2430 - CORPORATION-SPONSORED CLUBS AND ACTIVITIES

Since the policy of the School Board is to maintain a co-curricular activities program sufficiently varied to meet the wide range of vocational, recreational, social, and cultural needs and interests of the students, all students should be urged to join at least one (1) club or activity.

1. Existing Clubs or Activities

   At the start of the school year, all students should be provided with information on existing clubs, and all co-curricular and extra-curricular activities and encouraged to participate.

2. New Activities

   All new activities shall be approved in the following manner:

   1. Requests for new activities should be submitted to the principal and contain the following:

      1. purpose and rationale

      2. intended outcomes for students

      3. participation

      4. plan of operation

      5. costs

      6. persons in charge

   2. The principal will review each request and either reject or submit each for Board approval.

   3. Upon approval, an activity will be listed as a part of the co-curricular or extra-curricular program, and its fiscal account established by the Director of Finance.

3. Fiscal Compliance

   Both co-curricular and extra-curricular activities need to comply with financial and bookkeeping controls established by the State Board of Accounts.

   Each activity advisor is to provide the building principal with a periodic update on the fiscal status of the activity.

Eligibility Requirements

All students who participate in interscholastic athletics shall meet the eligibility requirements described in the Athletic Handbook. Eligibility requirements for participation in other activities shall be specified in the student handbooks.

No student who has been absent for a school day may participate in an extra-curricular activity scheduled for the afternoon or evening of that school day without the approval of the principal.

Schedule Conflicts

Many students have multiple talents and interests they wish to develop or pursue through participation in Corporation-sponsored activities and groups. Since the Corporation's policy is to encourage such participation, the following guidelines have been established for dealing with potential schedule conflicts a student could experience when participating in more than one (1) activity.

1. At the beginning of each semester or season, each staff member in charge of a credit course, co-curricular, or extra- curricular activity is to prepare a schedule for any practices, performances, or other after-school obligations involved in participation.

2. By the first day of an activity, students are to be made aware of the schedule of any practices and performances as well as other obligations. Each staff-member-in-charge is to determine which, if any, students will have conflicts with other activities in which they wish to participate.

3. If such conflicts exist, the staff-members-in-charge of the activities in conflict are to meet for the purpose of resolving the conflict. The emphasis should be on modifying the requirements so the student can participate in both activities.

4. If it is not possible to resolve the conflict without seriously undermining the integrity of the activity program, the following procedure is to be followed:

   1. If one of the activities provides the student with credit and the other one doesn't, the student and his/her parents are to be made aware of the possible consequences of not enrolling in each activity and of not meeting the obligations for participation.

   2. If both activities are credit activities, the student is to be advised to contact the his/her counselor to work out a solution that does not penalize the student.

   3. If one of the activities is an after-school, off-shoot of a credit activity but is not, itself, a credit activity, e.g., jazz band from concert band, the requirements for the credit activity may not be imposed as a condition for participating in the noncredit, after-school activity.

5. When the activity or program begins, the students are to be informed of the following:

   1. If a student encounters a previously-unforeseen conflict during the semester or season, s/he should inform both staff-members-in-charge as soon as possible in order to increase the likelihood that an accommodation can be worked out.

   2. If, during the year, an ad-hoc situation develops which creates a conflict in schedule for a student, s/he should discuss the conflict with the guidance counselor who, in turn, will work with the staff-members-in-charge to try to reach an accommodation that is most advantageous to the student and least disadvantageous for the activities involved.

   3. Under no circumstances is the student to be intimidated while making a decision by threats of penalties or future consequences.