PURPOSE

The Board recognizes and appreciates the cooperation and support given by athletic support organizations (booster clubs) and parent organizations (collectively referred to as “organizations”) to various athletic, extracurricular, and student club activities of the schools.

The Board, the administration and all other personnel of the District shall each endeavor to foster a
positive and productive relationship with booster clubs and parent organizations that operate to serve the basic educational goals of the District and otherwise support the District’s mission.

Knox County Schools has the responsibility to equitably support, as it is defined legally, girls’ and boys’
sports programs. Private fundraising and booster club efforts are important and essential to provide quality participation opportunities to student athletes. Knox County Schools values the contribution of time, money, equipment, supplies, and other donations from individuals, businesses, and booster clubs.
However, the Knox County Schools must not allow infusions of monetary and non-monetary
contributions to result in programs which are unequitable. Knox County Schools desires to retain the
enormous benefits provided by various donors, and contributions will be monitored as to the effects, and girls’ and boys’ sports shall be supported equitably on a sex-neutral basis. This policy does not replace Policy D-250 “School Support Organizations” and shall be enforced in conjunction with D-250.

REQUIREMENTS FOR ORGANIZATION

1. The Board shall provide booster clubs and parent organizations opportunities to support local
   school athletic, extracurricular, and student club efforts. Each booster club and parent organization
   must maintain current by-laws which, among other things, define who can be a member. Booster
   clubs and parent organizations shall also follow the District’s rules regarding constitution and bylaws as promulgated in the Administrative Procedure related to this Policy.
2. The District’s Athletic Director shall be the administrative liaison for booster clubs and parent
   organizations that support athletic programs across the District, with support from the District’s
   Director of Internal School Funds.
3. School Athletic Directors and/or Principals shall be the administrative liaison for building-based
   booster clubs and parent organizations that support District extracurricular and student club
   activities with support from the District’s Director of Internal School Funds. The Superintendent
   shall designate the administrative liaison for all non-athletic District-wide booster clubs.
4. Each Knox County School shall have an associated management athletic booster organization.
   Such an organization may take the form of a unified booster club or managing separate entities
   (i.e. West Athletic Council). Each managing booster club and parent organization must appoint an
   organization liaison for purposes of communications with the District. This appointed liaison may be the organization’s President, Treasurer or any other member. The District’s Athletic Director
   shall maintain a list of organization appointed liaisons for applicable athletic programs, with the
   list generated from building-based records. School building principals shall maintain a list of
   organization appointed liaisons for applicable athletic booster clubs in their respective buildings.
   Finally, the designated administrative liaison shall maintain a list of organization appointed
   liaisons for all non-athletic booster clubs District-wide.
5. Each booster club and parent organization shall yearly submit a listing of its officers to the
   appropriate District administrative liaison after the annual organizational meeting of the booster
   club or the parent organization. A school representative, the Head Principal or designee, shall be
   a non-voting member of the board for the managing organization.
6. All actions of booster clubs and parent organizations must comply with Policy D-250 “School
   Support Organizations” and are to be approved by the management organization at each respective school. Further, various decisions will need to be approved by the Knox County Schools
   administration and in some cases, the Board of Education. The District administrative liaison will
   be responsible for apprising KCS administration of issues and decisions by the particular school’s
   management organization and KCS administration will then be responsible for responding to
   decisions and issues, and to decide whether Board action is needed.

Cross Reference:

1. Knox County Board of Education Policy D-250 “School Support Organizations.”

Legal Reference:

1. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.

Approved as to Legal Form
By Knox County Law Director 1/27/2023
/Gary T. Dupler/Deputy Law Director