FILE:  CG

Cf:  DIE, GAK, JR

ADMINISTRATIVE RECORDS

Rapides Parish School Board records are public records and are available for inspection by any person at reasonable times during normal business hours.  However, certain School Board or school documents, such as but not limited to pupil school health records, pupil report cards, supervisory reports on teachers, budget worksheets, and personnel folders are considered confidential information and, therefore, exempt from public record statutes. Access to or release of confidential information such as pupil or personnel records, shall be governed by appropriate regulations and procedures.

The Superintendent or his/her designee shall be designated as the official custodian of records for the Rapides Parish School Board. Maintenance of all records shall include proper procedures to protect the safety, security, and confidentiality of records, Official records of the school district shall not leave the school or district premises except for official school business.

Any person may request in writing, a time to see such public records at a mutual, agreeable time with the office of the Superintendent and such time and place will be mutually stipulated during normal business hours.  Any request to view records shall clearly state the specific records desired.

Notwithstanding any other provisions of law or rules or regulations to the contrary, a School Board member and any other person authorized pursuant to written policy of the School Board except employee records relative to evaluations, shall have the right to examine any or all records of the school system except school employee records relative to evaluations, observations, formal complaints, and grievances. However, the School Board, upon majority vote of the total School Board membership, shall have the right to examine any or all records of the school system, but shall maintain the confidentiality of any records which are not otherwise public records.

EMPLOYEES’ SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS

Except as required by applicable law, regulation, or policy of the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE), the School Board shall not use the social security number of a teacher or school employee as a means of identification for such teacher or employee. The teacher or employee shall not be required to include or provide his/her social security number on any form or other written document unless:

1. A social security number is required by any applicable law, regulation, or policy of BESE; or
   
   

2. The form or written document is required for employment, retirement, application for leave or an individual education plan.

The School Board or any official or employee shall not provide access to any form or document on which the social security number of a teacher or school employee appears to any person other than the following:

1. Any official or employee at which the teacher or school employee works, the School Board, or Louisiana Department of Education, when such access is necessary for the performance of the duties and responsibilities of the official or employee.
   
   

2. Any person authorized to have such access by the teacher or school employee

PRESERVATION OF RECORDS

The Rapides Parish School Board and its employees, as well as any agent acting on behalf of the School Board, having custody or control of any public record, other than permanent records required by existing law to be kept for all time, shall exercise diligence and care in preserving the public record for the period or periods of time specified for such public records in formal records retention schedules developed and approved by the Office of the Louisiana Archivist and director of the division of archives, records management, and history of the Secretary of State.  In all instances in which a formal retention schedule has not been executed, such public records shall be preserved and maintained for a period of at least three (3) years from the date on which the public record was made.  However, where copies of an original record exist, the original alone shall be kept; when only duplicate copies of a record exist, only one copy of the duplicate copies shall be required to be kept.  Where an appropriate form of the microphotographic process has been utilized to record, file, and otherwise preserve such public records, with microforms produced in compliance with statutory provisions, the microforms shall be deemed originals in themselves, and disposition of original documents which have been microphotographically preserved and of duplicates and other copies thereof shall proceed in accordance with state law.

All existing records or records hereafter accumulated by the School Board, which participates in federal programs or receive federal grants, may be destroyed after three (3) years from the date on which the records were made in those cases where this provision is not superseded by guidelines for the operative federal program or grant requiring longer retention periods for the records in question;  provided that these records shall not be destroyed in any case where litigation with reference thereto is pending, or until the appropriate state or federal audits have been conducted.

DUPLICATION OF RECORDS

Copies of school district records may be requested at any time. The Rapides Parish School Board shall require any person making the request to reimburse the School Board for the actual fees and costs incurred prior to providing any document, record, or item, unless the person is exempted from providing reimbursement. Duplication of records classified as confidential information shall not be permitted.

Persons making requests for duplication of records shall be encouraged to submit such requests in writing to expedite accurate processing of their request. Request should be sufficiently detailed to identify the documents sought to be copied. Questions regarding the appropriateness of having certain pieces of information duplicated shall be referred to the Superintendent and/or his/her designees for determination, and if necessary, to the School Board’s attorney.

Cost associated with duplication of records shall include not only charges for copying, but also staff time involved in locating, retrieving, and duplicating, as well as any other cost or special service charge that may be incurred in the process of duplication. Cost for duplicating records shall be paid in advance, whenever possible. A schedule of fees used to calculate cost associated with duplication of records shall be set by the School Board, and posted where it can be readily accessed by the public.

The Rapides Parish School Board has developed a fee schedule for fulfilling public records requests, which is in compliance with La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §44:32 and LAC Title 4 §401.

In accordance with the Louisiana Public Records Act, RPSB will charge a copy fee of $0.25 per side per page that is requested and produced either electronically or printed. 

Records produced in electronic form that are too large to deliver via email will have a cost for the electronic medium used for storage, at $30.00 cost for a USB drive.

If mailing the documents is required, there will also be a postage fee charged based on the actual costs to mail the documentation. Fees must be prepaid.

Payments must be in the form of a check or money order.

DISPOSAL OF RECORDS

Records that have met their retention periods may be disposed of. Before disposal, the Superintendent or his/her designee shall ascertain if any of the records scheduled for disposal requires further retention or are required for pending or on-going litigation. The Superintendent or designee shall consult with the School Board’s attorney to determine if there are any legal holds on records that are involved in state or federal investigations and/or litigation and that would require the records to be retained for a longer duration.

Once disposal has been determined, the School Board shall dispose of records in a manner acceptable to the level of confidentiality the record requires.

The Superintendent or his/her designee shall develop and maintain regulations and procedures for the management of electronic records, such as e-mail, software, and microfilm, to include the retention, access, and disposition requirements.

Revised:  January, 2023

Revised:  July 2, 2024

Ref:    La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§13:5112.1, 17:81, 17:93, 17:196, 17:230, 17:232, 17:415, 17:440, 44:1, 44:4, 44:31, 44:32, 44:36

Board minutes, 7-2-24

Rapides Parish School Board