MASB Bylaw and Policy Serves Provided by NEOLA
Effective bylaws and policies are at the core of successful school district governance. Maintaining bylaws and policies that reflect both local oversight and ever-changing state and federal laws is an enormous task.
MASB is excited to announce a new partnership with NEOLA to offer uniform school policies and guidelines to better serve all Michigan school districts. This new partnership means that NEOLA will be providing comprehensive bylaw and policy services for MASB members on our behalf. As always, MASB is ready and eager to serve all members and answer any questions you have about school policy.
Frequently Asked Questions about MASB/NEOLA Policy Services
POWER - Policies on the Web as an Educational Resource
The partnership with NEOLA won't result in any changes for current MASB POWER clients. Current POWER clients may continue to use POWER in accordance with the terms of their service agreement.
Policy Development and Updating
NEOLA, with assistance from MASB, will work with the board, administrators and committee(s) to develop a comprehensive bylaw and policy manual that suits your district's needs. Each manual is based on templates that have been thoughtfully prepared by legal counsel and are customized to the district's unique circumstances through choices made by the school board and administrative team. The new bylaws, policies and administrative rules/regulations will be a unique collection assembled by Michigan educators and attorneys. The final manual will contain legal citations, footnoted reference material, a comprehensive index and a cross-referencing system. The end result will be a policy manual that is in line with current law and court decisions, indexed, cross-referenced and cross-checked, and meets the individual needs of your district.
NEOLA's associates, almost all of whom have served as superintendents, provide most of the direct work with client school districts. They establish a close working relationship with their clients during the drafting of the policy and guidelines/procedures manuals, and then enhance that relationship by visiting at least twice per year to review updates and answer client questions.
The NEOLA update process allows the board to bring their policies and practices in line with current law while maintaining their unique local character. The board remains in charge of the process, but experienced NEOLA representatives assist the board by doing most of the complex review and detail work required. This saves the board time to attend to the other needs of the districts and guarantees a more carefully crafted set of policies.
MASB Policy Assistance
MASB staff member Randi Airola, 517.327.5931 will continue to serve MASB members. Randi will be available for questions relating to, for example, your current MASB policy manual, sample policies or transitioning to a NEOLA policy format. Further, MASB Legal Counsel Brad Banasik, 517.327.5929 can be contacted for assistance with legal questions that relate to policies and administrative rules at any time as part of your MASB membership.