Use of email by Trustees will conform to the same standards of judgement, propriety, and ethics as other forms of school board related communication. Trustees will comply with the following guidelines when using email in the conduct of Board responsibilities:
- Trustees will not use email, communications via social media, or other electronic communications as a substitute for deliberations or voting at Board meetings or for other communications or business properly confined to board meetings. “Deliberation” is defined as the receipt or exchange of information or opinion relating to a decision, but shall not include informal or impromptu discussions of a general nature which do not specifically relate to a matter pending before the Board for decision.
- Trustees will be aware that email and email attachments received or prepared for use in board business or containing information relating to board business, regardless of whether sent or received on a school-owned computer or personally-owned computer, may be regarded as public records, which may be inspected by any person upon request, unless otherwise made confidential by law.
- Trustees will note that individual postings made to social media sites should be considered carefully in light of how they would reflect on the poster, the Board of Trustees, and the District. Individual trustee postings are an act of the individual and are not an act of the Board.
- Trustees will avoid reference to confidential information about employees, students, or other matters in email communications because of the risk of improper disclosure and unsecured websites. Trustees will comply with the same standards as school employees with regard to confidential information.