The Board of Trustees represent you in determining what is best for the students attending Burnet CISD schools, and you should feel comfortable expressing your opinions to them. Your input into the direction of Burnet CISD is encouraged and will always be considered by the Board.
The Open Forum Section of the Board’s Agenda provides the opportunity for members of the public to convey information and opinions to the Board. At Regular Meetings the Board shall permit public comment, regardless of whether the topic is an item on the agenda posted with notice of the meeting. At Special Meetings, and all other Board meetings, public comment shall be limited to items on the agenda posted with the notice of the meeting.
A person who wishes to address the Board must complete an Open Forum Form before the meeting to indicate he or she wishes to speak. Open Forum Forms are availble at the location where the Board Meeting is being held, and completed forms must be submitted during the 30 minute window indicated on the Board Meeting Notice and Board Agenda. For Regular Board Meetings, this is typically 5:15-5:45 p.m. A speaker may complete one Open Forum Card for each meeting.
The public comment period is not the appropriate time to present complaints. The complaint process is outlined in Board Policies FNG and GF which can be found on the District’s website. The Board will only consider complaints that remain unresolved after they have been addressed through proper administrative channels and when they have been placed on the Agenda.
During this portion of the meeting, the Board will not engage in dialogue with the speakers and cannot deliberate or make a decision on any subject that is not on the agenda.
Each speaker is limited to a total of three (3) minutes. A speaker may not take the time of another speaker. A digital timer will be displayed on the screen for the speaker.
When necessary for effective meeting management or to accommodate large numbers of individuals wishing to address the Board, the presiding officer may make adjustments to public comment procedures, including adjusting when public comment will occur during the meeting, reordering agenda items, deferring public comment on nonagenda items, continuing agenda items to a later meeting, providing expanded opportunity for public comment, or establishing an overall time limit for public comment and adjusting the time allotted to each speaker. However, no individual shall be given less than one minute to make comments.
A speaker should approach the podium when his or her name is called. If a speaker has written materials for the Board, he or she may place them on the table beside the podium. A staff member will provide the copies to Board members.
Each speaker should clearly state:
• His or her name
• The BCISD school or schools the speaker’s children attend or have attended
• The topic being addressed before beginning to comment
The speaker must promptly end his or her comments when the allotted time has elapsed. Not yielding the podium, as well as remarks or other conduct that disrupt the meeting, are considered out of order and will not be allowed. The Board shall not tolerate disruption of the meeting by members of the audience. If, after at least one warning from the presiding officer, any individual continues to disrupt the meeting by his or her words or actions, the presiding officer may request assistance from law enforcement officials to have the individual removed from the meeting.
A person who chooses to speak during the Open Forum Section is consenting to the online publication of his or her name and comment topic.