Mississippi Code 1972 (2023) › Title 43 - PUBLIC WELFARE (§§ 43-1-1 — 43-NEW01-012) › Chapter 5 - SCHOOLS FOR THE BLIND AND DEAF (§§ 43-5-1 — 43-5-39) › IN GENERAL (§§ 43-5-1 — 43-5-21) › Section 43-5-8 - Superintendents of Schools for Blind and Deaf; appointment; powers and duties; budget responsibilities; administrative and licensed instructional staff contracts of employment; competitive appointment of other personnel

(1)
The Superintendent of the School for the Blind and the Superintendent of the School for the Deaf shall be selected by and hold office subject to the will and pleasure of the State Superintendent of Public Education, subject to the approval of the State Board of Education. The State Board of Education may provide housing for the two (2) superintendents so employed either on- or off-campus. Each superintendent shall at all times maintain supervision of the physical properties of the school he serves.
(2)
Effective July 1, 2021, all other administrative and licensed instructional staff employed at the Mississippi School for the Blind and the Mississippi School for the Deaf, hereinafter MSBD, shall enter into written contracts of employment to indicate and cover the period for which they are respectively employed. Such employees shall be transferred from state service under the authority of the State Personnel Board to employment status as employees of the respective school. The State Board of Education may set and determine qualifications necessary for such employees and may appoint a subcommittee of the board for the purpose of authorizing the execution of such employment contracts on a timely basis. All such contracts and employment rights prescribed thereunder shall be awarded and governed in accordance with Section
37-9-1
, et seq., as applicable, and Section
37-7-307
. Said contracts shall be exempt from any applicable requirements of the Public Procurement Review Board for state agency employment contracts. All references within Section
37-9-1
et seq. to a "local school district" shall apply to MSBD, and all references to a "local school board" shall apply to the State Board of Education in its role as board of trustees pursuant to Sections
43-5-1
and
43-5-5
. There shall be no interruption of service with the Public Employees' Retirement System and the State and School Employees' Health Insurance Plan for administrative and licensed instructional staff. Any unused leave accumulated in state-service employment shall be transferred in accordance with the provisions of Section
37-7-307
, unless otherwise provided.
(3)
Effective July 1, 2021, all other personnel shall be competitively appointed by the State Superintendent of Public Education with the recommendation of the superintendent of the respective school. There shall be no interruption of service with the Public Employees' Retirement System and the State and School Employees' Health Insurance Plan for those applicable personnel. The employment shall be subject to the will and pleasure of the superintendent of the respective school, and shall not be subject to the rules and regulations of the State Personnel Board, except as provided in Section
25-9-127(4)
. The State Superintendent of Public Education shall fix the amount of compensation or expenses of these personnel, which shall be paid upon the requisition of the State Superintendent of Public Education and warrant issued thereunder by the State Auditor out of the funds appropriated by the Legislature in a lump sum upon the basis of budgetary requirements submitted by the State Superintendent of Public Education or out of funds otherwise made available.
(4)
The entire expense of administering the schools shall never exceed the amount appropriated therefor, plus funds received from sources other than state appropriations. For a violation of this provision, the superintendent shall be liable, and he or she and the sureties on his or herbond shall be required to restore any excess. Effective July 1, 2021, any and all employees or personnel of MSBD, whether administrative, licensed instructional, nonlicensed instructional or otherwise, paid using funds appropriated therefor or received from sources other than appropriations, shall be stationed at the respective campus of MSBD for the benefit of the respective school.
Laws, 1989, ch. 544, § 149; Laws, 1992, ch. 338, § 2; Laws, 1993, ch. 602, § 14; Laws, 1995, ch. 448, § 1, eff. 7/1/1995.
Amended by Laws, 2020, ch. 369, HB 667,§ 2, eff. 7/1/2020.
Amended by Laws, 2014, ch. 491, HB 454, 7, eff. 4/15/2014.