Please be advised that the Board adopted revisions to the district’s policy manual on September 29, 2026.
You can access the new policies online in BoardDocs.
September 29, 2026
REVISED POLICIES
Proposed Revisions
- Incorporate the new state law that allows teachers to take two days of personal/professional leave for each one half (½) year employed, rather the two days per school year. This adds two personal/professional leave days per year for teachers.
Proposed Revisions
- Incorporate the new state law that allows teachers, one (1) day of sick leave for each month employed up to eight (8) days per year for employees with ten-month contracts, up to nine (9) days per year for employees with eleven-month contracts, and up to ten (10) days per year for employees with twelve-month contracts. This takes away two sick days per year for teachers.
(With the proposed revisions to policies 4025 and 4026, the total number of combined personal/professional leave and sick leave days for the year remain the same for teachers.)
Proposed New Policy
- Outlines statutory requirements governing the age-appropriate and instructional use of digital devices by students to minimize unnecessary screen time while preserving instructional effectiveness.
- Includes prohibitions and limitations on the use of digital devices by students in grades K-5 and areas that are not prohibited.
Proposed Revisions
- Align the policy with recent revisions to state law requiring the District to ensure the internet safety of students through meeting various requirements.
- Ensure complaint process addresses alleged violations by providers of digital or online resources with which the District contracts.
- Clarify that although the District may create an email address for students in pre-kindergarten through five solely for use as a data point to identify the student in security or grading software, the District shall not allow a pre-K-5 student to access the address to send or receive email.
- State that the District shall provide students with age-and grade-appropriate digital citizenship education, inclusive of internet safety protocols and state guidance required by law.
- Incorporate requirements for the law regarding parent communication and notification.
- Align with state law requiring the District to evaluate the internet acceptable use policy at least twice each year, and update the policy, if necessary.
- Move the responsibility section from the administrative rules and regulations to the policy.
August 25, 2026
REVISED POLICIES
Revisions
- Include an exemption for legal services to the requirement of Board approval for contract that extend beyond one year.
July 28, 2026
REVISED POLICIES
Revisions
- Establish guidelines for professional and personal social media use by Board Members.
- Value and support the right of Board members to engage with constituents through social media regarding District activities.
- Call for members always to maintain professional relationships and interactions with students, parents, staff members, and community members.
- Allow Board members to take and share photos and videos from public meetings, school events, ceremonies, or community activities where there is no reasonable expectation of privacy.
- Require compliance with District policies, including the social media policy and any local, state, and federal laws and regulations.
- Reiterate Board members’ limitation to speak on behalf of the Board unless permitted in accordance with law and District policy.
- Require Board members to include a disclaimer when expressing their views on a Board-related matter when the District is the subject of social media content or when Board members post on social media and identify themselves by their positions or relationship with the Board.
- Include prohibitions that apply to Board members’ social media use when the use involves or impacts the District, its operations, schools, employees, and the MSCS community.
- Call for Board Members to review the social media policy at least biennially.
- Outline provisions for reporting, investigation, and addressing violations (See policy 0023 Process for Addressing Board Member Violations).
Revisions
- Modify the definition of telework to mean an arrangement that allows an employee to perform a portion of their workday/week virtually rather than their MSCS work location and clarifies that in a remote work arrangement an employee performs their entire work virtually.
- Allow remote work arrangements when approved by the Superintendent (or designee).
- State that the Superintendent (or designee) is responsible for
- determining if remote work arrangements are job-appropriate,
- identifying positions that are eligible for remote work, and
- approving and/or denying remote work requests.
- State that Senior Leaders (e.g., Chiefs, Officers) are responsible for determining if telework arrangements are job appropriate and identifying telework-eligible positions within their departments and that Senior Leaders or their designees are responsible for or approving and/or denying telework requests within their departments.
- Amend the regulations to
- Include additional eligibility requirements - employees must be in telework or remote work eligible positions to telework or remote work and, for telework employees, they must be able to report in-person within two hours if requested by their supervisors.
- Specify provisions for remote work, including that new remote work-eligible positions must be advertised as such when posted and current positions identified as remote-work eligible must be reclassified to reflect that the position is now remote work eligible.
- Clarify that employees in telework-eligible positions may be required to work virtually while school and/or other District offices are closed.
- Outline the responsibility of the Superintendent (or designee) and Senior Leaders (or designee) regarding District-authorized telework.
- Require employees engaged in telework or remote work to sign a District agreement and complete additional documentation as requested.
Revisions
- Add language allowing the Superintendent to delegate the authority to suspend or dismiss non-tenured teachers to a designee.
- Include provisions from state law which clarify that requirements such as notice and hearings do not apply to individuals who hold a temporary academic permit or temporary clinical permit pursuant to the law.
- Include information regarding the right of any party to appeal the Board’s decision in accordance with the provisions of state law.
- Amend the policy title and include in the scope a reference to policy 4043 Reduction in Workforce/Layoff.
Revisions
- Establish guidelines for professional and personal social media use by employees.
- Outline the expectation that all employees conduct themselves in a manner that reflects a positive representation of themselves, the District, and its employees, Board members, students, and school community.
- Seek to balance an employee’s right to free speech in their personal use of social media, while also acknowledging that the District has genuine interest in promoting workplace efficiency and avoiding actual and potential workplace disruptions.
- Allow employees to engage with students/parents/families in a professional manner and at reasonable times on social media.
- Allow employees to take and share photos and videos from public meetings, school events, ceremonies, or community activities where there is no reasonable expectation of privacy.
- Allow employees to use personal social media on their own devices at work during their free/personal time (e.g., lunch, breaks, duty-free time).
- Require compliance with District policies, including the social media policy and any local, state, and federal laws and regulations.
- Require employees to include a disclaimer when the District is the subject of social media content or if employees identify themselves as employees of MSCS on social media.
- Include prohibitions that apply to employees’ social media use when the use involves or impacts the District, its operations, schools, employees, and the MSCS community.
- Outline provisions for reporting, investigation, and addressing violations.
- Emphasize that the policy does not prohibit an employee from voicing concerns regarding employment-related matters and references the applicable policies for doing so.
Revisions
- Clarify that the Superintendent (or designee) is authorized to recommend to the Board, rather than determine, that a reduction in workforce is necessary.
- Make it clear that if the Board dismisses teachers or nonlicensed employees due to a reduction in workforce, the Board, rather than the Superintendent (or designee), shall give the teachers or nonlicensed employee written notice of dismissal explaining the circumstances or conditions making termination of employment necessary.
Revisions
- Include a reference to policy 4043 Reduction in Workforce/Layoff in the scope of the policy.
ADMINISTRATIVE RULES AND REGULATIONS
Revisions
- State that if the District delays opening and/or closes for inclement weather
- non-exempt employees may be compensated for up to one work week to align provisions for exempt employees.
- the Superintendent may extend the days exempt and non-exempt employees paid/compensated.
- employees in telework-eligible positions may be required to work virtually to ensure continuity of academic and operational services.
May 26, 2026
REVISED POLICIES
Revisions
- Amend the section regarding public comment.
- Note that the public comment section does not apply for Board-conducted disciplinary hearings as defined by law.
- Require speakers to state their city of residence, rather than address, before speaking.
- Conveying that speakers are not permitted to use lewd or profane language to ensure that Board meetings are welcoming and appropriate for children.
- State that speakers are asked to refrain from using names of District personnel who are not elected officials.
- Clarify that the Chair may terminate the remarks of any individual who is unreasonably disruptive or does not adhere to Board Policy.
Revisions
- Include language aligning with wording specified in federal law.
Revisions
- Clarify that the Superintendent may designate authority in the policy and include references to over-age-for grade (OAG) guidelines in the regulations.
Revisions
- Include language stating that the district’s policy will comply with state law including the declarations and requirements of T.C.A. §§ 37-1-601(a) and 37-1-603(b)(3) which incorporates “Erin’s Law”. The law educates children about child sexual abuse prevention.
Revisions
- Clarify the process and documents needed for shared residency.
- Include language stating that student general choice transfers may be revoked at the end of the semester rather than anytime during the school year.
- Develop administrative rules and regulations that outline the revocation processes for both general choice and optional school transfers for students who fail to meet or maintain eligibility criteria.
- Require guidelines to include notification, warning letters to parents when their child’s choice or optional transfer may be revoked, probation, and options to review a revocation decision.
Revisions
- Expand the policy scope to include 9th and 10th grade students.
- States that the Board authorizes a high school student to serve as an advisory, non-voting Student Board Member on the Board during meetings that are open to the public.
- Requires the Board to review and approve any provisions of the Student Congress by laws pertaining to the Student Board Member prior to implementation.
- Streamline the meeting requirements for the Student Congress.
- Broaden language in the administrative rules and regulations to:
- in addition to principal (or designee) recommendation, state that schools should advertise that students may apply to the principal to run for the Student Congress.
- encourages School Board Members, District staff supporting the Student Congress, Student Congresspersons, and Middle School Liaisons to participate in youth and adult equity training.
- include a nonvoting Student Board Member position on the Student Congress.
- outline criteria for congresspersons to serve as the Student Board Member.
- set a quarterly term for the Student Board Member.
- allow the Student Board Member to act as a non-voting, advisory representative of the Board, by providing, when appropriate, a declaration reflecting his/her position and/or the position of the Student Congress on student-related action items or votes taken by the Board, which declaration shall be recorded and included as information in the public record.
- allow the Student Board Member to participate in discussions or provide insight from a student's point of view as appropriate when requested by Board members.
Revisions
- Include language aligning with wording specified in federal law.