Mississippi

Code 1972, § 37-5-1

MISSISSIPPI CODE 1972 ANNOTATED

TITLE 37. EDUCATION

CHAPTER 5. COUNTY BOARDS OF EDUCATION AND SUPERINTENDENTS

COUNTY BOARDS OF EDUCATION

§ 37-5-1. Establishment; composition; qualifications and election of members generally; counties in which board not to exist.

(1) There is hereby established a county board of education in each county of the State of Mississippi. Said county board of education shall consist of five (5) members, one (1) of which, subject to the further provisions of this chapter and except as is otherwise provided in Section 37-5-1(2), shall be elected by the qualified electors of each supervisors district of the county. Except as is otherwise provided in Section 37-5-3, each member so elected shall be a resident and qualified elector of the district from which he is elected.

(2) The board of supervisors of any county upon the request of the county school board shall provide by order entered on its minutes, that each member of the county board of education for such county shall be elected from and shall be a resident and qualified elector in a special district determined in the following manner: The board of supervisors of such a county shall apportion the county school district into five (5) single member board of education districts. The board of supervisors shall place upon its minutes the boundaries determined for the new five (5) board of education districts. The board of supervisors of said county shall thereafter publish the same in some newspaper of general circulation within said county for at least three (3) consecutive weeks and after having given notice of publication and recording the same upon the minutes of the board of supervisors of said county, said new district lines will thereafter be effective. The board of supervisors of said county shall reapportion the board of education districts in accordance with the procedure described herein for the original apportionment of districts as soon as practicable after the results of the 1990 decennial census are published and as soon as practicable after every decennial census thereafter.

(3) In counties where the office of "administrative superintendent" as defined in > Section 37-6-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, has been abolished, there shall be no county board of education.

Code 1972, § 37-5-3

§ 37-5-3. Residency requirements of members of board; qualifications of electors.

No person who is a resident of the territory embraced within a municipal separate school district or a special municipal separate school district shall be eligible to be a member of the county board of education. Qualified electors residing within a municipal separate school district or special municipal separate school district shall not be eligible to vote or participate in the election of members of the county board of education.

The provisions of this section shall be applicable in the case of a special municipal separate school district and a line consolidated school district of which another county is the home county which together occupy all of the territory of a supervisors district of the county.

Code 1972, § 37-5-7

§ 37-5-7. Time of election and terms of office of members of board.

(1) On the first Tuesday after the first Monday in May, 1954, an election shall be held in each county in this state in the same manner as general state and county elections are held and conducted, which election shall be held for the purpose of electing the county boards of education established under the provisions of this chapter. At such election, the members of the said board from Supervisors Districts One and Two shall be elected for the term expiring on the first Monday of January, 1957; members of the board from Supervisors Districts Three and Four shall be elected for a term expiring on the first Monday of January, 1959; and the member of the board from Supervisors District Five shall be elected for a term expiring on the first Monday of January, 1955. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (2), all subsequent members of the board shall be elected for a term of six (6) years at the regular general election held on the first Monday in November next preceding the expiration of the term of office of the respective member or members of such board. All members of the county board of education as herein constituted, shall take office on the first Monday of January following the date of their election.

(2) On the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, in any year in which any county shall elect to utilize the authority contained in Section 37- 5-1(2), an election shall be held in each such county in this state for the purpose of electing the county boards of education in such counties. At said election the members of the said county board of education from Districts One and Two shall be elected for a term of four (4) years, the members from Districts Three and Four shall be elected for a term of six (6) years, and the member from District Five shall be elected for a term of two (2) years. Thereafter, members shall be elected at general elections as vacancies occur for terms of six (6) years each. All members of the county board of education shall take office on the first Monday of January following the date of their election.

Code 1972, § 37-5-19

§ 37-5-19. Filling of vacancies on board.

Vacancies in the membership of the county board of education shall be filled by appointment, within 60 days after the vacancy occurs, by the remaining members of the county board of education. Said appointee shall be selected from the qualified electors of the district in which the vacancy occurs, and shall serve until the first Monday of January next succeeding the next general election, at which general election a member shall be elected to fill the remainder of the unexpired term in the same manner and with the same qualifications applicable to the election of a member for the full term.

In the event the vacancy occurs more than five months prior to the next general election and the remaining members of the county board of education are unable to agree upon an individual to be appointed, any two of the remaining members may certify such disagreement to the county election commission. Upon the receipt of such a certificate by the county election commission, or any member thereof, the commission shall hold a special election to fill the vacancy, which said election, notice thereof and ballot shall be controlled by the laws concerning special elections to fill vacancies in county or county district offices. The person elected at such a special election shall serve for the remainder of the unexpired term.

Code 1972, § 37-7-201

MISSISSIPPI CODE 1972 ANNOTATED

TITLE 37. EDUCATION

CHAPTER 7. SCHOOL DISTRICTS; BOARDS OF TRUSTEES OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS

ARTICLE 5. BOARDS OF TRUSTEES; QUALIFICATIONS, SELECTION AND MEETINGS

§ 37-7-201. Qualifications for office of trustee.

In order for a person to be eligible to hold the office of trustee of any school district, such person must be a bona fide resident and a qualified elector of such school district, and, in the case of a school district lying in two or more counties, but not including municipal separate school districts, such person must be a bona fide resident and a qualified elector of the territory entitled to such representation on the board.

Code 1972, S 37-7-203

§ 37-7-203. Composition of boards of trustees of municipal separate school districts; qualifications, selection, and terms of office of members of boards.

(1) The boards of trustees of all municipal separate school districts created under the provisions of Article 1 of this chapter, either with or without added territory, shall consist of five (5) members, each to be chosen for a term of five (5) years, but so chosen that the term of office of one (1) member shall expire each year. In the event the added territory of a municipal separate school district furnishes fifteen percent (15%) or more of the pupils enrolled in the schools of such district, then at least one (1) member of the board of trustees of such school district shall be a resident of the added territory outside the corporate limits. In the event the added territory of a municipal separate school district furnishes thirty percent (30%) or more of the pupils enrolled in the schools of such district, then not more than two (2) members of the board of trustees of such school district shall be residents of the added territory outside the corporate limits. In the event the added territory of a municipal separate school district in a county in which Mississippi Highways 8 and 15 intersect furnishes thirty percent (30%) or more of the pupils enrolled in the schools of such district, then the five (5) members of the board of trustees of such school district shall be elected at large from such school district for a term of five (5) years each except that the two (2) elected trustees presently serving on such board shall continue to serve for their respective terms of office. The three (3) appointed trustees presently serving on such board shall continue to serve until their successors are elected in March of 1975 in the manner provided for in Section 37-7-215. At such election, one (1) trustee shall be elected for a term of two (2) years, one (1) for a term of three (3) years and one (1) for a term of five (5) years. Subsequent terms for each successor trustee shall be for five (5) years. In the event one (1) of two (2) municipal separate school districts located in any county with two (2) judicial districts, District 1 being comprised of Supervisors Districts 1, 2, 4 and 5, and District 2 being comprised of

Supervisors District 3, with added territory embraces three (3) full supervisors districts of a county, one (1) trustee shall be elected from each of the three (3) supervisors districts outside the corporate limits of the municipality. In the further event that the territory of a municipal separate school district located in any county with two (2) judicial districts, District 1 being comprised of Supervisors Districts 1, 2, 4 and 5, and District 2 being comprised of Supervisors District 3, with added territory embraces four (4) full supervisors districts in the county, and in any county in which a municipal separate school district embraces the entire county in which Highways 14 and 15 intersect, one (1) trustee shall be elected from each supervisors district.

Except as otherwise provided herein, the trustees of such a municipal separate school district shall be elected by a majority of the governing authorities of the municipality at the first meeting of the governing authorities held in the month of February of each year, and the term of office of the member so elected shall commence on the first Saturday of March following. In the case of a member of said board of trustees who is required to come from the added territory outside the corporate limits as is above provided, such member of the board of trustees shall be elected by the qualified electors of the school district residing in such added territory outside the corporate limits at the same time and in the same manner as is otherwise provided in this article for the election of trustees of school districts other than municipal separate school districts.

In the event that a portion of a county school district is reconstituted, in the manner provided by law, into a municipal separate school district with added territory and in the event that the trustees to be elected from the added territory are requested to be elected from separate election districts within the added territory, instead of elected at-large, by the Attorney General of the United States as a result of and pursuant to preclearance under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 as amended and extended, and in the event the added territory of a municipal separate school district of a municipality furnishes thirty percent (30%) or more of the pupils enrolled in the schools of such district, then two (2) members of the board of trustees shall be residents of the added territory outside the corporate limits of such municipality and shall be elected from special trustee election districts by the qualified electors thereof as herein provided. The governing authorities of such municipality shall apportion the added territory into two (2) special trustee election districts as nearly as possible according to population and other factors heretofore pronounced by the courts. The governing authorities of such municipality shall thereafter publish the same in a newspaper of general circulation within said school district for at least two (2) consecutive weeks; and after having given notice of publication and recording the same upon the minutes of the governing authorities, said new district lines shall thereafter be effective. Any person elected from the new trustee election districts constituted herein shall be elected in the manner provided for in Section 37-7-215 for a term of five (5) years. Any vacancy in the office of a trustee elected from such trustee election district, whether occasioned by redistricting or by other cause, shall be filled by appointment of the governing authorities of the municipality, provided that the person so appointed shall serve only until the first Saturday of March following his appointment, at which time a person shall be elected for the remainder of the unexpired term in the manner provided in Section 37-7-215.

In any county organizing a countywide municipal separate school district after January 1, 1965, the trustees thereof to be elected from outside the municipality, such trustees shall be elected by the board of supervisors of such county, and the superintendent of such school district shall have authority to pay out and distribute the funds of said district. In the event a municipal separate school district should occupy territory in a county other than that in which the municipality is located and fifteen percent (15%) or more of the pupils enrolled in the schools of such district shall come from the territory of the district in the county other than that in which the municipality is located, the territory of such county in which the municipality is not located shall be entitled to one (1) member on the board of trustees of such school district. Said trustee shall be a resident of the territory of that part of the district lying in the county in which the municipality is not located and shall be elected by the qualified electors of the territory of such county at the same time and in the same manner as is provided for the election of trustees of school districts other than municipal separate school districts having territory in two (2) or more counties.

All vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired terms by appointment of the governing authorities of the municipality; except that in the case of the trustees coming from the added territory outside the corporate limits, the person so appointed shall serve only until the first Saturday of March following his appointment, at which time a person shall be elected for the remainder of the unexpired term in the manner otherwise provided herein.

No person who is a member of such governing body, or who is an employee of the municipality, or who is a member of the county board of education, or who is a trustee of any public, private or sectarian school or college located in the county, inclusive of the municipal separate school district, or who is a teacher in or a trustee of said school district, shall be eligible for appointment to said board of trustees.

(2) In counties of less than fifteen thousand (15,000) people having a municipal separate school district with added territory which embraces all the territory of a county, one (1) or more trustees of such district shall be nominated from each supervisors district upon petition of fifty (50) qualified electors of said district, or twenty percent (20%) of the qualified electors of such district, whichever number shall be smaller, and shall be elected by a plurality of the vote of the qualified electors of said county. One (1) trustee so elected shall reside in each supervisors district of the county. In such counties embraced entirely by a municipal separate school district there shall be no county board of education after the formation of such district and the county superintendent of education shall act as superintendent of schools of said district and shall be appointed by the board of trustees of said district, and the provisions of subsection (1) of this section and the first paragraph of Section 37-7-211 shall not apply to such districts.

Code 1972, § 37-7-204

§ 37-7-204. Appointment of interim member to fill vacancy in board of trustees for countywide municipal separate school district.

In the event that a vacancy occurs in the office of any elected trustee of a countywide municipal separate school district, and the next regular school board election at which the vacancy may be filled is less than one (1) year from the date of the resignation, the school board of the district may, in its discretion, take action to appoint an interim board member to fill the vacancy until a duly qualified successor takes office. The interim board member shall serve until such time as the successor board member is duly elected to fill the unexpired term, pursuant to an election held at the next regularly scheduled school board election held in the county.

Code 1972, § 37-7-209

§ 37-7-209. Election of trustees generally.

All elections of trustees who are elected under the provisions of subsection (1) of section 37-7-203 shall be held and conducted in the manner and at the time provided for in sections 37-7-211 to 37-7-219.

Code 1972, § 37-7-306

MISSISSIPPI CODE 1972 ANNOTATED

TITLE 37. EDUCATION

CHAPTER 7. SCHOOL DISTRICTS; BOARDS OF TRUSTEES OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS

ARTICLE 7. BOARDS OF TRUSTEES; GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES

§ 37-7-306. Training and education requirements.

[Until Laws, 1998, ch. 564, S 2, is effectuated under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, this section will read as follows:]

(1) Every school board member selected after July 1, 1993, shall be required to complete a course of training and education for local school board members, in order for board members to carry out their duties more effectively and be exposed to new ideas involving school restructuring. Such course of training approved by the State Board of Education shall be conducted by the School Executive Management Institute of the State Department of Education or the Mississippi School Boards Association. Upon completion of the course of training, each board member shall file a certificate of completion with the office of the school board. In the event that a board member fails to complete such training within six (6) months of his selection, or six (6) months from April 15, 1993, such board member shall no longer be qualified to serve and shall be removed from office.

(2) In addition to meeting the requirements of subsection (1) of this section, after taking office, each school board member shall be required to file annually in the office of the school board a certificate of completion of a course of continuing education as provided in subsection (1) of this section.

(3) Upon the failure of any local school board member to file with the school board the certificates of completion as provided in subsections (1) and (2) of this section, such school board member shall be removed from office.

[From and after the date Laws, 1998, ch. 564, S 2, is effectuated under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, this section will read as follows:]

(1) Every school board member selected after July 1, 1993, shall be required to complete a basic course of training and education for local school board members, in order for board members to carry out their duties more effectively and be exposed to new ideas involving school restructuring. Such basic course of training, approved by the State Board of Education, shall be conducted by the School Executive Management Institute of the State Department of Education. Upon completion of the basic course of training, the School Executive Management Institute shall file a certificate of completion for the school board member with the office of the local school board. In the event that a board member fails to complete such training within six (6) months of his selection, or six (6) months from April 15, 1993, such board member shall no longer be qualified to serve and shall be removed from office.

(3) Upon the failure of any local school board member to file with the school board the certificate of completion of the basic course of training as provided in subsection (1) of this section, the school board member shall be removed from office.