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Illinois School Board Journal - ARCHIVES
September-October, 2003
ASK THE STAFF:
Board policy or resolution: What's the difference?
By Melinda Selbee
Melinda Selbee, IASB general counsel, answers this issue's "Ask the staff" question. Contact her at mselbee@iasb.com
Question: What, exactly, is a resolution and when would it be necessary or required that a board enact one? Some boards seem to enact resolutions at the drop of a hat, while others never do. Can you enlighten me?
Answer: For legal purposes, a board resolution and a board policy are identical. In fact, judges generally treat policies, resolutions, rules, practices and guidelines all the same — they are all evidence of board action or approval.
But, in the policy governance world, these terms have different meanings.
A resolution is generally a formal expression of a decision, opinion or intention, with rationale in the "wherefore" clauses, voted on by a school board.
A board policy is a statement adopted by the school board providing ongoing guidance regarding such things as the district's purposes, organization and programs.
Both resolutions and board policies provide a framework within which the superintendent fulfills his or her responsibilities.
Resolutions are used when the action taken concerns an important issue unlikely to be repeated, such as closing or naming a school, approving a referendum or announcing a new program. The formality and inclusion of rationale ensure that a resolution receives greater emphasis than a simple motion. However, these topics are not appropriate for inclusion in the board policy manual because of their specific decision-based focus and/or the transient nature of their topics.
Board policies, however, cover topics (1) that are very likely to be repeated, (2) on which the board has decided ends, objectives or goals, (3) on which the superintendent needs guidance in order to fulfill the board's ends, objectives or goals, or (4) that need to be catalogued and documented.
This is all a "soft science," of course. In the policy governance world, we do not believe the development or adoption of procedures, rules, practices and guidelines is board work. According to our vocabulary, these "implementation" tools are exclusively a superintendent's work.
But again, from a judge's perspective, procedures, rules, practices or guidelines become board policy, if the board knew, or should have known, about it.