Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 7 - Education K-12 › Part 24 - Mississippi Public School Accountability Standards 2023 › ACCREDITATION POLICIES OF THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION › Sec2 7-24-5.0 - ACCREDITATION MONITORING PROCEDURES › Section 7-24-5.0-5.2 - INVESTIGATIVE AUDITS (COMPLAINTS AGAINST DISTRICTS)

Current through June 25, 2024
All formal complaints made against schools or districts
					 must be submitted to the Office of Accreditation in writing and include the
					 name and contact information (valid phone number or valid e-mail address) of
					 the individual(s) filing the complaint. The written complaint shall contain
					 specific details concerning alleged violations. While the Office of
					 Accreditation may receive anonymous complaints, these complaints are not
					 considered formal. Additionally, the Office of Accreditation shall not provide
					 any details regarding the status of a complaint and/or investigation.
5.2.1
Areas Over Which the Commission
				  on School Accreditation Has No Authority
If the complaint addresses an area over which the CSA has
					 no authority, receipt of the complaint is acknowledged with instructions of
					 where to direct the complaint, and the complaint is filed in the Office of
					 Accreditation. The CSA does not have authority to overturn decisions made by
					 local school boards, nor does it have jurisdiction to investigate allegations
					 of discrimination, harassment, and hostile work environment, or violations of
					 the Public Records Act. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
					 and/or Office of Civil Rights and the Mississippi Ethics Commission have
					 jurisdiction over these matters. The MS Ethics Commission also has authority to
					 enforce the provisions of the Open Meetings Act and issue civil penalties for
					 violations.
5.2.2
Areas Over Which the Commission on School Accreditation Does Have
				  Authority
If the complaint addresses an area over which the CSA has
					 authority, the superintendent may be notified in writing of the nature of the
					 complaint and given forty-five (45) calendar days to provide a written response
					 to the allegations and to present documentation of compliance. The district
					 superintendent may also be notified that the district is subject to an
					 unannounced investigative audit.
5.2.3
Unannounced On-Site Investigative
				  Audits
The SBE, the State Superintendent of Public Education, or
					 the CSA has the authority to call for an on-site investigation of a school
					 district at any time. Procedures for conducting investigative audits are as
					 follows:
5.2.3.1 The auditor(s) may
				  arrive in the district without prior notification. The number of auditors
				  involved will depend on the nature and seriousness of the
				  allegations.
5.2.3.2 The auditor(s)
				  inform the district superintendent of the purpose of the audit and of the
				  procedures to be followed. The auditor(s) will provide the district
				  superintendent with a letter of notice from the State Superintendent of Public
				  Education.
5.2.3.3 The auditor(s)
				  may use various methods to collect the data needed to verify or discredit the
				  complaint, including, but not limited to, examination of official records,
				  anonymous surveys, interviews with school personnel, and
				  observations.
5.2.3.4 The
				  auditor(s) may attend all regularly scheduled and special-called board meetings
				  of the district. The district superintendent and board chair shall notify the
				  auditor(s) in advance of the date and time of all regularly scheduled and
				  special-called board meetings.
5.2.3.5 Near the completion of the on-site
				  investigation, the auditor(s) will schedule a time to meet with the
				  superintendent and school board chair to conduct an exit conference.
5.2.3.6 Upon completion of the investigation,
				  the auditor(s) compile a written report in accordance with Policy 5.8 that
				  shall be provided to the district superintendent and the chairman of the school
				  board, and depending on the recommendation of the MDE, may be addressed with
				  the CSA.