21-3-111. Powers of boards of trustees.

(a) The board of trustees in each school district within the state may:

(i) Sue and be sued in the name by which the district is designated;

(ii) Acquire, hold, convey, lease, rent, and manage property, real and personal, for the benefit of the school district in the name by which the district is designated, either alone or jointly with another public or private agency, institution, person, or corporation. This includes leasing of real property under W.S. 21-15-112;

(iii) Enter into agreements with any public or private agency, institution, person, or corporation for the performance of acts or furnishing of services or facilities by or for the school district;

(iv) Employ legal counsel and bear the cost of litigation;

(v) Accept or reject any federal or other gift, grant, bequest, or devise;

(vi) Employ and determine the salaries and duties of:

(A) A superintendent of schools who shall be the chief administrative officer of the district;

(B) Principals who shall assume the administrative responsibility and instructional leadership of any schools to which they are assigned in accordance with policies adopted by the board of trustees, provided that in the event a superintendent of schools shall request recommendations from a principal concerning the suspension, dismissal, assignment, transfer or termination of any teacher employed in the school to which the principal is assigned, such recommendation shall be given only after periodic evaluation of the teacher's classroom performance;

(C) Teachers who shall provide the expertise in their areas of instruction;

(D) Other certified professional employees; and

(E) Other personnel.

(vii) Discharge any employee subject to the provisions of any applicable law governing the procedure for terminating the employment of school district employees;

(viii) Insure against loss of property;

(ix) Repealed By Laws 1997 Special Session, ch. 3, § 502.

(x) Become members of county, state, and national school board associations and pay dues to such associations. A board of trustees may at its discretion pay necessary travel expenses and per diem of members and personnel attending meetings of such associations at a rate not to exceed that paid state employees;

(xi) Provide for the operation of school lunch programs in schools under its jurisdiction;

(xii) Require any officer or employee whose duty it is to handle funds or property of the district, including activity accounts, to be bonded under a suitable individual or blanket bond indemnifying the district against loss. The board shall determine the amount and type of the bond;

(xiii) Acquire for the school district, by condemnation, the fee simple title to any real estate situated within the district as a site for any public school buildings or school grounds or for any other necessary or beneficial school purpose, or any lesser interest, including easements and rights-of-way, when necessary in the proper maintenance and operation of the school system;

(xiv) Subject to W.S. 21-6-217(b), convey, with or without consideration, title to real property which is not being used and will not be used by the district to the state or its political subdivisions for public use;

(xv) Convey or otherwise divest, with or without consideration, title to personal property which is not being used and will not be used by the district to the extent not prohibited by Article 16, Section 6, Wyoming Constitution;

(xvi) Define "unexcused absence" and "habitual truancy" for all students who are attending public schools and who have met compulsory attendance requirements, and establish rules and regulations regarding their attendance. For purposes of this paragraph, students participating in the annual state fair held under W.S. 11-10-101 as an exhibitor shall be considered as participating in a district cocurricular activity program and shall be defined by the board as an excused absence;

(xvii) Establish a school bus driver training program in accordance with W.S. 21-3-131(a);

(xviii) Establish and maintain a program of adult education;

(xix) Develop policies and pest control methods including emergency policies, to minimize risk to students and employees, school property and the environment;

(xx) Enter into school building construction and renovation project agreements with the state construction department as authorized under W.S. 21-15-123(f)(v);

(xxi) Request the fingerprints of any employee initially hired by a school district on or after July 1, 1996, who may have access to minors in the course of the employee's employment, as provided by W.S. 7-19-106(a)(xxvi) and 7-19-201(a)(iii). The school district shall pay for the costs associated with the request.

(b) Not later than January 1, 1998, the board of trustees of each school district that has established trustee residence areas before that date shall:

(i) Establish by resolution that all trustees shall be elected at-large from the entire district; or

(ii) Establish by resolution a structure for electing members to the board through trustee residence areas with not less than two (2) members of the board elected at-large from the entire district. If the board establishes trustee residence areas under this paragraph, one (1) or more members shall be elected from each area. The boundaries of the trustee residence areas shall be established so that the total deviation in the population between the areas with the greatest and least population shall not, to the extent practicable, exceed ten percent (10%). Data from the last federal census shall be used in determining population within an area for the purpose of implementing this paragraph. The resolution shall include a process for implementing this change so that all elected trustees may serve their full term but that any vacancy shall be filled so as to implement the change as soon as practicable.

(c) Not later than January 1 of any year in which a general election will be held, the board of trustees of any school district may elect to adopt a resolution under paragraph (b)(i) of this section to have all trustees elected at-large. A board of trustees for a district in which all members are elected at-large may adopt a resolution to establish trustee residence areas under paragraph (b)(ii) of this section only as of January 1 of the first year which follows a decennial federal census and in which a general election will be held.