The School Assembly

The school as a legal entity is organized as a Non-Stock Corporation in the State of Connecticut. Because it is a non-profit corporation, there are no shareholders. Instead, the Corporation consists of the school's Assembly which, under the by-laws, is made up of students, staff, parents, trustees, and specially elected public members. The Assembly meets regularly once a year, in the late Spring, and determines all the school's basic policies, the annual budget, salary scales, tuition, the award of diplomas, and the Officers and Trustees. The agenda of the Assembly is published in advance and mailed to all members. Any Assembly member can put an item on the agenda by mailing it to the Secretary of the Corporation, c/o the office; items (with a few exceptions) can also be brought up on the floor of the meeting for discussion and vote.

The Officers of the Corporation are a President, who presides at meetings of the Assembly and Trustees, and whose most important power is that of calling special meetings when he sees fit; a Treasurer and a Secretary, both of whose functions are the standard ones implied by their titles.

Every year the Assembly also elects a Board of Trustees which, unlike virtually all other schools and corporations, in our case has no power at all. Rather, the Board is our advisory panel, studying as best it can the various questions referred to it by the Assembly and reporting back to the Assembly when it is ready to do so. As a matter of tradition, Trustees meetings are open to all Assembly members to attend and, where possible, advance notice is given of the topic under discussion.

The day-to-day life of the school is governed by the School Meeting, both directly and through its various agents.

This article is derived from an article by Daniel Greenberg and appears courtesy of the Sudbury Valley School, Framingham, MA.

Books by the SVS press are available at http://www.sudval.org/books.html, by calling (508)877-3030, or by fax to (508)788-0674. You can write to the Sudbury Valley School press at The Sudbury Valley School Press, 2 Winch Street, Framingham, MA 01701. You can email the school at office@sudval.org.

Permission to freely copy and distribute this document is given, provided that the text is not modified or abridged and this notice is included. For more information about SVS available electronically, check http://www.sudval.org.

Sudbury Valley is a democratic school run by a School Meeting. Students and staff each get one vote on all matters of substance; including the school rules and hiring/firing of staff. The school has no grades, tests, or scores.

Mountain Laurel Sudbury School

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