Shared-Decision Making Committee (SDMC)
SHARED DECISION-MAKING COMMITTEE
SDMC Program Description
The Houston Independent School District (HISD) Board of Education established and approved the campus-level planning and decision-making process in 1992. This process includes the creation and maintenance of a Shared Decision-Making Committee (SDMC) at each school to review the district’s educational goals, objectives, and major district wide classroom instructional programs.
Each committee is designed to involve professional and non-professional staff, parents, community members, and business representatives in establishing academic and other performance objectives of the school for each academic excellence indicator adopted in the Texas Education Code (TEC §11.253, TEC §39.051).
The SDMC was authorized to fulfill the following responsibilities:
- Implement all pertinent campus-level planning processes;
- Develop recommendations for the school budget;
- Submit recommendations for the school curriculum;
- Recommend changes in the school’s staffing patterns;
- Develop and approve the campus staff development plans;
- Develop, review, and revise the School Improvement Plan (SIP) for the purpose of improving student performance for all student populations (after principal approval of the SIP, the SDMC presents the plan to staff for approval);
- Review and make recommendations regarding the school’s organizational structure, and
- Establish procedures to periodically obtain broad-based community, parent, and staff input.
The SDMC is required to meet at least once a year to discuss the performance of the school and the school’s objectives. A record of all decisions and significant discussion items must be maintained by the committee. This information should be disseminated to appropriate school and district personnel as well as be available upon request for public review.
Helms Shared Decision Making Committee
Helms Shared Decision Making Committee (SDMC) is comprised of members of the faculty and community. It provides suggestions regarding problems and concerns that directly affect reaching the goals and objectives in our School Improvement Plan (SIP). Your input is always welcome. You may find copies of the minutes of each meeting on the front office and at the school website. You do not have to be a member of the SDMC to attend any monthly meeting. All stakeholders in our school – parents, teachers, community members, etc. are welcome to attend all meetings. Only official members of the SDMC may vote on issues before the committee. Input from all stakeholders is greatly valued. Issues of schoolwide interest may be submitted to the principal for inclusion on the SDMC agenda up to 48 hours before the meeting date. It is possible that an item may not be placed on the agenda until the next meeting due to time considerations. The SDMC advises the principal who makes the final decisions. The SDMC meeting dates can be found on the school website and will be sent home on the monthly calendar.