s take, Janet Frost at Humboldt County Office of Education recently received word from her schools' attorneys that "earlier this year the Legislative Counsel's office issued an opinion that AB 1234 does not apply to school districts, community college districts and county offices of education." However, if your district is taking the conservative approach, the Fair Political Practices Commission web site provides outline of what should be covered.

::Board Member Email Address on Web?
Turns out, CalSPRA members are all over the board when it comes to if and how board members email addresses are made available to the public on district Web sites. Regardless of how your district handles board member email addresses, Karen Parris, media & communications specialist at Murrieta Valley Unified School District, reminds us that board members should be made aware that although there is nothing to prohibit a him or her from using their personal email account to conduct district business and that if a personal email address is used to conduct school district business, all emails to that address, including personal emails, are subject to public records requests.  

• Clovis, Orange, Murrieta Valley and Tracy Unified districts issue each of their board members an email account through the district and list those email addresses on its Web site. In addition, Orange provides a group email address for all board members.
• Eureka City Schools, Mt. Diablo Unified, and William S. Hart Union High School District list board members’ personal or business e-mail addresses on their Web sites. William S. Hart also includes a personal and/or business phone number as provided by the board members.
• Palm Springs board member e-mails come through the superintendent's office (though the e-mail respondents don't necessarily know that). Emails are forwarded to board members and/or dealt with appropriately by the superintendent or his designee.
• Anaheim City School District does not list Board members e-mail addresses on our Web site, and in fact, the issue has never come up.

::When your Superintendent Retires
To party or not to party, that is the question. Or maybe the question is… is your superintendent well-liked? At least, that might help determine how big the party needs to be. But seriously, based upon Listserv responses to a recent question along these lines, there are no hard-and-fast protocols. Pretty much anything is acceptable, depending on the individual person, district and community atmosphere. Golden Mentor Vic Pallos, with three very different superintendent retirements under his belt, provides some sage advice for those of us involved in upcoming superintendent retirements.

• Make sure whatever you do is accessible to all. In other words, if you're thinking of an expensive dinner at a country club, also do a nice but inexpensive event where everyone, from classroom teachers to custodians to parent leaders (maybe even students) won't stay away because of cost.
• The Supt.'s personality and "style" --and his wishes-- usually determines the level of formality, location, cost, etc. In my three situations, one was definitely high-brow (evening sit-down dinner at a fancy hotel), one more relaxed emphasizing fun (afternoon reception at a country club), and the third (the most recent in 2004) was in a low-cost city facility. Jim Brown said all he wanted were a few kegs of beer, a dance hall, and a lot of fun and friends -- and that's about what we did.
• Planning committees take all forms. Ours were mostly staff members close to the superintendent. However, we always involved a family member (spouse) and, depending on the circumstances, one or two of the superintendent's friends/colleagues outside the district staff. Including a board member is probably a good idea.
• The tab is usually more than you originally think, so be sure to brainstorm everything you can think of that will cost -- and add 20% for unexpected stuff that crops up, because it usually does.
• EVERYONE may want to be on the program, and they'll all say their parts will be short. They're rarely short, so you have to be firm in setting time limits. I learned my lesson with the first retirement "show." It went on and on -- and on. You know what that's like.
• Proclamations, plaques, letters, etc:  Sometimes it's nice to ask the honoree in advance how he feels about getting all this stuff. Legislators are BIG on this; they'll all want to participate. Cities, counties, groups, etc., all want to give plaques. You'll have a carload of hardware. Is this what your guy wants? If so, great. If not, letters and other personal messages suitable for a memory book work just as well.
• One nice thing we did with Jim Brown's party in January 2004 was that a portion of the proceeds went to one of Jim's favorite causes: breast cancer research.

::Classified Employee Recognition Programs
The Classified Employee of the Year Recognition Program is always a challenge, and we’re likely to have as many different approaches as we do districts in the state. In response to a listserv question, here are a couple of examples of how some CalSPRA member districts handle the challenge.

Every Vote Counts
At William S. Hart Union High School District, all principals get an email with deadlines and so forth. Principals send an email to their staff asking for nominations. Then the staff at each site votes of on all of the nominees. The site employees of the year are honored at the district level and receive certificates at a Governing Board meeting. In addition, their framed photos are hung in the district office entry hall along with the Teacher of the Year honorees.

Criteria Matter
Centralia School District issues several criteria for its classified employee of the year candidates – some of which are clear-cut, and some of which are more subjective. Centralia’s nominees are not required to submit paperwork; however, whoever nominates the candidate must write a brief summary of why this person should be considered and how they meet the criteria. The candidate is then asked if they would like to continue in the process. The candidates are narrowed down to a manageable number and then are asked to come to an interview in front of a panel composed of the director of human resources, one principal, and three former recipients of the award. Nominees for Centralia’s Classified Employee of the Year must:

• Be a permanent classified Centralia School District employee.
• Demonstrates the District’s mission of putting children first.
• Be able to articulate a strong philosophy on the role of classified employees in the educational process.
• Be a positive role model for classified and certificated staff members, students, and community members.
• Be an advocate for children’s rights and needs.
• Have established credibility with colleagues.
• Possess unique qualities that have a positive impact upon his/her work site, department, or area.
• Address and celebrate student and staff diversity.
• Promote efficiency and effectiveness in the workplace.