273.8 - AREA EDUCATION AGENCY BOARD OF DIRECTORS.
273.8 AREA EDUCATION AGENCY BOARD OF DIRECTORS.
1. Board of directors. The board of directors of an area
education agency shall consist of not less than five nor more than
nine members, each a resident of and elected in the manner provided
in this section from a director district that is approximately equal
in population to the other director districts in the area education
agency. Each director shall serve a four-year term which commences
at the organization meeting.
2. Election of directors. Except as otherwise provided in
subsection 3, the board of directors of an area education agency
shall be elected by a vote of the members of the boards of directors
of the local school districts located within the director district.
The procedure for conducting the elections shall be as follows:
a. Notice of the election shall be published by the area
education agency administrator not later than July 15 of the
odd-numbered year in at least one newspaper of general circulation in
the director district. The cost of publication shall be paid by the
area education agency.
b. A candidate for election to the area education agency
board shall file a statement of candidacy with the area education
agency secretary not later than August 15 of the odd-numbered year,
on forms prescribed by the department of education. The statement of
candidacy shall include the candidate's name, address, and school
district. The list of candidates shall be sent by the secretary of
the area education agency in ballot form by certified mail to the
presidents of the boards of directors of all school districts within
the director district not later than September 1. In order for the
ballot to be counted, the ballot must be received in the secretary's
office by the end of the normal business day on September 30 or be
clearly postmarked by an officially authorized postal service not
later than September 29 and received by the secretary not later than
noon on the first Monday following September 30.
c. The board of each separate school district that is located
entirely or partially inside an area education agency director
district shall cast a vote for director of the area education agency
board based upon the ratio that the population of the school
district, or portion of the school district, in the director district
bears to the total population in the director district. The
population of each school district or portion shall be determined by
the department of education. The member of the area education agency
board to be elected may be a member of a local school district board
of directors and shall be an elector and a resident of the director
district, but shall not be a school district employee.
d. Vacancies, as defined in section 277.29, in the membership
of the area education agency board shall be filled for the unexpired
portion of the term at a director district convention called and
conducted in the manner provided in subsection 3.
3. Director district convention. If no candidate files with
the area education agency secretary by the deadline specified in
subsection 2, or a vacancy occurs, or if otherwise required as
provided in section 273.23, subsection 3, a director district
convention, attended by members of the boards of directors of the
local school districts located within the director district, shall be
called to elect a board member for that director district. The
convention location shall be determined by the area education agency
administrator. Notice of the time, date, and place of a director
district convention shall be published by the area education agency
administrator in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the
director district at least thirty days prior to the day of the
convention. The cost of publication shall be paid by the area
education agency. A candidate for election to the area education
agency board shall file a statement of candidacy with the area
education agency secretary at least ten days prior to the date of the
director district convention on forms prescribed by the department of
education, or nominations may be made at the convention by a delegate
from a board of directors of a school district located within the
director district. A statement of candidacy shall include the
candidate's name, address, and school district. Delegates to
director district conventions shall not be bound by a school board or
any school board member to pledge their votes to any candidate prior
to the date of the convention.
4. Organization.
a. The board of directors of each area education agency shall
meet and organize at the first regular meeting in October following
the regular school election at a suitable place designated by the
president. Directors whose terms commence at the organizational
meeting shall qualify by taking the oath of office required by
section 277.28 at or before the organizational meeting.
b. The provisions of section 260C.12 relating to
organization, officers, appointment of secretary and treasurer, and
meetings of the merged area board apply to the area education agency
board.
5. Quorum. A majority of the members of the board of
directors of the area education agency shall constitute a quorum.
6. Change in directors. The board of an area education
agency may change the number of directors on the board and shall make
corresponding changes in the boundaries of director districts.
Changes shall be completed not later than July 1 of a fiscal year for
the director district conventions to be held the following September.
7. Boundary line changes. To the extent possible the board
shall provide that changes in the boundary lines of director
districts of area education agencies shall not lengthen or diminish
the term of office of a director of an area education agency board.
Initial terms of office shall be set by the board so that as nearly
as possible the terms of one-half of the members expire biennially.
8. Census changes. The board of the area education agency
shall redraw boundary lines of director districts in the area
education agency after each census to compensate for changes in
population if changes in population have taken place.
Where feasible, boundary lines of director districts shall
coincide with the boundary lines of school districts and the boundary
lines of election precincts established pursuant to sections 49.3 to
49.6. Section History: Early Form
[C97, § 2833; C24, 27, 31, 35, 39, § 4119, 4121; C46, § 273.1,
273.3; C50, 54, 58, 62, § 273.4, 273.5, 273.9, 273.10; C66, 71, 73, §
273.4, 273.5, 273.9, 273.10, 280A.23(2); C75, 77, § 273.8,
280A.23(2); C79, 81, § 273.8, 280A.28, 280A.29; 82 Acts, ch 1088, §
1, ch 1136, § 4--6] Section History: Recent Form
84 Acts, ch 1219, § 13, 14; 85 Acts, ch 138, §4; 2003 Acts, ch
180, §19, 20; 2008 Acts, ch 1115, §7--9, 21; 2009 Acts, ch 41, §108
Referred to in § 256B.9, 273.2, 273.3, 273.21, 273.23, 273.27 Footnotes
For provisions applicable to the transition from election of
directors annually for three-year terms to the staggered election of
directors biennially for four-year terms, see 2008 Acts, ch 1115, §21