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Appendix B: Frequently Asked Questions <br /> 1. Which school district personnel may be PAC members? <br /> School district personnel, including teachers and other service providers and school <br /> committee members, may be PAC members as "interested parties," subject to local <br /> policies; or if they are parents of children with special needs in that school district, <br /> they may be parent members of the PAC. <br /> School district administrators who are not parents of children with special needs in <br /> the school district should not be PAC members, because that would put them in the <br /> position of advising themselves. <br /> 2. May school administrators attend PAC meetings? <br /> Because PAC meetings are subject to Open Meeting Law, school administrators may <br /> attend PAC meetings. In the spirit of effective collaboration, it is good practice to <br /> invite the administrator of special education to meetings of the PAC. <br /> 3. May a school committee or school administrator disband a PAC? <br /> No. A school committee or school administrator may not disband an established <br /> PAC. The school district and the PAC are encouraged to cooperate in order to <br /> resolve issues. The ESE and the Massachusetts Association of Special Education <br /> Parent Advisory Councils (MassPAC) can provide helpful materials. <br /> 4. Who can vote at a PAC Meeting? <br /> PACs may address the issue of voting in their own By-Laws. Some PACs have found <br /> it effective to allow all members to vote, while taking a vote only if there is a <br /> "voting quorum" in which at least two thirds of the PAC members present are <br /> parents of children with special needs. Other PACs have defined "General <br /> Membership" and "Voting Membership" (see sample By-Laws in Appendix A). <br /> 5. Is the PAC membership list a public document? <br /> Since a PAC is an advisory group to a public body (the School Committee), the <br /> official PAC membership list of persons who have taken action to join is a public <br /> document. <br /> 6. May a PAC operate a private email fist (for example, "LISTSERV") that is <br /> not open to the participation of school employees? <br /> No, all email communications of the PAC, including electronic mailing or distribution <br /> lists, are subject to Public Records Law, <br /> 7. May a school district adopt policies further defining the operations of a <br /> PAC? <br /> School districts may set reasonable operational policies such as notice for use of <br /> school buildings or access to school programs. However, the role of a PAC may not <br /> be limited in a manner inconsistent with state regulations regarding PACs, or with <br /> ESE PAC guidelines. <br /> 14 <br />