RELATIONS WITH SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS | Policy Manual

9700 - RELATIONS WITH SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS

Any request from civic institutions, charitable organizations, or special interest groups which involve such activities as patriotic functions, contests, exhibits, sales of products to and by students, sending promotional materials home with students, graduation prizes, fund raising, and free teaching materials shall be carefully reviewed to ensure that such activities promote student interests.

It is the policy of the Governing Board that students, staff members, and ESC facilities are not to be used for promoting the interests of any non-school agency or organization, public or private, without the approval of the Governing Board or its designee; and any such approval, granted for whatever cause or group, shall not be construed as an endorsement of said cause or group by this Governing Board.

Political Interests

All materials or activities proposed by outside political sources for student or staff use or participation shall be reviewed by the Superintendent on the basis of their (1) educational contribution to part or all of the school program and (2) benefit to students, and no such approval shall have the primary purpose of advancing the special interest of the proposing group.

The Governing Board shall not permit the use of any type of educational material, program, or equipment in its curricular, co-curricular, or extra-curricular activities or at any time during the school day if such materials, programs, or equipment contain partisan political or commercial messages. Professional staff may, however, utilize political materials or those provided by special interest-groups in adopted courses of study with the approval of the principal/program manager.

School facilities or equipment may not be used as a means of producing or disseminating to the community any materials that advertises or promotes a political party, a political cause, or the candidacy of an individual for public office. Students and employees of the Governing Board shall not be used to distribute campaign literature within the schools or on school grounds.

Outside speakers representing commercial organizations shall be welcome only when the commercial aspect is limited to naming the organization represented and the subject matter advances the educational aims of the ESC.
Contests/Exhibits

The Governing Board recognizes that contests, exhibits, and the like may benefit individual students or the ESC as a whole, but participation in such special activities may not:
1. have the primary effect of advancing a special product, group, or company;
2. make unreasonable demands upon the time and energies of staff or students or upon the resources of the ESC;
3. involve any direct cost to the ESC; or
4. interrupt the regular school program.
Distribution/Posting of Literature

No outside organization or staff member or student representing an outside organization may distribute or post literature on that organization’s behalf on ESC property either during or after school hours without the permission and prior review of the Superintendent.
Solicitation of Funds

Because the ESC cannot accommodate every organization that desires to solicit funds for worthy purposes, the Governing Board shall not permit any organization not related to the ESC to solicit funds on ESC property.

Permission to solicit funds shall be granted only to those organizations, individuals, or staff members who meet the permission criteria established by the ESC. In accordance with Governing Board Policy 5830, no ESC student may participate in the solicitation without the Superintendent’s approval.
1. The Governing Board disclaims all responsibility for the protection of, or accounting for, such funds.
2. Solicited funds are not to be deposited in any regular or special accounts of the ESC.
3. A copy of this policy shall be given to any individual granted permission to solicit funds on ESC property.
4. This policy does not apply to the raising of funds for ESC sponsored or school-sponsored activities.
5. Use of the name, logo, or any assets of the ESC, including, but not limited to facilities, technology, or communication networks, is prohibited without the specific permission of the Superintendent.

The Governing Board does not permit or sanction the use of crowdfunding for ESC or specific school programs or activities, including co-curricular or extracurricular activities.

Prizes/Scholarship

The Governing Board is appreciative of the generosity of organizations which offer scholarships or prizes to deserving students in this ESC. But, in accepting the offer of such scholarships or prizes, the Governing Board directs that this policy be observed: No information either academic or personal shall be released from the student’s record for the purpose of selecting a scholarship or prize winner without the permission of the student who is eighteen (18), or the parents of a student who is younger in accordance with the Governing Board’s policy on student records.

The type of scholarship or prize, the criteria for selection of the winner, and any restrictions upon it shall be approved by the Superintendent.
Sale of School Supplies

In determining the appropriateness of the sale of school supplies by organizations other than the ESC, the Governing Board requires that:
1. the organization have a purpose which shall benefit the ESC and its students;
2. the organization’s planned activities are clearly in the best interest of the ESC and its students; and
3. the organization has submitted the following information and assurances on the form provided by the ESC: a statement noting the purpose of the organization, financial accountability assurances, and use of facility assurances.

All funds generated by the sale of such school supplies shall be kept separate from other activity funds or other transactions of the Governing Board.

Surveys and Questionnaires

Neither ESC-related nor non-ESC-related organizations shall be allowed to administer a survey or questionnaire to students or staff unless the instrument and the proposed plan is submitted, in advance, to the Superintendent. If approved, a copy of the results and the proposed manner of their communication are to be provided to him/her for review and approval before they are released.

Students shall not be required to complete surveys to provide marketing information to vendors, or distribute to vendors any personal information of students, including but not limited to names, addresses, and telephone numbers, except as may be required by law. In addition, the ESC shall not enter into any contract for products or services, including electronic media services, where personal information shall be collected from the students by the providers of the services.