What’s on tap for Tuesday’s Park City School Board Meeting

On Tuesday, March 15th, the Park City School District Board of Education will meet at 3:30 PM. While usually we are warned to “Beware the Ides of March,” there is nothing particularly scary scheduled for this meeting. However, there are a number of topics being discussed that may interest you. The items below are from the school district agenda:

• FY23 Budget (here is the document)
  • Revenues are forecasted to be down 2.3%
  • ESSER funding for positions is going away. These were monies from Covid funding and could impact positions at our schools.
  • Existing employee contracts will require an additional $2.2 million this year, due to the teacher negotiations a few years ago.
  • The Master Plan (i.e. the bond that was passed) requires PCSD to start paying $3 million in debt payments in 2023.
  • $49.8 million of non-bonded capital projects will be paid for in 2023, including $42 million in new financing.
• Fees (here is the document)
  • This agenda item is to present the fees that will be in place next year.
  • The discussion of fees for 2023 was held last year, so I don’t know how many conversations there will be on this topic.
  • The maximum amount of fees per student is $6K per year. Maximum fees for families are $12K per year.
  • Each program is different, so to understand the maximum fees you would want to look at the fee schedule above.
  • Lunch is going up by about 4% for kids and 13% for adults.
• Legislative Session (here is the document)
  • Business Administrator, Todd Hauber, will present on Utah Legislative decisions that will impact schools.
  • The range of impacts is broad. This isn’t a decision on what Park City Schools should do but it reflects what the State of Utah says our schools must do :
    • A student’s birth certificate will determine which gender-designated sports a student can compete in.
    • School water taps have to be tested for lead by 12/31/23.
    • More stringent requirements are coming that require public bodies to be in-person at meetings during voting issues.
    • Provide period products in restrooms.
    • Dropout prevention programs are now required for school districts.
    • The Utah State Board of Education must provide an online tool to compare schools, so parents have more choice when choosing their students’ schools.
    • Schools must include parents, reflective of the school’s community, in order to discern what materials are sensitive and thus can’t be used in instructive materials.
    • More paid professional hours for education (up to 32 hours), will be funded by the State Board of Education.
    • The Dakota Pacific Amendment, which enables the project to be built without community involvement, will impact our schools.
    • Ethnic Studies becomes part of the Utah Core Standards requirements.
  • Mr. Hauber will also present on other bills passed during the legislative session.
• Seven new policies will be discussed/passed:
  • Sexual Harassment under Title IX (new policy)
  • Criminal History Record Information (new policy)
  • Paid Leave for Maternity and Paternity (updated)
    • Note: There are significant changes in this policy and you may want to look at this one.
      • You now must have worked for the district for 12 consecutive months and be eligible for benefits to receive Leave.
      • Leave is now 240 hours (versus 30 workdays). That sounds equivalent but It is also pro-rated by FTE.
      • Leave can only be used one time during a 24 month period.
      • After paid leave, you must work for 90 days of service or you have to pay back everything.
  • Wellness
    • Nutrition services used to continuously review school menus “in conjunction with a registered dietitian and/or qualified nutrition advocacy group to determine opportunities….” That part in quotes is going away.
  • Student Enrollment
    • The district appears to be removing language that stopped disabled students, who utilize open enrollment, from attending Park City Schools in certain cases. It appears this policy change would loosen requirements.
  • Permit and use of School District property
    • When third parties use school property they are expected to pay for it (especially for-profit entities).
    • This change limits the number of days a third party can use the facilities in a year.
  • Family Rights and Privacy
    • This further defines what student information can be shared by the school district.

If you want to attend the meeting in person, it’s at the School District Office (2700 Kearns Blvd, go through the door on the left and then turn right) and starts at 3:30 PM. If you want to provide public comment about anything not on the agenda, you would want to be there before 5 PM. If the topic is on the agenda and you want to speak on it, the Board may let you speak but they don’t have to. They provide you with three minutes to speak.

You can also provide public comment by emailing  by 2:00 PM on the day of the meeting.

If you would rather watch the meeting online you can do that on PCSD’s YouTube channel. I would encourage you to do this if you have time. It’s always informative.