How to contact the Board of Education

BOE Meeting Schedule and Agendas

• The Board of Education welcomes public comment on matters within its purview. Accordingly, the Board makes available a maximum 30-minute period at its regular meetings for persons in the audience to address the Board for no longer than 3 minutes. Written material of any length may be submitted. Preference will be given to persons who seek to address the Board on specific agenda items for the upcoming Board meeting. Agendas for upcoming Board meetings are generally posted 5 days prior to the meeting at www.doe.mass.edu/boe/docs/. Persons wishing to speak are strongly encouraged to submit their request before the day of the meeting; contact information is provided below. Preference will be given to those who submit requests by 5:00 p.m. on the Thursday preceding the regular Tuesday meeting. If time permits, the chairman will allow members of the public who have not contacted the Department in advance to speak in the public comment period; those individuals must sign in prior to the start of the meeting. The chairman may limit the number of speakers due to time constraints and may increase or reduce the time allocated per speaker. While there is no requirement to submit written testimony, a speaker who elects to do so should submit 15 copies of the testimony prior to or at the meeting for distribution to Board members. Requests to address the Board, written testimony, and other inquiries may be transmitted by mail, e-mail, fax, or telephone to: Massachusetts Board of Education, 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, Phone: 781-338-3102, Fax: 781-338-3770, E-mail: boe@doe.mass.edu.

Current legislation governing school library programs in Massachusetts:

• Legislation governing the administration, staffing, and funding of school library programs exists in Chapter 15 of Massachusetts General Law.

   

  This legislation charges the Board of Education with:

  ·        Establishing a formula for funding school library programs to guide local school committees

  ·        Establishing minimum standards for school library personnel

  ·        Establishing minimum standards for the acquisition of print and nonprint materials for school libraries

   

  This legislation predates the passage of Chapter 70, which does not include any mention of school library programs.  MSLA believes that this omission was an unintentional oversight in the drafting of Chapter 70, and we would like to see this rectified by the passage of H564.  However, MSLA understands that the legislation governing school library programs is the law.  It is our hope that the Massachusetts Board of Education will adhere to this legislation and set specific guidelines for the staffing, collection and programs for Massachusetts' school libraries

   

Ideas for constituent groups to speak at BOE meetings:

• Parents: Tell the BOE that  good school library programs are linked to student achievement, and your child and every child in Massachusetts deserves a professionally-staffed, well-stocked school library
• Students: Tell the BOE that you need a good school library program to give you the research and literacy skills you need to succeed in school now and when you get to college.  Remind the BOE that school libraries are the places to go for access to the technology you'll need for 21st century success. 
• Administrators and school board members:  Explain to the BOE that their support is essential in guaranteeing that Massachusetts has clarity about what consitutes a good school library program; ask the BOE to put a plan in place to set guidelines for staffing, collection development, and frameworks that cities and towns can use to ensure their school library program will be adequate to provide students with the research skills and literacy support they need for academic achievement.
• Academic Librarians: Let the BOE know that school library programs are necessary in public schools to ensure that students arrive at college with the skills they need to succeed academically.
• Public Librarians: Tell the BOE that public libraries cannot take the place of school library programs; our programs complement one another--but you are not prepared to teach students, and you see the impact in public libraries when students don't have library support in school

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