BG-0201: Public Participation Prior to School Board Meetings

Prior to each meeting, a sheet will be available at the meeting site for citizens to sign up to address the School Board. This Comments to the Board opportunity allows residents to share opinions with the Board prior to the official Board meeting. Citizens must provide their name, address and the topic to be addressed.  At the beginning of each meeting the Chair or designee will state the number of speakers listed on the sign up sheet and the time to be allotted.  Only those whose names appear on the sign-up sheet will be permitted to address the School Board.  Speakers will not be allowed to verbally attack individual School Board members, employees, students or each other or use vulgar or profane language. School Board members need not engage in debate with those who participate and will generally listen but not respond to comments.  

Before the Board meeting, the Chair or designee will close the Comments to the Board and proceed with the official School Board meeting agenda. The business of the School Board is conducted by the seven elected School Board members and audience comments are no longer in order. Citizen input should not subrogate the regular business of the School Board.

The timeframes set for sign-up and the Comments to the Board session shall be set in Regulation BG - 0201 and included on the District’s website.

Patron complaints may most appropriately be addressed by the staff of the Mounds View Public Schools rather than by the School Board. Generally the School Board acts only after all other avenues of appeal have been utilized.

Rationale: School Board meetings are business meetings held in public - not public forums.  It is therefore advisable that guidelines be established so that public input is orderly and productive and so that special interest groups are not allowed to dominate the proceedings of the School Board’s official meeting.

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Adopted: June 25, 2002
Revised: January 11, 2022
Reviewed: June 17, 2025