Public Records Request
The Kansas Open Records Act
The Kansas Open Records Act presumes that all public records should be open to the public. Certain records are exempt from the requirement. The following are examples of exemptions:
*Records exempted by other laws;
*Records that are privileged under the rules of evidence;
*Medical and treatment records;
*Personnel records except for the name of the employee, position held, salary and length of service;
*The names of donors, if they have requested their name not be released;
*Some emergency or security procedures;
*Sealed bids until one is accepted or all are rejected;
*Correspondence with a private individual;
*Records containing information of a personal nature where disclosure would constitute an unwarranted invasion of privacy.
The Right To Request Records
KORA grants the public the following rights:
*To have the freedom of information officer (Assistant Superintendent, District Office) respond to your questions about KORA.
*To inspect any public record that we have in our possession that is not exempt. We are not required to create a record for you if the record does not already exist.
*To have copies of public records, but we can charge a fee for making copies.
*To be informed of the procedures you must follow and an estimate of fees that will be charged to provide the records.
*To inspect or obtain copies of our records during our regular business hours.
*To receive a written response to your request within three business days. The response may inform you that it will take additional time to produce the records.
*To a written explanation of the reason we are denying you access to a record.
*To file a complaint with the Kansas Attorney General if you believe your request for public records is wrongfully denied. School District Responsibilities Public schools have several responsibilities under KORA. We must:
*Appoint a freedom of information officer who can answer your questions and settle disputes under KORA (Assistant Superintendent, District Office).
*Make facilities available to you for inspecting our records.
*Allow you to make abstracts or have copies of our records made.
*Adopt procedures for requesting access or obtaining copies of our records.
*Act upon requests for records within three business days or give an explanation of the reason for the delay. If there is a delay, tell you the earliest time and place at which the record sought will be made available.
*Have a record custodian available during all regular business hours (Assistant Superintendent, District Office, or building administrators), and have procedures for allowing access on business days when regular office hours are not maintained.
*Remove exempt information from the record and provide you with the remainder of the record if the record contains both exempt and nonexempt material.
*Provide a written statement citing the specific provision of the law under which we are denying access, if we deny you access to a record and you ask for an explanation. The statement must be provided within three business days after you request it.
Procedures to Follow
KORA requires schools to adopt procedures for requesting access to records or obtaining copies of public records.
A request for access to records should be directed to the custodian of the record. In some cases, we will be able to retrieve the record and give it to you within a few minutes. You can access our records at any time during our regular business hours. Additionally, you can access our records on regular business days when we are closed if you give us advance notice.
You CANNOT remove a public record from our offices. If you desire a copy of the record, please inform the custodian of the record. The custodian will inform you of any fees we charge for copying and will arrange for the copying of the record.
We will ask that you request the record you desire to see in writing. We cannot require your request contain anything more than your name, address and a description of the record you desire. If the material you are seeking is exempt, we may also ask the reason you believe you have a right to access the record.
For more information about our procedures, fees, or office hours, please talk with the custodian of the record or the freedom of information officer.
1. The primary office of U.S.D. #262 is the
District Office located at 143 S. Meridian,
Valley Center, KS.
2. The custodian of the record may ask that you make the request in writing. Your request should include your name, your address and a description of the record for which you are seeking access.
3. If the record you are seeking falls within an exception, the custodian may ask you to certify, in writing, why you believe you have a right to access the record. The custodian may also ask for certification that you will not use or sell the information for sales or solicitation purposes.
4. Upon receiving your request, the custodian of the record will retrieve the requested record and provide the record for your inspection as soon as possible.
5. If the custodian cannot provide you with the record immediately, s/he will inform you in writing of the time and place at which the record will first be made available to you.
6. You cannot remove the record from the building. The custodian will show you to a place where you may look at the record. If you desire a copy of the record, please inform the custodian and s/he will arrange for copying. A fee of 25¢ per page for the research, labor and copying must be paid prior to the copying.
7. A fee may be assessed for staff time required to make the record available.
8. If you desire access to our records on a business day (M-F excluding holidays) when school is not in session, we will open our office from 1:00-3:00 p.m. to allow you access to our records. Please notify the custodian of the records three days prior.
9. A request for access to a public record should be directed to the custodian of the record. The following list provides that information.
Current Student Records – Building Principal where the child attends
Former Student Records (transcripts) Assistant Superintendent, District Office;
Personnel Contracts – Assistant Superintendent, District Office;
Board Minutes – Sara Haden, District Office;
Bills, Financial Records – Susan Harris, District Office;
Discrimination Complaints Investigations – Assistant Superintendent, District Office
Transportation Logs – Mark Marshall, Transportation Department