West Shore

School District

Guidelines for Meetings and Comments

Parameters for the Organization of Public Comment

May 2021

Pursuant to Board Policy 006: Meetings, the administration developed procedures establishing reasonable parameters for the organization of public comment. The parameters include:

In Person Attendance/Participation

Each resident/student wishing to comment shall have one (1) opportunity for public comment related to agenda items and one (1) opportunity for public comment regarding non-agenda items:

Requests to comment must be submitted prior to the start of the meeting.
Requests to comment must be submitted on the appropriate form (known as the blue card) available at the meeting, and the form must be completed fully.
When addressing the Board in person, public comments will be limited to three (3) minutes.
The Board or Administration may respond to comments at their discretion.
Requests to comment received after the meeting has started will be provided to Board members following the meeting for review; however, individuals will not have the opportunity to speak publicly.

Should a new agenda item be added for discussion after the start of the meeting, public comment will be received on that new agenda item until the time that agenda-related public comments have concluded.

Remote Attendance/Participation

Each resident/student wishing to comment shall have one (1) opportunity for public comment related to agenda items and one (1) opportunity for public comment regarding non-agenda items:

Electronic comments must be submitted via email to the Board Secretary at [email protected] prior to the start of the meeting.
Electronic comment submission must contain the resident/student's full name, full postal address, organization if applicable, and school if the sender is a student. Without these details, the comment will not be read. If not clearly identified as a student comment, the remarks will be read as a public comment.
Electronic comments received prior to the start of the public board meeting will be read by the Board Secretary at the designated time in the agenda for three (3) minutes and provided to the Board for review in their entirety.
The Board or Administration may respond to comments at their discretion.
Electronic comments received after the meeting has begun will not be read, but will be provided to Board members following the meeting for review.

Link to Board Meeting Livestream

Accommodations

To ensure all individuals have an opportunity to speak, any resident/student who needs a reasonable accommodation for public comment is requested to contact the Board Secretary at 717-938-9577 at least three (3) business days in advance of the meeting.

Limited Meeting Capacity & Safety Protocols

Under the current Order of the Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Health for Mitigation and Enforcement, as most recently amended on April 1, 2021, indoor events and gatherings are limited to 25% of maximum occupancy. The Board Room at the Administration building has a maximum occupancy of 223 people. Therefore, the total number of attendees, including Board members, Administration, and the public, is limited to 56 people. To ensure the Board complies with size limitations, 35 members of the public will be permitted to attend meetings in person. Attendees will enter the meeting room on a first-come, first-serve basis and once maximum capacity has been reached, additional attendees will be prohibited from entering the meeting area. While in the building, visitors are expected to adhere to current health and safety guidelines. Meeting capacity and safety protocols will be updated to reflect the most recent guidance from federal and state health agencies.