School Committee Legal Status
NEPN/NSBA Code: BB

Recognizing that “a general diffusion of the advantages of education [is] essential to the preservation of rights and liberties of the people,” the Constitution of the State of Maine declares that the Legislature has the duty to require communities to provide for the support and maintenance of public schools in order to further this objective. Maine law establishes a State Department of Education to supervise a coordinated system of public education, a Commissioner to enforce regulatory requirements and to provide technical assistance and educational leadership, and a State Board of Education to act as a body with certain policymaking, administrative and advisory functions, but places the responsibility for control and management of public schools with locally elected School Committees, School Boards or Boards of Directors. Thus, the Yarmouth School Committee derives its legal authority from the State’s Constitution, state statutes and regulations of the State Board of Education, as well as Federal laws and regulations.

The Yarmouth School Committee members have a responsibility to the local citizens they serve and that elect them to office. Recognizing this parallel concept of authority and responsibility, the School Committee becomes a policy-making body for the school district serving within the framework provided by law and responding to the will of the local citizenry.

There shall be 7 members on the Yarmouth School Committee. Each member serves for three years and these terms overlap so that in each year two or three positions are vacated and must be resupplied by election.

Each year as a part of the School Committee reorganization procedure, one member is elected to serve as Chair and is the presiding officer at all its meetings.

One member is elected to serve as Vice-chair. In the absence of the Chair, the Vice-chair will assume the role of Acting Chair with all rights and responsibilities of the Chair contained therein.


Legal Reference: 20-A MRSA §§ 1001, 1251 et seq.
Cross Reference: BDB - Board Officers
Adopted: Prior to 1982
Revised: June 8, 1992; October 27, 2011