281—1.2(17A,256) Student member of the state board of education. The governor will appoint a public high school student to serve as a nonvoting member of the state board of education pursuant to Iowa Code section 256.5A.
	1.2(1) Term. The nonvoting student member will serve a term from May 1 to April 30. The student member may serve a second year as the nonvoting student member without having to reapply for the position if the student has another year of high school eligibility remaining before graduation. A vacancy in the membership of the nonvoting student member will not be filled until the expiration of the term.
	1.2(2) Qualifications. At the time of making application, a qualified nonvoting student member is to meet all of the following criteria:
	a. 	The student is a full-time, regularly enrolled tenth or eleventh grade student in an Iowa school district.
	b. 	The student has been regularly enrolled as a full-time student in the district of present enrollment for at least two consecutive semesters or the equivalent thereof.
	c. 	The student has a minimum cumulative grade point average in high school of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale (3.75 on a 5.0 scale).
	d. 	The student demonstrates participation in extracurricular and community activities, as well as an interest in serving on the state board.
	e. 	The student has the consent of the student’s parent or guardian, as well as the approval of the student’s district.
	1.2(3) Application process. The application process for the nonvoting student member is as follows:
	a. 	The department will, on behalf of the state board, prepare and disseminate application forms to all school districts in Iowa. In addition to the application itself, the student will submit all of the following:
	(1)	A consent form signed by the student’s parent or guardian.
	(2)	An approval of the application signed by the superintendent of the student’s district of enrollment or the superintendent’s designee.
	(3)	A letter of recommendation from a high school teacher from whom the student received instruction.
	(4)	A letter of recommendation from a person in the community familiar with the student’s community activities.
	b. 	The number of applicants in a year from any one district is limited as follows:
	(1)	If district enrollment for grades 10 through 12 is less than 400 students, there may be no more than one applicant from the district.
	(2)	If district enrollment for grades 10 through 12 is between 400 and 1,199 students, there may be no more than two applicants from the district.
	(3)	If district enrollment for grades 10 through 12 is 1,200 students or more, there may be no more than three applicants from the district.
	c. 	All applications are to be submitted on or before February 1 of the year in which the term is to begin. Applications may be hand-delivered or postmarked on or before February 1 to the Iowa department of education.
	d. 	All applications will be initially screened by a committee to be appointed by the director of the department. The initial screening committee will select not more than 20 semifinalists. If fewer than a total of 20 applications are received, the initial screening process may be omitted at the discretion of the director of the department.
	e. 	The applications of the semifinalists will be reviewed by a committee appointed by the president of the state board. The committee will submit a list of two to five finalists to the governor, who will appoint the student member from the list submitted.
	1.2(4) Participation of student member in official board activities.
	a. 	Upon appointment to the board, the student member is to, at a minimum, fulfill the following qualifications to remain eligible to serve:
	(1)	Maintain enrollment as a full-time student in an Iowa public school district (if the student moves or transfers from the district of application, the student will obtain the approval of the superintendent or the superintendent’s designee in the student’s new district of enrollment).
	(2)	Maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average in high school of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale or 3.75 on a 5.0 scale.
	(3)	Attend regularly scheduled board meetings as required of voting board members. As a nonvoting member, the student will not participate in any closed session of the board.
	b. 	The student member’s absences from school to participate in official state board activities will be excused absences. The student member’s participation in board activities outside the regularly scheduled meetings of the state board will be approved by the president of the board and the student’s superintendent or the superintendent’s designee.
	c. 	If the student member is a minor, the student’s parent or guardian will accompany the student while the student is participating in official state board activities at a location other than the student’s resident community, unless the parent or guardian submits to the state board a signed release indicating that the parent or guardian has determined that such supervision is unnecessary.
	d. 	The nonvoting student member is not considered for purposes of constituting the board’s necessary quorum.
[ARC 7418C, IAB 12/27/23, effective 1/31/24]