The School Department of the Town shall be under the jurisdiction and control of a School Committee of five (5) members elected at large at the general election each even numbered year, to serve for four (4) year staggered terms or until their respective successors are elected and qualified, said terms to be so arranged that two members of the Committee shall be elected at one general election and three members at the next general election.
School Committee members shall hold no other paid employment in the School Department of the Town and shall be qualified electors and residents of the Town. If a Committee member shall cease to possess any of these qualifications or shall be disqualified from continuing in office under provisions of the State Constitution or State law, his or her office shall be deemed to have become vacant.
[Reso. 7/6/06; approved at election 11/7/06]
Any vacancy in the membership of the School Committee shall be filled by the unelected candidate with the highest number of votes from the most recent election for the position of School Committee, or, if that person is unavailable or unwilling to serve, shall be filled by the Town Council for the remainder of the vacated term.
[Approved at election 11/4/14]
The School Committee shall determine its own organization, rules of procedure and the time of its meetings.
The School Committee shall have responsibility for the general care and management of the school(s) of the Town, the selection of the superintendent, and shall have all other responsibilities, powers and duties as are currently provided by State law, or as may be provided for School Committees in the future. In particular it shall be the duty of the Committee to make such provision as it may deem appropriate for the high school education of the children of the Town by entering into a contractual arrangement for that purpose with the School Committee of a neighboring Town or by such other means or combination of means as it sees fit. The Committee shall prepare and submit its budget requests to the Budget Committee in accordance with the provisions of Section 503 and other applicable provisions of this Charter.
[Approved at election 11/4/14]
In consultation with and subject to the agreement of the Town Council, the School Committee may contract with the Town Department of Public Works for that Department to assume responsibility for the maintenance of all school property; and the Committee may in the same manner arrange to have the Town Purchasing Agent assume responsibility for purchases of supplies and equipment for the School Department.