Series 9000: Bylaws of the Board

9325.5 Requests for Information by Board Members

Board of Education (Board) members represent the public and are entitled to information regarding District performance that will assist them in governance. All Board member requests for documents or information should be made directly to the Superintendent or his/her designee.

Documents subject to Connecticut’s Freedom of Information law will be provided, as they are provided to all citizens under Board policy. 

Should requests be for information that already exists or data that can be easily gathered and analyzed (provided the request is not for privileged management information, as outlined below), the Superintendent will, in a timely manner provide the information in its most accessible format, to the requesting Board member, with copies to all Board members. 

Should the information not exist and/or be difficult to obtain, and should the Superintendent determine that the value of the information to the District be insufficient to justify the time or cost of obtaining it, he/she shall bring the request to the Board, with an estimate of the time/cost of responding to the Board member’s request. By Board action, the Board will direct the  Superintendent to provide, or not provide, the requested information. 

The Board, by this policy, wishes to distinguish between District performance information and privileged management information. Performance information is normally data based on numerical measures of results, District operations or practice patterns. Documents or other management information relating to individuals, contracts, meetings, or events of any ongoing  management process, unless under the purview of the Freedom of Information Act, are considered privileged management information and not within the purview of the Board. 

(cf. 1120 - Board of Education Meetings re Public Participation) 

(cf. 9322 - Public and Executive Sessions) 

Legal Reference:

Connecticut General Statutes 

1-200 Definitions 

1-206 Denial of access of public records or meetings. Notice. Appeal 

1-210 to 1-213 Access to public records (as amended by PA 02-113) 

1-211 Access to computer stored records. 

1-214 Public contracts as part of public records. 

1-225 to 1-240 Meetings of government agencies to be public 

Bylaw adopted by the Board: December 8, 2014 THOMASTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS Thomaston, Connecticut