1. School districts should have an on-going curriculum evaluation process, which includes input from the community. We support district curriculum committees composed of school board members, teachers, administrators, students and community members. Curriculum decisions should be based on sound educational research.
2. Evaluation of students should be based on established goals that are clearly understood by students, parents and staff.
3. School districts should have an awareness of and take a leadership role in addressing issues of diversity affecting the school and the community. Schools should support a sense of community by creating a dialogue among families, students and staff. We support on-going teacher and staff professional development.
4. Students have the right to a qualified teacher, one who has the ability to reach, teach and inspire students and who has a command of the subject matter. It is important that school districts provide and fund on-going professional development pertinent to the particular school and staff. Mentoring of new teachers is recommended.
5. We support reciprocal volunteerism between school and community/business. To be effective, volunteers must be trained and supervised and should not replace paid personnel. Students should be involved in well coordinated and meaningful service learning projects that are integrated into the curriculum.
6. We support placement of special education students in the least restrictive setting while considering the most productive environment for all students.
7. School media centers should be given high priority. They should be maintained and staffed so as to teach media center skills and general research methods. 

 

8. The availability of student support services at each school site is important. We support maximum coordination and collaboration of services within the school and among all districts and Humboldt County Office of Education. We support a community resource position to research appropriate services and serve as a liaison between families and needed support services. Counseling services are especially important. Schools should provide teachers and support services staff professional development training on mental health and suicide prevention.
9. We encourage and support the use of new technologies for information sharing that ensures interaction among all agencies benefiting students, schools and education. We support electronic transfer of the information normally contained in a student's cumulative file within a district or between districts, provided that access to information is safeguarded according to law.
10. We support a continuum of alternative programs designed to meet the needs of students. We support early intervention and all possible efforts to help the student succeed before transfer to an alternative program. This includes the opportunity to return to the school of origin or to transfer to another program that best meets the needs of the student.

11. We support efforts, including policies and practices, to encourage effective communication among all parties, using all available technologies without sacrificing personal interaction.
12. Policies and practices should include a defined method for parents and community to evaluate schools and for schools to respond to such evaluation.
13. The public should be informed of meetings where goals, objectives and budgets are decided and it should be encouraged to provide input. Advisory committees should be ongoing and should receive support from administration and staff.

14. It is important for school districts, school boards and administrators regularly to work together to secure state support for basic funding at no less than the national average. Alternative methods such as unification, parcel taxes and bonds should be considered.
15. School districts, school boards, and communities should collaborate to advocate more unrestricted state funding, which could provide more flexibility to meet identified local needs and sustain successful, innovative programs.
16. Internal, qualified evaluators should make prescriptive evaluation of teachers regularly. The tenure system should be maintained, provided established dismissal procedures are used and pursued when warranted.
17. School plants should be evaluated on the basis of size and needs of student population, condition of plant and finances.
18. It is important to provide a safe environment where teachers can teach and students can learn, including, but not limited to, support for:
 A. Manageable class size;
 B. Presenting a balanced and accurate view of the students and their activities and accomplishments;
 C. Encouraging parent participation in student issues;
 D. Identifying and providing intervention for students needing assistance; and
 E. Preparing and implementing safe school plans, including effective programs that address bullying and cyberbullying.