All SBDM councils and council-assigned committees (standing and ad hoc) are required to keep open records of their meetings. The minutes of all SBDM council and council-assigned committee meetings and supporting documentation must be kept on file at the school to meet the requirements (KRS 61.870).

In addition, KRS 160.345 (3) (h) allows the local Board of Education to adopt a policy addressing the record keeping of the school council. The Fayette County Board of Education has adopted a policy (policy BLC) related to open records of council meetings. To comply with this policy, two copies of all SBDM council and council-assigned committee meeting minutes and their supporting documentation (i.e., policies created, budget worksheets, etc.) also must be forwarded to the superintendent/designee at Support Services. One copy of all minutes received is kept as a permanent file at Support Services. A procedure should be in place (through bylaws or operational procedures) to facilitate requests for council and council-assigned committees' records. These procedures should include the following:

• How full public access of records can be obtained
• Means to determine how requests for records will be made (verbally or written)
• Means to protect School Council and committee records from damage and disorganization
• Means to provide assistance and information upon request
• Means to ensure efficient and timely action to respond to requests
• Times records can be viewed (may be during regular school office hours)
• Title and address of the official custodian of the records (chairperson of the Council and where the records are going to be kept)
• Fees to be charged (if any) for the copies of the records.

When recording the minutes of council and council-assigned committees, consideration should be given to include the following:

• The school name and the council or committee assigned by the council
• Identification of type of meeting (regularly scheduled or call meeting)
• Record of the presence of a quorum and adoption or correction of minutes from previous meeting
• Date of the meeting, members present, guest(s) present
• Time the meeting began and ended
• Summary of all major points made in discussions
• Names of people who presented committee reports and summaries of the reports
• Attachments of documents relevant to Council discussions or actions
• Record of each motion exactly as stated
• Record of all decisions that are made by the Council (i.e., approving the Comprehensive School Improvement Plan)
• Agenda items for next meeting
• Follow-up Summary: who agreed to do what before next meeting

The following should not be a part of the minutes kept for open meetings:

• Point-by-point account of discussions
• Specifying who said what in discussions
• Reporting of off-track discussions
• Items that could be embarrassing to individuals