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School Advisory Board

Catholic school advisory boards exist to advise Catholic educators in providing academic and religious programs for students. Advisory boards are canonically advisory in nature, advisory to the superintendent and principal on the diocesan level and to the pastor and principal on the elementary level. All School Advisory Boards should participate in Board Training facilitated by the Office of Catholic Schools. The structure, role, and function of the School Advisory Board should never be confused with that of a public school board.


Bylaws should be developed for all advisory boards and must be approved by the pastor (parochial schools) or superintendent (diocesan schools) before implementation. All bylaws must be filed with the Office of Catholic Schools. School Advisory Boards may be dissolved by the pastor at a parochial school or by the bishop at a diocesan school.


Each diocesan secondary school shall have a School Advisory Board. This board shall be composed of the pastors of the parishes whose students attend the high school (except St. Charles, which will have representative pastors) and representative laypersons. The principal of the high school may act as executive secretary of the board. The superintendent serves as the representative of the bishop on all high school advisory boards. As such, he/she must be included in all board communication, invitations, and other board-related business.

Catholic school advisory boards operate most effectively when they perform in all of the following roles:

  • Advise: in areas in which the principal requests advice, feedback, and information.
  • Policymaking: assist in the development of local policies and procedures when a Diocesan policy does not exist.
  • Committees: form and participate in committee service that extends the administration’s abilities and supports the mission of the school.

The advisory board’s functions could include but are not limited to:

  • setting goals for itself and for the educational program; – participating in the evaluation of the educational program;
  • participating in a principal hiring committee;
  • advising on formation of local policies;
  • participating in the creation of the operational budget and proposals for capital expenditures;
  • receiving and reviewing quarterly financial reports of the school’s income and expenditures to date;
  • advising the principal upon request; and
  • promoting Catholic education within the community

School Advisory Boards have no role in:

  • hiring, firing, or evaluating staff (e.g. teachers, school guidance counselors, coaches);
  • making or changing school regulations;
  • student discipline or any issue relating to students and/or families;
  • budget approval;
  • authorizing capital expenditures;
  • selecting textbooks or deciding other specifics of the educational program.

Administrator’s Manual • Diocese of Columbus Catholic Schools
Revision History: 06/88, 06/93, 08/98, 08/03, 08/08, 08/13, 7/23


KVC_9609Board Members:

Mark Watts, Principal
Fr. Patrick Toner, Pastor
David Bourke
Jamie Caridi
Catharine Daley

Eric Horvath

Jaime Lawler
Sarah Mangia
Emily McFadden
Pat McJoynt-Griffith
Gini Ryan
Kevin Sweeney
Eric VanBuskirk
Nell Vitale


Annual Election:

Nominations and the annual election occur in the Spring. All parents are given an opportunity to nominate and vote. The Board consists of nine (9) elected members; three (3) additional members are appointed by the Pastor, for a total of twelve (12) members alongside the Principal, Pastor, and a teacher representative. All elected members shall, at the time they commence each year of their term on the Board, be parents of children attending St. Catharine School and/or members of the Parish. Three (3) members will be elected annually to replace the three representatives whose staggered three (3) year terms expire.


Documents:

School Advisory Board Charter