Welcome to Wilmot Public
School
Thanks for visiting us online. We're proud of our educational community and strive to fulfill our mission to prepare our students for a successful life. We offer a friendly small school atmosphere, which helps students to maximize their personal and academic growth.
We have favorable student/teacher ratios and a friendly, professional staff who interact with each student on a personal level. Wilmot High School offers strong curriculum offerings, favorable class sizes, and many opportunities to participate in extra-curricular activities.
Although we are proud of our staff, facilities,
and curriculum, our student body is our biggest asset. Stop by our school
for a visit; we think you'll agree.
Job Openings Posted
Send LOA and Resume to:
Tim Graf, Superintendent, P.O. Box 100, Wilmot, SD 57279 Phone: (605) 938-4647
What Does the School Board Do?
State law defines the school board as "an elected body created according to the laws of the state to serve as the governing board...for the purpose of organizing, maintaining, and locating schools and for providing educational opportunities and services for all citizens residing within the school district."
The Associated School Boards of South Dakota provides guidance to school boards regarding their role in school governance. According to ASBSD the school board has the functions of planning, policy making and evaluation of educational programs. The board decides the nature and extent of the instructional program; approves the employment of personnel; establishes personnel policy; adopts an annual budget; reviews monthly financial reports; adopts the school calendar; approves purchases; purchases school sites and adopts building plans. adopts a public relations policy; and evaluates the school program.
A joint publication of the American Association of School Administrators and the National School Boards Association, Roles and Relationships, delineates the specific responsibilities of school boards. Some of those responsibilities are as follows:
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The board's primary role is the establishment of policy. |
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Works with the superintendent and community to develop a vision for the schools. |
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Advocates on behalf of students and their schools and promotes the benefits of public education. |
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Supports the superintendent in all decisions that conform to board policy, other decisions made by the board, or recognized professional standards. |
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Provides policy on the effective management of complaints. |
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Provides for the periodic review of board policies. |
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Ensures board members understand that, under law, the school board acts as a board and that individual board members have no independent authority. |
The National School Boards Association has adopted a code of ethics to guide school board members. The code of ethics includes statements regarding "supporting the highest level of education possible; making decisions in terms of the best interest of the educational welfare of children; recognition that it is not the school boards responsibility to run the schools, but to see that they are well run; refusing to represent special interests or partisan politics; supporting decisions made by the majority of the board; referring all complaints to the appropriate level; and observing state laws and regulations pertaining to public education. The superintendent of schools is the only employed staff member that reports directly to the school board.
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2009-10 Board of
Education Denise Lutkemeier-President Members: |
What
Does the Superintendent Do?
The following is taken from Roles and Relationships, a
joint publication of the American Association of School Administrators and the
National School Boards Association.
The superintendent is the only employee hired directly by the school board and serves as the chief executive officer of the board with general supervision of the school system. The superintendent is not a member of the school board itself but serves as the professional educational adviser to the board.
The school board is a legislative and policy making body. The superintendent is hired to provide professional educational advice on policy development and implements the policies the board adopts.
The job description calls for the performance of the following duties: preparing the agenda for each meeting; preparing the annual budget for board consideration; preparing and submitting state and federal applications and reports; recommends the appointment and termination of all personnel; is responsible for the instructional program; maintains a continuous study of current problems; and determines the emergency discontinuance of school.
Other duties that are inherent in providing educational leadership for the school district includes the following: keeping board members informed about the needs of the district and about school operations and programs; providing for the continuous improvement of all facets of school district operations, especially as it relates to teaching and learning; encouraging long-range and strategic planning; ensuring that professional development opportunities are available for district employees; developing a public relations program. and to assure that all decisions are made with the best interests of students in mind.
A closing statement from the joint publication cited earlier gives school boards and superintendents guidance for the context of how both must view public schools: "Our public schools are the foundation of our democracy. They keep hope alive, and they open a world of possibility for our entire society. In fact our nation has survived and prospered precisely because it is firmly grounded in the concept of equal educational opportunity for all...Ultimately, the effectiveness of our public schools will determine our ability to sustain a free and democratic society."
