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Division
of Exceptional Children & Health Services
Bylaws
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The
Exceptional Children and Health Services
Advisory Council of Memphis City Schools
has been established by a Resolution by
the Board of Commissioners and by action
of the Superintendent for the Education
of Students with Disabilities.
Memphis
City Schools has established and will
continue to maintain the Exceptional
Children and Health Services Advisory
Council on the education of children
with disabilities for special education.
Guidelines
The
Council membership will develop the guidelines
for its operation and organization. The
Council will adopt these guidelines by a
majority vote by the members in attendance
at an organizational meeting. Once established,
these guidelines will be provided to the
Board of Commissioners and the Superintendent
of Memphis City Schools for their review.
Alteration of these guidelines will be considered
annually and will require a majority vote
by the members in attendance at the meeting.
Any alteration will be provided to the Board
of Commissioners and the Superintendent
for their review as part of the annual report.
Membership
The
advisory council shall be composed of a
maximum of forty (40) members appointed
by the Executive Director of Exceptional
Children and Health Services and approved
by the Superintendent.
A pool of potential appointees will
be maintained by collecting the names of
interested volunteers and through a process
of public nominations.
Appointments shall be made ensuring
that the membership is representative of
the population within the Memphis City Schools
attendance area and composed of individuals
involved in or concerned with the education
of children eligible for special education,
including:
- Parents
of children eligible for special
education
- Individuals
with disabilities
- Teachers
- Representatives
of institutions of higher education
that prepare special education and
related services personnel
- Local
education officials
- Principals
of MCS schools with programs for
children eligible for special education
- Representative(s)
of other community agencies involved
in the financing or delivery of services
to children eligible for special
education
- Representative(s)
of private schools and/or public
charter schools
- Representative(s)
of a vocational, community or business
organization concerned with the provision
of transition services; and
- Representative(s)
from the juvenile and adult correction
agencies
- A
majority of the voting council should
be individuals with disabilities or
parents of children eligible for special
education.
- The
advisory council shall be composed
of persons broadly representative of
the community organizations interested
in the disabled, professions related
to the educational needs of the disabled,
and the general public.
- The
Executive Director of MCS Division
of Exceptional Children and Health
Services shall appoint the members
of the advisory council for three-year
(3) terms. In making appointments to
the advisory council the director shall
strive to ensure that at least one
(1) person serving on the council is
sixty (60) years of age or older and
that at least one (1) person serving
on the council is a member of a racial
minority.
- Vacancies
due to resignations and other reasons
shall be filled for the un expired term
in the same manner as original appointments.
- Members
who are absent for three (3) consecutive
meetings will be placed on inactive
status. The member may appeal this
placement by providing the reasons
for the absences. The appeal will be
upheld or denied by a motion from the
Chair and a majority vote by the members
in attendance at the meeting. If the
inactive status is not appealed or
is upheld by the Council, then the
inactive member may be removed and
replaced by a motion of the Chair and
a majority vote by the members in attendance
at the meeting.
Advisory
council functions
The advisory council shall:
- Consider
any concerns and accomplishments presented
to it by the Executive Director of Exceptional
Children and Health Services, the Board
of Commissioners, and/or the Superintendent,
and give advice thereon;
- Comment
publicly on any rules and regulations
proposed for issuance pursuant to the
Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49, Chapter
10, parts 1-6 and the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act regarding the
education of children with disabilities;
- By
July 1 of each year, the advisory council
shall make annual report to the MCS Board
of Commissioners and the Superintendent
presenting its views of the progress or
lack thereof made in special education
by MCS during the preceding year. The
annual report should include Council activities
and suggestions to the Division of Exceptional
Children and Health Services. This report
must be made available to the public in
a manner consistent with other public
reporting requirements of IDEA Part B.
- Advise
the MCS Division of Exceptional Children
and Health Services in developing and
implementing policies relating to the
coordination of services for children
with disabilities.
- Advise
the MCS Division of Exceptional Children
and Health Services on children eligible
for special education in juvenile and
adult prisons within the attendance area
of Memphis City Schools.
- Volunteer/participate
in local school activities, (i.e. reading
programs, conferences, workshops, field
trips, etc.).
Advisory
Council procedures:
- The
advisory council annually shall elect
a chair and a vice chair.
- The
Executive Director of the Division
of Exceptional Children and Health
Services shall meet with and act as
secretary to the advisory council,
and within available personnel and
appropriations, shall furnish meeting
facilities and staff services for the
advisory council.
- The
advisory council shall meet as often
as necessary to conduct its business,
but at least quarterly.
- The
advisory council shall keep minutes
on all council meetings and make the
minutes available to the public on
request through the Division of Exceptional
Children and Health Services.
- All
advisory council meetings and agenda
must give public notice of the meeting
to afford interested parties a reasonable
opportunity to attend.
- Meetings
must be open to the public.
- Interpreters
and other necessary services must be
provided at council meetings for council
members or participants. The Division
of Exceptional Children and Health
Services will pay for these services.
- The advisory council shall serve without
compensation but the Division of Exceptional
Children and Health Services will pay
for reasonable and necessary expenses
for meetings to be conducted.
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