The minutes of the meetings of the Board of Trustees are the written record of all proceedings of the board. School boards speak only through their minutes. Therefore, the minutes shall include:
1. whether it is a regular or special meeting;
2. date, time and place of meeting;
3. members and others present;
4. members absent;
5. a statement that the meeting was called to order and commenced as an open meeting;
6. approval of the minutes of the preceding meeting(s);
7. an accurate recording of any final actions taken at such meeting;
8. a record by individual member of any votes taken at such meeting;
9. any other information that the school board requests to be reflected in the minutes;
10. a record of any closed determination/executive session to include:
a) a motion to enter into a closed determination for executive session, if requested by any member, stating an allowable reason and the vote;
b) a motion to enter into an executive session stating an allowable reason and the vote;
c) a motion to end the executive session to return to open session;
d) announce executive session votes, if any.
11. a record of adjournment;
12. signature of president of the board, attested by the secretary.
Minutes shall be kept on file in the office of the superintendent and open to public inspection during regular business hours.
Minutes shall be recorded within a reasonable time not to exceed thirty (30) days after adjournment.
Minutes shall become official when adopted by the board at the next regular meeting, or within thirty (30) working days, whichever occurs later.
TELECONFERENCE OR VIDEO MEETING
In the event that this board finds its necessary to conduct a meeting through means of teleconference or video, the board shall adhere to the requirements of the Open Meetings Law, as specified in Section 25-41-5 of the MS Code.
ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION
A school board that enters into executive session to discuss a sensitive personnel issue and subsequently comes out of executive session, adjourns, and announces its decision without taking a vote on the issue, as reflected in the minutes, has not acted on the issue. Pursuant to 25-41-11, minutes must be kept of all meetings of a public body, including executive sessions. Only actions that are duly and properly reflected in the minutes may be considered as an action by the board. Once the board votes upon and approves the minutes, it is evident that only those actions specified in the minutes were taken by the board, and no other actions were taken. There is no authority that would allow a school board to take an affirmative action without a vote. (Attorney General Opinion No. 2001-0093, Mabry, March 23, 2001.)
LEGAL REF.: MS CODE § 25‑41‑1 et seq., and § 37‑6‑9
CROSS REF.: Policies BCAD C Teleconference or Video Board Meeting
BCBFA C Quorum for Board Meetings
BCBHA C Recording Board Action in Official Minutes
BCBG C Voting Method at Board Meetings