Editor’s note: This story was originally published by the lighthouse, a nonprofit news organization serving Missouri and Kansas. The Star is republishing up to two stories a week as part of a new partnership with The Beacon.
If you want to speak at a Lee’s Summit school board meeting, you don’t have to plan too far ahead. Simply sign up by 4 pm the day before the meeting.
But in the Blue Springs School District you will have to add an agenda item, or join someone else who adds one. Adding an item involves requesting a meeting with the superintendent, who has 20 working days to find time to talk. You can then register to address the council, but you must register five working days in advance.
Depending on the timing of the initial request, the process could leave district residents waiting up to two months to speak to the board in public. But it complies with a Missouri law on community engagement of school boards which went into full effect last year.
The laws governing school boards in Missouri set basic requirements, such as the mandate to open their meetings to the public, with a few exceptions.
But districts have some leeway when setting policies on public comment, live-streaming meetings or providing access to recordings. These policies vary from district to district or from year to year.
For example, while livestreaming and recording meetings has become a common practice in many large-area districts, it is not universal. Independence School District decided not to record the meetings in spite of the requests from the public, but it was review whether meetings should be televised at the end of August.
If you want to know what your school council is doing, contact members or comment in a meeting, here is an updated guide.
Blue Springs School District
Regular board meetings are most often held at 6:15 pm on the second Monday of the month, but a school calendar shows some exceptions, especially in autumn.
The working sessions of the Council are usually on the first or second Monday of the month, with at least one exception in September. They start at 6pm most of the year, but are held at 5pm on the same day as council meetings during the summer.
Meetings are typically held at the Bartow Administrative Center at 1801 NW Vesper St., Blue Springs. They are also broadcast live and archived on the the district’s YouTube channel.
Agendas and minutes they are available on the district’s website from mid-2023. The lists are alphabetical by name of the month, so click “modified” twice to sort for the most recent.
Members of the public can add agenda items to the work sessions by following the process outlined in state laws. Inquiries to add an agenda item should go to board secretary Karin Keener at kkener@bssd.net.
Once the board has added an agenda item, the member of the public may speak on it for up to five minutes, and up to three other members of the public may sign up five business days in advance to speak. as well.
A list of members and their positions on the board is available on the district’s website.
Independence School District
The school board meets at 6pm on the second Tuesday of the month. A list of future and past meeting agendas it’s on the district’s website with the meeting minutes.
Meetings are typically held at the district’s central office, 201 N. Forest Ave., Independence. In September, there is no livestream or recording of meetings.
You can sign up for public comment by submitting a written request to the superintendent’s office. The deadline is 4 pm on the Friday before the meeting or 24 hours after the agenda is published, whichever is later.
Annette Miller is the board secretary and contact for the superintendent’s office. She is available at annette_miller@isdschools.org or by calling 816-521-5300 and asking to be transferred.
The public comment period is no longer than 30 minutes, unless the board decides to extend it. Each person can speak no more than five minutes, and the comments must be on the agenda items.
Members of the public can add agenda items using the process outlined in state laws. District policy says residents should go through the district’s complaint or concern process before meeting with the superintendent or another administrator.
They can then contact the superintendent’s office and the board in writing by 4pm on the Friday before a meeting to add the item.
A list of board members with biographies and e-mails is available on the district website.
Lee’s Summit R-7 School District
School council meeting dates they are at 7 pm on the third or fourth Thursday of the month. Working sessions are held several months, most often on the first Thursday.
See Board Docs for upcoming meetings and meeting times, including committee meetings.
Meetings are usually held in the Stansberry Leadership Center meeting room, 301 NE Tudor Road, Lee’s Summit.
Agendas, documents and livestreaming links are available online. You can view current and past meetings on the board YouTube channel.
According to board policythe board allows seven people to speak for three minutes or less each.
Comments must be directly related to the district, avoiding profanity and not about individual faculty, staff or students.
Email Linda Ismert, the board secretary and records keeper, at Linda.Ismert@LSR7.net with your name, address, phone number and comment subject to register. The deadline is 4pm the day before the meeting.
You can also ask the council to add an item to the agenda using the process outlined in state laws. Use it this form to send a written request to meet with the superintendent, then use this form if you still want to add the article. For more information, call the superintendent’s office at 816-986-1008.
Click “Read more” below every member of the school for a full bio and email address. You can also message board members using this form.
Raytown quality schools
School board meetings are held at 6:30 pm on the second Monday of each month. Special board meetings are sometimes held at 5:30 pm on the fourth Monday of the month. A list of board meeting dates for 2024-2025 is available online. Meetings are at 6608 Raytown Road, Raytown.
The recordings of the meeting are linked on the the district website and of the district YouTube channel.
Recordings can be edited for content or length, according to a notice at the beginning of a recent video. Suggest that members of the public attend in person or read the meeting minutes for full access.
Meeting minutes and calendars are available online.
The board reserves 30 minutes of each regular meeting for public comment on agenda items. Speakers have five minutes to speak, or three minutes if there are six or more comments. They must notify the council of their name, address and the point of the agenda that they want to address.
Members of the public can also follow the process outlined in state laws to request the addition of items to the agenda of the meeting.
The secretary of the board of education is Rachel Johnston. She can be reached at rachel.johnston@raytownschools.org or 816-268-7000.