9130 - PUBLIC REQUESTS, SUGGESTIONS, OR COMPLAINTS
Any individual(s), having a legitimate interest in the staff, programs, and operations of this District shall have the right to present a request, suggestion, or complaint to the District and the Board of Education. At the same time, the Board has a duty to protect its staff from inappropriate harassment. It is the intent of this policy to provide guidelines for considering and addressing requests, suggestions, or complaints in an efficient, reasonable, and equitable manner. Requests, suggestions, or complaints made by District staff members are covered by Policy 1422/Policy 3122/Policy 4122 - Nondiscrimination and Equal Employment Opportunity. This policy is not to be used to appeal or to otherwise seek review of a personnel decision that was or could have been reviewed through the grievance policy, Policy 3340/Policy 4340 - Grievance Procedure.
It is the desire of the Board to address any such matters through direct, informal discussions and other means. It is only when attempts at informal resolution fail that more formal procedures shall be used.
Generally, requests, suggestions, or complaints reaching the Board or Board members shall be referred to the District Administrator for consideration. In addition, an individual subject to a collective bargaining agreement at the District may have a right to pursue a complaint through a grievance procedure.
Guidelines for Matters Regarding a Professional Staff Member
First Level
Generally, if the matter concerns a professional staff member the individual(s) should discuss the matter with the staff member. The staff member shall take appropriate action within his/her authority and District administrative guidelines to deal with the matter. Matters related to other aspects of the District operations, programming, or other decisions shall be brought generally to the Administrator closest to the issue (e.g. if the matter relates to a decision, procedure, or the like in one of the schools, the matter should be raised first with the Principal or a designated person in the school).
Discussion with the staff member may not be appropriate in some situations including, for example, where the matter involves suspected child abuse, substance abuse, or any other serious allegation that may require investigation or inquiry by school officials prior to approaching the staff member.
As appropriate, the staff member shall report the matter and whatever action may have been taken to the Principal.
Second Level
If the matter has not been satisfactorily addressed at the First Level or it would be inappropriate to discuss the matter with the staff member, the individual(s) may discuss the matter with the staff member's supervisor, if applicable. Discussions with the supervisor shall occur promptly following any discussion with the staff member. If the matter involves allegations of harassment, discrimination, bullying, or other conduct implicating other policies and investigative procedures, the supervisor shall proceed to follow the applicable procedures which may include informing a District Compliance Officer for further review.
Matters not resolved at the Second Level may be brought to the Third Level.Third Level
If the matter has not been satisfactorily addressed at the Second level, and the matter does not involve the District Administrator, the individual(s) may submit a written request for a conference to the District Administrator. This request should include:
the specific nature of the request, suggestion or complaint and a brief statement of the facts giving rise to it;
the respect in which it is alleged that the individual(s) (or child of a complainant) has been affected adversely;
the action which the individual(s) wishes taken and the reasons why it is felt that such action be taken.
The request must be submitted promptly after discussion with the staff member’s supervisor. The District Administrator shall respond in writing to the individual(s) and shall advise the Board of any resolution of the matter.
Fourth Level
If the matter has not been satisfactorily addressed at the Third Level, or at the First Level in the case of a matter involving the District Administrator, the individual(s) may submit a written request to the Board to address the matter. Any such request must be submitted within ten (10) days of receiving the District Administrator’s written response.
The Board, after reviewing all material relating to the matter shall
provide the individual(s) with a written response;
grant a hearing, which may be held in closed session at the discretion of the Board when consistent with Wisconsin's Open Meetings law before the Board.
The individual(s) shall be advised, in writing, of the Board's decision no more than ten (10) business days following the next regular meeting. The Board's decision will be final on the matter, and it will not provide a hearing to other complainants on the same issue.
If the individual(s) contacts an individual Board member to discuss the matter, the Board member shall inform the individual that s/he has no authority to act in his/her individual capacity and may refer the individual(s) to this guideline or the District Administrator for further assistance.
Guideline for Matters Regarding the District Administrator
Should the matter involve a concern regarding the District Administrator, which has not been resolved through discussion with the District Administrator, the individual(s) may submit a written request to the Board to address the matter. This request should include a description of:
the specific nature of the matter and a brief statement of the facts giving rise to it;
the respect in which the individual(s) has been, or will be affected;
the reason that matter was not able to be resolved with the District Administrator;
the action which the individual(s) wishes taken and the reasons why it is felt that such action should be taken.
The Board, after reviewing the request, may grant a hearing before the Board or a committee of the Board, refer the matter to an executive session, take formal action on the matter, or take other appropriate action to deal with the matter.
The individual(s) shall be advised, in writing, of the Board's action or decision within ten (10) business days of receiving the request. The Board's decision will be final.
Guidelines for Matters Regarding a Support Staff Member
In the case of a support staff member, the matter is to be directed, initially, to the person's supervisor, and then in subsequently higher levels as prescribed in "Guidelines for Matters Regarding a Professional Staff Member".
Guidelines for Matters Regarding District Services or Operations
If the matter relates to a District procedure or operation, it should be addressed, initially, to the principal and then in subsequently higher levels as prescribed in "Guidelines for Matters Regarding a Professional Staff Member".
Guidelines for Matters Regarding Enrollment Disputes
If the matters relates to disputes concerning student residency determination, Homelessness under the McKinney-Vento Act, or related issues, the matter should be addressed initially to the District’s Residency or Homelessness Coordinator, and then to the Third Level of the process for "Matters Regarding a Professional Staff Member".
Guidelines for Matters Regarding the Educational Program
If the matter relates to a District program, it should be addressed, initially, to the principal and then in subsequently higher levels as prescribed in "Matters Regarding a Professional Staff Member".
Guidelines for Matters Regarding Classroom Instructional Materials
The District Administrator shall prepare administrative guidelines to ensure that students and parents are adequately informed each year regarding their right to inspect instructional materials used as part of the educational curriculum and the procedure for completing such an inspection. See Policy 2414 and Form 9130 F3.
If the request, suggestion, or complaint relates to instructional materials such as textbooks, library books, reference works, and other instructional aids used in the District, the following procedure shall be followed:
The criticism is to be addressed to the principal, in writing, and shall include:
author;
title;
publisher;
the complainant's familiarity with the material objected to;
specific concerns upon which the request to reconsider is based. This should include a specific description of the offending material (e.g. contains content that is harmful to minors or prohibited under State law, violates the District's policy on nondiscrimination, is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for the grade level for which the material is used, or some other specified reason). This should include specific references to the text of the material by page number and excerpted text if known.
Upon receipt of the information, the principal may, after advising the District Administrator of the complaint, and upon the District Administrator’s approval, appoint a review committee consisting of:
one (1) or more professional staff members including the Library/Media Specialist;
one (1) or more lay persons knowledgeable in the area.
If the request, suggestion, or complaint relates to the human growth and development curriculum or instructional materials, it shall be referred to the advisory committee responsible for developing the human growth and development curriculum and advising the Board on the design, review and implementation of the curriculum. (See Policy 2414 - Human Growth and Development)
The District Administrator shall be an ex officio member of the committee.
The committee, in evaluating the questioned material, shall be guided by the following criteria:
the appropriateness of the material for the age and maturity level of the students with whom it is being used
the accuracy of the material
the objectivity of the material
the use being made of the material
The material being reviewed based on a request under this policy shall remain available during the review process unless the District Administrator determines that the subject material poses a threat of harm to students considering the grade level involved and provided the determination is not made solely because the material presents ideas that may be unpopular or offensive to some. Any temporarily removed materials will be promptly returned if the final determination is to retain the material. Any action to remove material following a request reviewed under this policy will be explained in the review process records.
The Committee's recommendation shall be reported to the District Administrator in writing within fourteen (14) business days following the formation of the Committee. The District Administrator will advise the individual(s), in writing, of the Committee's recommendation and advise the Board of the action taken or recommended.
The individual(s) may appeal the District Administrator’s decision within ten (10) business days to the Board. The appeal shall be submitted in writing to the District Administrator within thirty (30) business days of receiving the District Administrator’s decision. The written appeal and all written material relating to it shall be referred to the Board for consideration.
The Board shall review the matter and advise the individual(s), in writing, of its decision as soon as practicable.
The decision of the Board is final.
Decisions on reconsidered materials will stand for three (3) years before new requests for reconsideration of those items will be entertained.
No challenged material may be removed from the curriculum or from a collection of resource materials except by action of the Board, and no challenged material may be removed solely because it presents ideas that may be unpopular or offensive to some. Any Board action to remove material will be accompanied by the Board's statement of its reasons for the removal.
Revised 9/8/09
Revised 12/2/13
Revised 3/20/23
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