Article 6 -- Education

§ 1: Schools and related institutions and activities. The legislature shall provide for intellectual, educational, vocational and scientific improvement by establishing and maintaining public schools, educational institutions an d related activities which may be organized and changed in such manner as may be provided by law.
 
§ 2: State board of education and state board of regents.

(a) The legislature shall provide for a state board of education which shall have general supervision of public schools, educational institutions and all the educational interests of the state, except educational functions delegated by law to the state board of regents. The state board of education shall perform such other duties as may be provided by law.

(b) The legislature shall provide for a state board of regents and for its control and supervision of public institutions of higher education. Public institutions of higher education shall include universities and colleges granting baccalaureate or p ostbaccalaureate degrees and such other institutions and educational interests as may be provided by law. The state board of regents shall perform such other duties as may be prescribed by law.

(c) Any municipal university shall be operated, supervised and controlled as provided by law.

§ 3: Members of state board of education and state board of regents.

(a) There shall be ten members of the state board of education with overlapping terms as the legislature may prescribe. The legislature shall make prov ision for ten member districts, each comprised of four contiguous senatorial districts. The electors of each member district shall elect one person residing in the district as a member of the board. The legislature shall prescribe the manner in which vaca ncies occurring on the board shall be filled.

(b) The state board of regents shall have nine members with overlapping terms as the legislature may prescribe. Members shall be appointed by the governor, subject to confirmation by the senate. One member shall be appointed from each congressional d istrict with the remaining members appointed at large, however, no two members shall reside in the same county at the time of their appointment. Vacancies occurring on the board shall be filled by appointment by the governor as provided by law.

(c) Subsequent redistricting shall not disqualify any member of either board from service for the remainder of his term. Any member of either board may be removed from office for cause as may be provided by law.

§ 4: Commissioner of education. The state board of education shall appoint a commissioner of education who shall serve at the pleasure of the board as its executive officer.
 
§ 5: Local public schools. Local public schools under the general supervision of the state board of education shall be maintained, developed and operated by locally elected boards. When authorized by law, such boards may make and carry out agreements for cooperative operation and administration of educational programs under the general supervision of the state board of education, but such agreements shall be subject to limitation, change or termination by the legislature.
 
§ 6: Finance.

(a) The legislature may levy a permanent tax for the use and benefit of state institutions of higher education and apportion among and appropriate the same to the several institutions, which levy, apportionment and appropriation shall continue unt il changed by statute. Further appropriation and other provision for finance of institutions of higher education may be made by the legislature.

(b) The legislature shall make suitable provision for finance of the educational interests of the state. No tuition shall be charged for attendance at any public school to pupils required by law to attend such school, except such fees or supplemental charges as may be authorized by law. The legislature may authorize the state board of regents to establish tuition, fees and charges at institutions under its supervision.

(c) No religious sect or sects shall control any part of the public educational funds.

§ 7: Savings clause.

(a) All laws in force at the time of the adoption of this amendment and consistent therewith shall remain in full force and effect until amended or repealed by the legislature. All laws inconsistent with this amendment, unless sooner repealed or a mended to conform with this amendment, shall remain in full force and effect until July 1, 1969.

(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of the constitution to the contrary, no state superintendent of public instruction or county superintendent of public instruction shall be elected after January 1, 1967.

(c) The state perpetual school fund or any part thereof may be managed and invested as provided by law or all or any part thereof may be appropriated, both as to principal and income, to the support of the public schools supervised by the state board of education.

End of Article 6.  Go on to Article 7.
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