1215 W. Lewis Street
4330P - Use of School Facilities Procedure
COMMUNITY RELATIONS
1. Use of School Facilities
Application for use of school facilities shall be made to the principal. When applications are received by principals, they shall coordinate the use of the facilities.
Professional fund raisers representing charities must provide evidence that the fund raiser:
A. Is recognized by the philanthropic division of the Better Business Bureau;
B. Is registered and bonded by the State of Washington; and
C. Will give the charity at least sixty (60) percent of the gross revenues.
The superintendent shall determine and recommend a fee schedule applicable for use of school facilities. The fee schedule shall be evaluated as needed.
Sponsoring organizations shall provide sufficient, competent adult and/or special supervision, and the amount of adequate supervision shall be agreed upon at the time the authorization is issued.
Alcoholic beverages, marijuana, and illegal drugs shall not be permitted in school facilities or on school property at any time. Use of tobacco or tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, is prohibited in school facilities and on school property.
All applicants for use of school facilities shall hold the district free and without harm from any loss or damage, liability or expense that may arise during or be caused by such use or occupancy of school facilities. Also, in the event that property loss or damage is incurred during such use or occupancy, the amount of damage shall be decided by the superintendent and approved by the board; and a bill for damages shall be presented to the group using or occupying the facilities during the time the loss or damaged was sustained.
The superintendent possesses the authority to make the final decision on use of school facilities by a group. The group may appeal such decision to the board.
Because of the value of the district’s playing fields to the community’s total recreational opportunity, the fields may be used by all residents. The use must be appropriate and compatible with each play field and its surrounding area. Such use shall not result in destruction, damages, or undue wear or pose a hazard to children or others. Activities which endanger others or cause damage to fields and lawns are restricted. Should damage to fields and lawns occur, the superintendent shall make reasonable effort to obtain restitution for the damage.
A custodian or other authorized staff member must be on the premises when any nonschool group is using school facilities.
2. Applications for Use of School Facilities
A. Applications shall be made to the principal, designee, or facility manager who shall approve or deny the use permit (see 4330F – application).
B. Applications and related arrangements must be made at least fourteen (14) calendar days in advance of the scheduled date of use.
C. Applications for continuous use or use on successive dates are subject to a lease agreement.
3. User Liability
A. The applicant and/or sponsoring group shall accept full responsibility for damage done to school property and agrees to protect, indemnify, and save the Pasco School District from all liability resulting from the use of said facility including attorney fees.
B. The Business Office will determine when a using organization will be required to have liability insurance. Insurance shall contain limits of liability up to $1,000,000 combined single limit bodily injury. Such insurance shall include the Pasco School District as an additional insured.
C. Any damage to facilities or equipment shall be reported immediately to the facility manager. Costs to repair damages will be billed by the Business Office.
4. Service Animals in District Facilities
A. Service Animal Uses
Students, parents/guardians, employees, and community members with disabilities may be accompanied by a “service animal” consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Washington Law Against Discrimination (WLAD) while on district property, on school buses, or at school- or district-sponsored activities.
A “service animal” is an animal that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of assisting or accommodating a disabled person’s sensory, mental, or physical disability. Examples include, but are not limited to, guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling wheel-chairs, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure or performing other special tasks. The work or tasks performed by the service animal must directly be related to the individual’s disability. Service animals are working animals, not pets, and an animal whose sole function is as a pet or to provide comfort or emotional support does not qualify as a service animal. The use of a service animal by an individual with a disability will not be conditioned on the payment of a fee, security deposit or surcharge.
The district will provide access to a person with a disability who needs a service animal provided that the tasks performed by the service animal are directly related to the disability; and the animal has been individually trained to perform a task, is housebroken; is free of disease and parasites, has a harness, leash or tether so it cannot run free and is under the control of the person with a disability.
A service animal must also be licensed and immunized in accordance with the laws, regulations and ordinances of the city of Pasco, Franklin County, and the state of Washington.
Neither the district, nor its employees, are responsible for the cost, care or supervision of the service animal. The owner/handler of the service animal is responsible for any and all damage caused by the service animal at school, on school premises or at school activities.
B. Exclusion or Removal of a Service Animal
The building principal or district administrator may direct an individual with a disability to remove a service animal from school, a school sponsored activity or school property in any of the following circumstances where and the animal’s handler does not take effective remedial action:
- The presence of the animal poses a direct threat to the health and/or safety of others;
- The animal significantly disrupts or interferes with the instruction program, school activities or student learning, more than mere annoyance;
- The presence of the animal would result in a fundamental alteration of any school program;
- The individual in control of the animal fails to appropriately care for the animal, including feeding, exercising, taking outside for performance of excretory functions and cleaning up after the animal;
- The animal fails to consistently perform the function(s)/service(s) to assist or accommodate the individual with the disability;
- The animal is ill; or
- The animal is not housebroken.
If the district excludes a service animal, it will provide the individual with a disability the opportunity to participate in the service, program or activity without having the service animal on the premises. The owner/handler of the service animal is responsible for any and all damage caused by the service animal at school, on school premises or at school activities.
C. Appeals and Resources
A person whose service animal has been excluded or removed may follow policy and procedure 4312, Complaints Concerning Staff or Programs, to make an appeal.
Further information and resources are available from the District’s Section 504/ADA Coordinator, 1215 W. Lewis Street, Pasco, WA 99301, 509-543-6700.
5. Non-Service Animals
Animals are not allowed on school or district premises unless specifically approved by the Principal or facility supervisor. Parents/guardians walking their animal with a student as part of the arrival/departure process must keep the animal off of school grounds.
Animals may be permitted in classrooms as part of the instructional program at the discretion of the Principal, provided students and staff with allergies and/or sensitivities can be accommodated. The following guidelines will apply:
a. Animals will not be allowed to roam freely in the school, and will be on a leash or housed in a suitable, sanitary self-contained enclosure appropriate to the size of the animal;
b. Animals will not be left in schools during school holidays or closures longer than 48 hours (except for fish with extended feeders);
c. Dogs, cats, or other large animals must have a health certificate signed by a licensed veterinarian;
d. Birds shall never be allowed to fly free in a classroom. Snakes, reptiles, and amphibians should not be handled by children.
e. Staff will ensure students wash hands thoroughly after handling any animals.
f. Animals which sting or bite, are poisonous, aggressive, prone to high rates of disease, or which are wild or injured are not permitted.
g. If the instructional program involving the animal is ongoing and the animal will remain at school when school is not in session, appropriate arrangements for care must be made.
Rev. 12/2015