As instruments of the Massachusetts Legislature, local School Committees derive their authority from the Constitution of Massachusetts, from statutes, and from the regulations of the State Board of Education.
The Brookline School Committee is a nine-member group of officials, elected for three year terms during the May Town Election. The School Committee operates in accordance with the MGL Ch. 71 and 41, which delegate its authority. The Education Reform Act of 1993, Ch. 71. S. 37, specifies this authority as follows:
"The School Committee in each city and town and each regional school district shall have the power to select and to terminate the Superintendent; shall review and approve budgets for public education in the district, and shall establish educational goals and policies for the schools in the district, consistent with the requirements of law and state-wide goals and standards established by the Board of Education."
The School Committee adopts measures to organize itself, conduct public meetings, hire the most capable staff available (as noted above), and seeks to obtain sufficient funding to support its programs from available sources at the town, state and federal levels.