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Adoption Policies and Procedures

Responsibility

  1. The Board shall adopt a policy for selecting instructional materials. Final selections must be recorded in Board minutes. No later than April 1 of each year, the District shall transmit a report to TEA listing the instructional materials used in the District. Selections certified to TEA shall be final and, therefore, shall not be subject to reconsideration during the original contract period or re-adoption contract periods covering the instructional materials selected. 19 TAC 66.104(a), (g), (h) [See also CMD for provisions regarding inventory and requisition of textbooks]
  2. Selection and use of ancillary materials is at the discretion of the Board. 19 TAC 66.104(p)
  3. At an appropriate time following adoption of instructional materials by the State Board, the Superintendent shall make recommendations to the Board for appointment of a local textbook adoption committee. EFAA (LOCAL)
  4. The Superintendent or designee shall be responsible for coordinating the time frame for meetings of the committee and meetings of the Board to assure compliance with the April 1 reporting date. (EFAA Local)
  5. The Superintendent or designee shall be a member and serve as chair of the committee. (EFAA Local)
  6. The Superintendent has designated the Textbook Coordinator as the coordinator of all actions necessary to assure that campuses and departments adhere to the established textbook adoption guidelines.
  7. The Commissioner shall implement a program designed to allow a participating District to receive credit for textbooks purchased at a cost below the cost limit established under Section 31.025(a). The credit is an amount equal to the difference between the price paid for a textbook and the cost limit for that textbook multiplied by the number of copies purchased. Fifty percent of the total credit shall be credited to the state textbook fund and 50 percent to the District to apply toward the requisition of additional textbooks or electronic textbooks on the conforming or nonconforming list. Education Code 31.1011

Committee Makeup

  1. Members of the committee shall be professional staff and the majority shall be classroom teachers. (EFAA Local)
  2. The committee shall consist of no fewer than five and no more than 15 members. (EFAA Local)
  3. Should the Board reject any recommendation, the Superintendent shall present another recommendation. The official minutes of the Board meeting at which the appointment is made shall include names of the persons appointed to serve. EFAA (LOCAL)
  4. Depending on the subject areas and grade levels impacted by the adoption, the Textbook Coordinator shall determine the number of elementary and secondary members who will serve on the textbook adoption committee.
  5. The professional employees of the district on the textbook adoption committee shall represent the subject areas on the adoption list as well as campuses where the subjects are taught.
  6. The Textbook Coordinator shall request principal/department recommendations of professionals to serve on the textbook adoption committee.
  7. Textbook adoption committee members shall ensure that their respective campus teachers have the opportunity to review all textbooks up for adoption.

ATTENDANCE:

  1. At their first meeting, the Textbook Adoption Committee shall designate a secretary to keep minutes of all meetings. Meeting dates and times shall also be established.
  2. A quorum, consisting of a majority of the committee members, must be present when selections are made. (EFAA Local)
  3. Any member of the textbook adoption committee not in attendance at the first two meetings shall be removed from the committee and notified in writing.
  4. The chairperson of the Textbook Adoption Committee has the option of replacing the member with an alternate from the approved alternate list.
  5. The meetings of the textbook adoption committee shall be held after school hours. The chairperson will maintain a list of meetings held. Summary minutes of each meeting will be kept.

COMMITTEE MEMBER DISQUALIFICATION:

  1. Any committee member not complying with district and state textbook adoption laws, policies and guidelines will be disqualified from serving in the textbook adoption process.
  2. All sample materials are to be marked “sample copy” and are never to become part of the textbook inventory.
  3. Publishers may provide additional samples to persons designated by the Textbook Coordinator.
  4. Additional samples are to be shipped to the District Textbook Warehouse.

TEXTBOOK REVIEW PROCESS:

  1. The textbook adoption committee shall establish the criteria and method of evaluation of textbooks and ancillary materials on the multiple adoption lists.
  2. The textbook adoption committee shall examine all books on the multiple adoption lists and evaluate them according to established criteria.
  3. Sample copies of the textbooks on the multiple adoption lists will be provided to the members of the textbook adoption committee as soon as available. Availability of multiple sets of samples is at the discretion of the publisher.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST:
Any administrator or teacher who receives any commission or rebate on any books used in the schools with which the person is concerned as administrator or teacher commits a Class B misdemeanor offense.

Any administrator or teacher commits a class B misdemeanor offense if the administrator or teacher accepts a gift, favor, or service that:

  1. Is given to the person or the person’s school;
  2. Might reasonably tend to influence an administrator or teacher in the selection of a textbook;
  3. Could not be lawfully purchased with funds from the state textbook fund.

“Gift, favor, or service” does not include staff development, in-service, or teacher training; or instructional materials, such as maps or worksheets, that convey information to the student or otherwise contribute to the learning process.

Education Code 31.152
A person commits a Class C misdemeanor offense if the person knowingly violates any law providing for the purchase or distribution of free textbooks for the public schools. Education Code 31.153

RECOMMENDATIONS:

  1. The Textbook Adoption Committee shall recommend by a majority vote their selection to the Superintendent and Board of Trustees.
  2. A majority (50% + 1) of the members of the textbook adoption committee shall be present for any meeting at which selections and recommendations are made.
  3. The textbook adoption committee shall examine and recommend for use all ancillary materials that are deemed appropriate.
  4. Any course materials relating to course sexuality, sexually transmitted diseases, or human immune deficiency virus (HIV) or acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) shall be presented to the board with the advice of the local health education advisory council. TEC 28.004 (e)
  5. The Textbook Coordinator shall compile the following documentation by the end of the first week in February:A. Textbook Recommendation Form(s) (Exhibit 1);
    B. Committee Evaluation Forms;
    C. Recommendation(s) for use of ancillary materials;
    D. A list of all meeting dates and summary minutes;
    E. Any report from the Health Advisory Council.
  6. The textbook adoption committee, after examining all instructional materials adopted by the State Board and reflected on the multiple lists, shall select materials for use in the District, and recommend the selections to the Superintendent and Board for ratification. EFAA(LOCAL)
  7. The District strongly discourages split adoptions within elementary and secondary levels.
  8. The District shall use non-adopted instructional materials during the contract period for conforming and nonconforming instructional materials adopted by the State Board in the subject area. 19 TAC 66.104(f)
  9. If the District selects non-adopted instructional materials for enrichment subjects, it is also responsible for providing Braille and/or large-type versions of the materials. 19 TAC 66.104(d)
  10. The District may use local funds to purchase any textbooks in addition to those selected under Education Code Chapter 31. Education Code 31.106

BOARD APPROVAL:

  1. The Textbook Coordinator shall furnish the Superintendent for presentation to the Board the following: A. The names of the members of the textbook adoption committee; B. The recommendation of the textbooks to be adopted by the district; C. Advice of the Health Advisory Council for human sexuality materials; Education Code 28.004(e) [See EHAA] if applicable)
  2. In the event the Board does not ratify any of the selections, the reasons shall be recorded in Board minutes. EFAA(LOCAL)The committee shall make other recommendations for selection until the Board has ratified all selections. EFAA (LOCAL)
  3. If the District selects instructional materials priced above the maximum cost to the state established in the proclamation, the District is responsible for paying the publisher. 19 TAC 66.104(b)
  4. If instructional materials for subjects in the enrichment curriculum that are not on the conforming or nonconforming lists adopted by the State Board of Education (SBOE) are selected by a school district, the state shall be responsible for payment to the district an amount equal to the lesser of:A. 70 percent of the cost to the district of the instructional materials. The applicable quota for adopted materials in the subject shall be the basis for determining instructional materials needed by the district.B. 70 percent of the maximum cost of the state established for the subject. The applicable quota for adopted materials in the subject shall be the basis for determining instructional materials needed by the district.
  5. A school district that selects non-adopted instructional materials for enrichment subjects is responsible for the portion of the cost of the materials not eligible for payment by the state. The minutes of the Board of Trustees meeting at which such a selection is ratified shall reflect the school district’s agreement to bear responsibility for the portion of the cost not eligible for payment by the state.
  6. After ratification by the Board and not later than April 1, a report on instructional materials selected shall be transmitted to the Texas Education Agency (TEA). (19 TAC 67.107, EFAA (Legal)
  7. The Board shall select textbooks for a subject in the foundation curriculum from either the State Board’s conforming list or the nonconforming list. Education Code 31.101(a)
  8. Selections certified to TEA shall be final and, therefore, shall not be subject to reconsideration during the contract period or periods covering the books selected.

PUBLISHER CONTACT:

  1. The district is a closed district in regard to publisher contact during the adoption proceedings.
  2. Publishers are not allowed on campus unless clearance has been secured from the Superintendent and the Instructional Materials Coordinator and with the approval of the campus administrators.
  3. Publisher contact is limited to the Instructional Materials Coordinator, and respective team members and campus administrators.
  4. Any publisher presentation shall not interfere with the instructional day; therefore they are to be held after school.
  5. Publisher presentations must follow meetings format so that all committee members and interested parties have the opportunity to attend.
  6. Publishers must notify the Instructional Materials Coordinator of all scheduled presentations.
  7. Publishers may not contact any employee after the local textbook hearings have been held in the Spring.
  8. Publishers must adhere to district policies. Publisher(s) not adhering to district policies and procedures will be prohibited from participating in the textbook adoption process.

SAMPLES:

Each publisher shall provide every school district one complete official sample of textbooks and instructional materials on the adoption list. This is to be delivered to the District Textbook Warehouse for the purpose of public display. (10 TAC 66.101 (b)

INVENTORY PROTOCOL:

  1. District textbook administration shall send out an inventory schedule to each school.
  2. District textbook staff may accept inventory schedule changes only if their deadlines allow.
  3. Prior to the textbook inventory, each school administrator in charge of textbooks shall have an accurate count of textbook charges, losses damaged books, payments collected and deposited.
  4. Prior to textbook inventory, each school administrator in charge of textbooks shall make sure that all books are returned to the book room(s) or specific location.
  5. Prior to the textbook inventory, each school administrator in charge of textbooks shall make sure that all books are stacked five books spine in and five books spine out. Left over books in stacks less than five should be stacked on the same side of the shelf.
  6. If books must be stacked two or three deep on the shelves, the number must be uniform in each stack, or the front row only must have fewer books.
  7. The principal or the administrator in charge of textbooks shall be present during the inventory.
  8. At the conclusion of the inventory, the principal or administrator in charge of textbooks shall submit payment in full for all books lost and not yet paid for to the textbook department.
  9. If the school has any outstanding payment contracts, the school must still pay the amount in full to the textbook department.
  10. The campus administrator shall certify the accuracy of the campus inventory by affixing his/her signature and date on the inventory report.
  11. The district textbook administrator shall prepare a district wide inventory report and submit it to the superintendent.
  12. Campuses shall keep their textbooks in a secure, locked room. Only the principal or the administrator in charge of textbooks and the textbook clerk should have a key.