Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
A FOIA request is a written request to inspect and copy the public records of the Sussex Montessori School (the School). Sussex Montessori School complies with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), as required by Federal and State law. Individuals or agencies shall be granted access to the School’s public records under the following terms and conditions:
• Requests shall be in writing, signed, and shall clearly identify the specific public record sought.
• Personally identifiable information shall not be available to the public.
• Review of the requested documents shall be during regular business hours and in the presence of a school employee designated by the Head of School.
• No original documents shall be removed from School property.
• Requested documents may be copied in existing form.
• The requester shall pay a reasonable charge for the copying. Such fees should be commensurate with local businesses that charge for copies.
• Documents may be provided in electronic format with the same per-page charge as copied documents.
• In non-routine circumstances in which a School employee with specialized technology skills must access information, a charge will be based on that employee’s hourly overtime wages or an hourly rate based on an annual salary.
• Requests for documents shall not interrupt the normal operations of the School.
• Requests shall be kept on file for three years.
• Requests shall be processed (must either provide access to the records requested, deny requests, or state that additional time is needed) within 15 business days from receipt of the request. In case of delay, the Head of School shall approve an extension and shall notify the requesting party in writing of the reason for the delay and the day, date, and time on which the records shall be available.
Public records: Those records as defined by Delaware Code as those the School owns, made, used, retained, received, produced, composed, drafted, or otherwise compiled and collected relating in any way to public business, public purposes, or the public interest. Requests which require an employee to create a record from existing records are not subject to FOIA or this policy.
Responsibility: The Head of School shall serve as the school’s FOIA Officer. The FOIA Officer shall be responsible for implementing the procedures and for updating the Board of Directors on any changes in FOIA laws or regulations.
Please complete the following form to submit a FOIA request.
SMS Freedom of Information Act Policy – FOIA