Seguin Independent School District

Bylaws of the

School Health Advisory Council

Article I: Authority

Section One. Statute and Policy. Each school district in the State is required in Chapter 28.004 of the Texas Education Code to establish and maintain a district-level school health advisory council. The School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) of the Seguin Independent School District is specifically authorized by the Board of Trustees in district policy BDF(Legal). 

Section Two. Limitations. The SHAC shall be an advisory body, and shall serve to provide guidance, counsel, and other assistance to the Board of Trustees and district administration as is specifically listed in state law and district policy. The SHAC shall have no power to expend public funds, enter into contracts, or otherwise place obligation or liability upon the district. 

Section Three. Staff Support. School District Administration shall identify an appropriate staff member to serve as SHAC Coordinator (the Coordinator). 

Section Four. Bylaws. It shall be the responsibility of the SHAC Coordinator in consultation with the SHAC, and upon any direction given by the Board of Trustees, to establish and amend the SHAC bylaws. The SHAC shall observe the bylaws. 

Article II: Responsibilities

Section One. Responsibilities. According to state law, district policy, and the direction of the Board of Trustees and district administration, the SHAC shall have the following responsibilities: 

1. To hold at least four regular meetings per year. 

2. To meet the requirements of Chapter 28.004 of the Texas Education Code and district policy, including recommending: 

1. The number of hours of instruction to be provided in health education; 

2. Policies, procedures, strategies, and curriculum appropriate for specific grade levels designed to prevent obesity, cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes, and mental health concerns through coordination of: 

1. Health education; 

2. Physical education and physical activity; 

3. Nutrition services; 

4. Parental involvement; 

5. Instruction to prevent the use of e-cigarettes and tobacco; 

6. School health services; 

7. Counseling and guidance services; 

8. A safe and healthy school environment; and 

9. School employee wellness; 

3. Appropriate grade levels and methods of instruction for human sexuality instruction; 

4. Strategies for integrating the curriculum components specified by subdivision (2) with the following elements in a coordinated school health program for the district: 

1. School health services; 

2. Counseling and guidance services; 

3. A safe and healthy school environment; and 

4. School employee wellness; and 

5. If feasible, joint use agreements or strategies for collaboration between the school district and community organizations or agencies. 

3. To consult as necessary or appropriate with the Superintendent and district administration regarding the planning, implementation, and evaluation of the district’s health education or curriculum instruction per Education Code 28.004 (b). 

4. To establish a physical activity and fitness planning subcommittee to consider issues relating to student physical activity and fitness and make policy recommendations to increase physical activity and improve fitness among students per Education Code 28.004(l-1). 

5. To develop a wellness plan to implement the district’s nutrition guidelines and wellness goals and to review and revise the plan on a regular basis and recommend revisions to the policy when necessary per FFA (Local).   

6. To consult with the Superintendent and district administration in advance of submitting issues, concerns, reports, and recommendations to the Board of Trustees. 

7. To present a written annual report in a meeting of the Board of Trustees on or before September 1 of each year. 

Article III: Meetings

Section One. Regular Meetings. The Coordinator shall work with the Chair to establish the regular meeting schedule of the SHAC. 

Section Two. Cancellation of Meetings. If necessary, the Coordinator and Chair may cancel any meeting of the SHAC with good cause (i.e., inclement weather or other adverse conditions), and determine if the meeting should be rescheduled. Members shall be given the reason for meeting cancellations and be given sufficient notice of canceled or rescheduled meetings. 

Section Three. Open Meetings. All meetings of the full SHAC shall be open to the public, and the public shall have reasonable opportunity to provide comment. The Chair may limit the time given to speakers. Subcommittee meetings may be open to the public at the discretion of the subcommittee chair. 

Section Four. Quorum. For meetings of the full SHAC, a quorum shall be the majority of the current membership. Meetings may still be held without a quorum for purposes of presentations or discussion. However, no actions or voting may take place without a quorum. 

Section Five. Attendance. Member attendance shall be monitored by the Coordinator and Chair who shall work with members to try and resolve any attendance problems.  

Section Six. Attendance Via Teleconference. Members may virtually participate in meetings through various means, to the extent they are readily available to the Coordinator. Members in attendance via teleconference may vote. 

Section Seven. Decision-making. Members shall attempt to reach decisions by consensus. However, if a clear consensus cannot be obtained, members shall reach a decision by majority vote. Proxy voting shall not be permitted.  

Section Nine. Agendas. Agendas shall be provided for all full SHAC meetings, and posted on the SHAC website at least 72 hours in advance of meetings. Agenda items shall normally be determined by the Chair. However, a majority of the SHAC may vote to place an item on an upcoming agenda. In addition, items determined by the district administration to be of an urgent nature may be placed on the agenda by the SHAC Coordinator in consultation with the Chair. 

Section Ten. Minutes. The Coordinator shall ensure that minutes are kept for all regular SHAC meetings. Minutes are records of meeting highlights and are not intended to provide a high level of detail. At a minimum, minutes shall include: attendance of members, the time the meeting was called to order and adjourned; the outcome of any votes or other actions; and a brief synopsis of the meeting proceedings. Minutes for regular meetings shall be approved by the SHAC and posted on the SHAC website. 

Article IV: Membership

Section One. Membership Criteria. Membership of the SHAC will strive to reflect the geographic, ethnic, gender, disability, and economic diversity of the district. The SHAC will consist of no more than 21 members and no fewer than 11 members. The membership composition of the SHAC shall comply with the following: 

1. Parents must be a custodial parent or guardian of a student currently enrolled in a district school. Parents may not also be employees of the district. 

2. The majority of the SHAC shall consist of parents, as defined above. 

3. The membership of the SHAC may also include: teachers, administrators, students, health care professionals, business community, law enforcement, senior citizens, clergy, nonprofit health organizations, and local domestic violence programs. 

4. A representative of the Board of Trustees may serve in an ex-officio (non-voting) capacity. 

Section Two. Term of Service. The term of service for an appointment shall be one year, normally beginning the first SHAC meeting of the year. Members may serve multiple terms. In filling vacancies, members may serve partial terms. 

Section Seven. Conflict of Interest. Conflicts of interest shall include, but are not necessarily limited to, the following: 

• Having a pecuniary interest in any discussions or recommendations of the committee. 

• Involvement in any litigation or procedural challenges against the district. 

• A vendor of the District.

Any cases or possible cases of conflict of interest shall be referred to the Chair who may consult with the SHAC membership as necessary, for appropriate action. If a member is determined to have a conflict of interest, appropriate action may include: 

• Required recusal from a particular agenda item or items. 

• Required recusal from a particular meeting or meetings. 

• Removal from the committee. 

Section Eight. Role of the Board Representative. The Board may designate a Trustee to serve as a representative to the SHAC. The role of the Board Representative is to observe without vote the deliberations and activities of the SHAC. The Board Representative shall not speak for the Board of Trustees unless a majority of the Board in a public meeting in accordance with the Texas Open Meetings Act has so directed. The Board Representative may actively participate in discussions by providing guidance as may be appropriate and by responding to questions to the best of his/her ability. The Board Representative will provide updates, verbal or written, to the Board as desirable; however, these updates shall not supplant the annual report to the Board of Trustees. 

Section Nine. Code of Conduct. The district welcomes freedom of expression and debate. However, SHAC members shall conduct themselves, in meetings and at all other times, with courtesy and respect to fellow members, district parents and students, district staff and Trustees, and members of other district advisory committees. In meetings, members must be recognized by the Chair before speaking, and otherwise respect the order maintained by the Chair. Unless otherwise authorized by the SHAC, members shall not speak for the SHAC; and, unless otherwise authorized by the administration, members shall not speak for the district. Members, by their comments and/or actions, shall not reflect badly on the SHAC. Violation of this code of conduct may result in reprimand or dismissal by the Coordinator. 

Section Ten. Undue Advantage. SHAC members shall not use their position to gain or attempt to gain an undue advantage for themselves or anyone else. Violation of this requirement may result in dismissal by the Chair. (As examples, it would be considered an undue advantage if a person included his or her membership in the SHAC in the reasoning for allowing a student transfer or for allowing a student entry into a particular program; however, it would not be considered an undue advantage for a person to include SHAC membership on his or her resume.) 

Article V: Officers

Section One. Officers and Terms of Service. The SHAC shall annually elect a Chair who must be a parent. The Chair shall be elected and installed at the first meeting of the year. No officer shall be an employee of SISD. 

Section Two. Option for Co-Chairs. The SHAC may choose to elect two Co-Chairs, one of whom must be a parent, and one of whom is not required to be a parent. 

Section Three. Responsibilities. The responsibilities of the SHAC Chair is as follows: 

1. The responsibilities of the Chair (or Co-Chairs) shall be to: 

1. Preside at all meetings of the SHAC and ensure that commonly accepted parliamentary procedure is followed. 

2. Serve as an ex officio member of all subcommittees without vote. 

3. Represent the SHAC, and sign all letters, reports, and other communications on behalf of the SHAC. 

4. Perform other responsibilities as may be prescribed by the SHAC, which are in accordance with SHAC’s authorizing statute, district policy, and direction of the Board. 

Section Four. Mid-Term Vacancies. If a vacancy occurs after the Chair’s term has commenced, the SHAC shall elect a new Chair to serve for the remainder of the term. 

Section Five. Removal of Chair. The Chair serves at the will of the SHAC. A two-thirds majority of the SHAC may at any time remove an Officer. Such action in itself does not equate to dismissal from the SHAC. 

Article VII: Subcommittees

Section One. Establishment. Subcommittees may be standing or ad hoc, and shall be established or altered by the SHAC. Subcommittees may address any topics as designated by the SHAC. However, pursuant to statutory requirements, there shall be a standing subcommittee maintained to address Physical Education and Activity. 

Section Two. Operations. Subcommittees shall have the following operational criteria: 

1. The Chair (or Co-Chairs) shall oversee the activities of all subcommittees, and ensure that assigned topics are appropriately addressed. 

2. Subcommittee chairs and their terms of service shall be appointed by the Chair with the advice of the Vice-Chair. 

3. Subcommittee chairs shall appoint the members of their subcommittees. 

4. Subcommittees facilitate the SHAC’s decision-making process. They are the focal point for SHAC activity. Broad community participation is sought for subcommittees. Subcommittees gather information, analyze available data, and make recommendations to the SHAC through the Executive Committee for consideration and possible action. 

5. Not all subcommittee members are required to be SHAC members. SISD employees may be appointed to subcommittees. School Health Services staff may also be appointed to subcommittees. 

6. The Coordinator shall serve as a resource to all subcommittees. 

7. Subcommittee chairs shall be members of the SHAC. If the subcommittee chair is not a parent of an SISD student, a parent shall be designated as subcommittee co-chair. 

8. Subcommittees shall be composed of at least three members. However, subcommittees shall not constitute a quorum of the SHAC membership, and therefore can take no action. 

9. For any subcommittee established jointly with other organizations, the SHAC may determine certain operational criteria in addition to or different from the above criteria. 

10. Unless otherwise specified by the SHAC, subcommittees are not required to have regular meeting schedules, and shall meet at the discretion of subcommittee chairs. Unless otherwise specified by the SHAC, subcommittees are not required to provide minutes or attendance records of meetings. However, any findings or recommendations of subcommittees must be prepared for forwarding to the SHAC. Only if it is decided that subcommittee meetings are open to the public shall posted agendas (under Article III, Section Nine) be required. 

Article VIII: SHAC Coordinator

Section One. Responsibilities. Responsibilities of the Coordinator shall include, but are not limited to: 

1. Ensuring that adequate facilities arrangements and staff support are secured for all meetings. 

2. Providing members and support staff with agendas and background materials prior to meetings. 

3. Serving as custodian of all SHAC records. Agendas and minutes of regular meetings must be maintained for a minimum of two years. In addition, the Coordinator shall keep a record of member term expirations and length of member service. 

4. Promoting public awareness of the SHAC and consulting a database of persons interested in service as SHAC members. 

5. Providing staff support in the development and submission of SHAC’s annual report. 

6. Monitoring member attendance 

7. Facilitate maintenance of the SHAC website. 

8. Providing such other assistance as requested in accordance with the SHAC authorizing statute, district policy, and the direction of the Board of Trustees.