- Document Link: ABC – Board Member Legal Status
- Title: Board Member Legal Status
- Section: A. School District Organization
- Adoption Date: 07/16/2020
- Ref Code: O.C.G.A. 20-02-1160, O.C.G.A. 20-02-0520, Ga. Constitution Art. 8, Sec. 5, Par. 2
Descriptor Code: ABC
Board Members Legal Status
The Cherokee County Board of Education abides by the following terms for its Members which
are set forth in state and local law:
I. Qualification: To be qualified to serve as a School Board Member, a person must be
a citizen of the State of Georgia, a resident of the School District in which he/she
qualifies, must be at least 18 years of age and not have been convicted of a felony
involving moral turpitude, unless that person's civil rights have been restored and at
least 10 years have elapsed from the date of the completion of the sentence without a
subsequent conviction of another felony involving moral turpitude. The following
classes of individuals may not be qualified to serve on the Board of Education:
(1) An individual employed by or serving on the governing body of a primary or secondary private educational institution.
(2) Individuals employed by the Cherokee County Board of Education/Cherokee County School District.
(3) Individuals employed by the State Department of Education.
(4) Individuals serving as a member of the State Board of Education.
(5) Individuals who have defaulted on any federal, state, county,
municipal or school district taxes required of such individual if such person has been
finally adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction to owe those taxes.
(6) Individuals who have an immediate family member sitting on the School Board or serving as the Superintendent of Schools or as a Principal, assistant principal or district administrative staff in the School District.
II. Term of Office: Each School Board Member will be elected to a four-year staggered term. The Chairman of the School Board and Members from Districts 1 and 2 will be elected in the November, 2012 general election to serve a term from January 1, 2013
through December 31, 2016 and will be re-elected or replaced thereafter on a four year rotating basis and Members from Districts 3, 4, 5 and 6 will be elected in the November, 2014 general election to serve a term from January 1, 2015 through
December 31, 2018 and will be re-elected or replaced in the same manner.
III. Residency Requirement: The Chairman of the School Board may reside anywhere within the Cherokee County School District and will be elected by the entire population of Cherokee County at-large. The six other Board Members must reside in
one of the legally constituted Districts within Cherokee County and will be elected within that district. No more than one member may represent any one District. A detailed map of said districts is maintained at by the School Board in the Office of the
Superintendent, as well as the Cherokee County Probate Judge’s office. Said map is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Any School Board Member who relocates his/her residence outside the District from which he/she was elected during his/her term of office will no longer be eligible to continue to serve. Such relocation will be considered as a resignation for purposes of
this Policy.
IV. Resignation: In the event of a resignation or relocation of any School Board Member, as described above, the remaining School Board Members by majority vote may appoint a qualified individual to fill the unexpired term of the vacant Board of
Education Seat, provided such vacancy occurs within one year of the next general election. (See 1966 Ga. Laws 1075 and 1987 Ga. Laws 3572). In the event a vacancy occurs more than one year prior to the next general election, the Board Chair will
notify the County Election Superintendent of such vacancy. The County Election Superintendent will then call for a special election to replace the vacant Board of Education District.
REVISED: July 16, 2020