KG: Use of Designated School Facilities, Grounds and Equipment

Availability

When school facilities are not required for school educational programs or activities, designated school facilities or designated school grounds may be made available at reasonable times and at reasonable rates to USD 437 community groups or USD 437 community residents. Use of any designated school facility or designated school grounds; however, shall not interfere with the daily school student routine or any school-sponsored activity. No long-term agreements for regular use of facilities or equipment will be made. A long-term agreement is anything exceeding ninety calendar days in duration. The district reserves the right to limit the rental of designated school facilities to only one organization at a time, if in the opinion of the district the requested multi-use at the same time is not compatible. Preference will be given to those groups having at least 50% or more 437 students or patrons. If similar groups request the facilities at the same time, preference will be given to the group which has all of the appropriate paperwork in place and all applicable fees paid by the earliest calendar date. Groups or individuals may not use designated school facilities for commercial use or profit unless approved in advance by the Auburn-Washburn USD 437 Board of Education. Any group wishing to use designated school facilities or equipment shall consist of at least 50% patrons of Auburn-Washburn USD 437, exceptions are:

1. A group activity (for example: Boy or Girl Scouts, YMCA, 4-H club, Special Olympics, etc.) with a USD 437 adult patron as the sponsor.
2. An outside group wishing to rent the WRHS auditorium, gymnasiums, and varsity fields, the WRMS cafetorium or gymnasiums, or other designated district facilities.

Fees and Rental Charges

Please refer to sections KG (pages 9-12) for a schedule of appropriate fees.

Borrowing Equipment

Permission must be granted by the superintendent or designee before any district equipment is removed from the school grounds. Equipment may be used at the building by civic and educational organizations when approved by the appropriate building administrator. Equipment may be used by a community organization outside of the school building if approved by the superintendent or designee. The borrowing organization becomes financially responsible for any damage to or loss of borrowed equipment. Please refer to KGA for further guidelines.

Availability of Facilities

The superintendent or his/her designee shall approve or disapprove requests for use of designated school facilities for non-school use within the procedures established and approved by the board. The building administrator or superintendent can cancel any use of designated school facilities if the school facility is needed for a school activity or if the district is not able to arrange district staff for required staffing.

The district reserves the right to cancel reservations due to unforeseen circumstances or for need by the district.

Procedures for Requesting Facilities

A Facility Rental Request should be initiated and a Facility Rental Contract must be completed through the building administrator at least (10) ten days prior to the date(s) requested. The individual(s) signing the rental contract will be considered the responsible party. That individual(s)or designated 437 staff member must be present during the usage of the facility. The (10) ten day stipulation may be waived in special circumstances by the building administrator.

A copy of the rental contract shall be presented to the custodian by a building administrator at the time admittance to the facility is approved. The custodian is to grant admittance only to groups having previously made arrangements through the building administrator as evidenced by the produced rental contract.

The building user is allowed access only to the facilities described in the rental agreement, access to restrooms, and access to the storm shelter for protection in the event of a severe weather warning. All fees will be made payable to USD 437 and paid to the building administrator prior to the scheduled activity.

Facilities and Equipment

School equipment shall not be loaned to groups or individuals without the permission of the Superintendent or designee. (Exception: Equipment may be loaned to district employees with the permission of the building principal.) The responsible person will take full financial responsibility for the safe keeping and protection from damage for equipment borrowed. (See Policy KGA.)

The granting of use of a designated part of a facility confers no access to other parts of the facility.

No changes are to be made in the arrangements of the rooms or stage equipment without prior written permission of the building administrator.

The renter shall not make physical alterations to the building or equipment (no nails, screws, hangers, etc.)

Grass Areas

The user of the designated area is allowed access only to the area described in the Use Agreement and to associated parking areas. No driving or parking on grass areas is permitted. There will be no access to other district facilities granted, including restrooms, unless otherwise stipulated in the Use Agreement.

Staffing

The building administrator may require a staff supervisor from the district to be present when he/she determines the need for such a staff supervisor while the rental group is present. The renter will be charged the staff supervisor rate. The facility will not be made available unless the renter agrees to the requirement for the staff supervisor.

A district custodian shall be on duty when facilities are in use. The designated custodian or school staff supervisor has the authority of the building administrator and will insure proper use of school facilities. However, the person in charge of the group using the facility shall be responsible for the conduct of the group. The custodian on duty will admit the group to the building, be present in the building during the time of use, and will secure the building when the group departs. Use of facilities at times when custodians are not normally on duty or when extra duties are required, involve extra expense which will be charged on the rental contract. The district reserves the right to determine the hours of custodial staffing that are necessary for facilities usage. For programs where arrangements have been made to have chairs and/or tables set up, the extra time necessary for setup will be included in the required hours and the set up will be specified in the rental contract.

Kitchen

Whenever the kitchen is required, a food service worker must be present in the kitchen. Use of the kitchen at times when food service workers are not normally on duty or when extra duties are required, involve extra expense which will be charged on the rental agreement. The district reserves the right to determine the hours of food service staffing that are necessary for kitchen usage. The hours required will be determined by the district food service supervisor.

Auditorium/Cafetorium/Scoreboard

A district technician familiar with lighting, sound, and stage equipment may be necessary to supervise the use of this type of equipment. The district reserves the right to determine the hours of technical staffing necessary for use of facilities that includes use of specialized electronic equipment.

Exception: If a qualified school district employee is a member of the user group and is willing to accept responsibility to perform required staffing at no cost, staffing charge will not apply. A qualified employee must be familiar with heating, ventilating, utility systems and equipment to be used. The exception must be noted on the rental contract and the employee clearly identified. The building administrator will determine an employee's "qualified employee" status.

When any artificial turf field is rented, a high school staff supervisor(s) must be present to supervise the use of the field.

Supervision

The renter is responsible for supervision of the activity, parking and crowd control.

As a condition to initial use of and continued access to district property and facilities, groups and/or organizations must follow Kansas law and board policy prohibiting the use of drugs, alcohol, and tobacco on district property and ensure individuals in attendance refrain from using such substances on district property as well. Failure to abide by this provision may result in a revocation of facility use privileges. No food or drink is permitted in the school except where special arrangements have been made with the building administrator and then only in those areas designated in writing on the rental contract.

No youth baseball, softball or soccer will be allowed inside of any building, including gymnasiums. High school softball, baseball, and soccer teams needing indoor facilities due to inclement weather must have permission from the building administrator and must use modified equipment during the indoor practice.

An exception to this is the indoor pitching and batting cages in Gym A at Washburn Rural High School. Youth teams composed of at least 50% of USD 437 patrons may use the cages, when available, with administrator approval.

Damages

Prior to departure, the renter and building custodian will review the area and equipment used. Any damages or discrepancies must be noted on the rental contract and initialed by both parties. All facility users shall agree to pay for all loss of or damage to, property or equipment beyond ordinary wear. Damages and cost will be determined by the building administrator, executive director of business services, and assistant director of operations.

Liability

For prolonged use of a designated facility, more than one time (multiple dates of usage under one rental contract), the renter shall provide a general liability insurance policy, naming the district as an also/additional insured, with a $500,000 combined single limit for the duration of the usage and shall furnish to the building administrator. Based upon the event, district administration may determine that insurance is needed for a single date usage as well.

Shelters

The renter shall be responsible for warning people of impending severe weather and is responsible for the prompt movement of these people to areas designated as storm shelters in the building. If renter fails to take proper precautions in the event of severe weather and consequentially places participants, fans, or staff at risk, the district may cancel use of the facility for any future use by the renter. For use of grass areas there will most likely be no district shelter available. In this case, the renter is responsible for determining when it is most prudent to cancel the event in order to allow participants to leave and give them time to get to a place of shelter.

Fees

Rental fees are to reimburse the district for building and equipment depreciation, custodial services, utilities, and consumable supplies. Rental costs will be calculated using the schedule for rental of facilities fees. (KG, pages 9-12.) The district reserves the right to change these fees without prior notice.

Rental fees are payable in advance to the building administrator. Rental contracts will not be issued until payment is received. For multi-date usage, a fee payment schedule shall be established by the Executive Director of Business Services. Any additional charges will be billed after the rental date.

Prompt payment for damages and conditions of supervision will determine future eligibility for use of facilities.

Building Administrator Responsibility

Scheduling the use of designated school facilities must be done through a building administrator. The rental contract shall be prepared and signed by the building administrator, who will maintain a file containing all facilities rental contracts. The building administrator will provide a copy of the rental agreement to the custodian responsible for staffing the scheduled activity, and in the case of an artificial turf field, a copy to the high school staff supervisor. In the case of use of grass areas a copy of the agreement shall be sent to the District Police Chief and to the District Operations office.

The building administrator is responsible for calculating and collecting the rental fee. Documentation will be kept at the building for a period of two full years. Rental fee payments will be sent to the district business office at least once a month.

The Executive Director of Business Services shall maintain copies of rental contracts and the revenues collected each year.