Swearing in newly elected school board members
Kentucky School Advocate
December 2024
By John Powell
KSBA Staff Attorney
School board members elected or reelected in November to full terms are required to take their oaths of office prior to being seated. The process seems simple enough, but there can sometimes be confusion over how and when the oaths are administered. Here are just a few of the most common questions KSBA receives about school board oaths of office.
What oath is required for new or reelected board members?
There are two oaths that newly elected or appointed board members must take prior to beginning their service; a constitutional oath (administered verbally) and a statutory oath (in written form that requires a signature). The verbal oath is found in Section 228 of the Kentucky Constitution and the written oath is set out in KRS 160.170.
The language of the written oath has changed in the last year due to legislation passed during the 2024 legislative session. School board members and districts should be mindful to use the updated language. Visit ksba.org/oathsofoffice.aspx for copies of both oaths and answers to frequently asked questions.
When is the earliest an elected board member may take the Constitutional oath?
For those elected/reelected to a full term, the oath may be administered at any time following issuance of certificates of election by the county board of elections. Statute says that the written oath should be signed before the board member assumes his or her duties.
Newly elected board members, however, should avoid taking their oaths prior to the end of the calendar year as this might inadvertently trigger state-mandated training requirements for that board member.
It is recommended that board members take their oaths of office sometime between Jan. 1 and the first board meeting of 2025. It is common practice in many districts for oaths to be administered in the moments before the scheduled January board meeting (when new members are slated to begin their service). This conveniently allows multiple board members to be sworn in at once, serves as a great time for photos and gives community members the opportunity to witness the oaths.
This process is different for those who won special elections to fill unexpired terms. In those cases, the newly elected members can and should be sworn in immediately following certification of the election results to begin their board service.
(See KRS 118.425(2), KRS 160.170, KRS 160.200(2) and OAG 79-606.)
How are the oaths administered?
An official qualified under KRS 62.020 must administer the verbal oath by having the board member repeat after the official. The administering official can be an active, retired or senior status state justice or judge, any active, retired or senior status federal judge with Kentucky jurisdiction, any member of the Kentucky General Assembly, any county judge-executive, notary public, clerk of a court or justice of the peace within the county of the board member. That official must then certify in writing that the verbal oath was administered, and the certification must be filed with the office of the county clerk.
The written oath, on the other hand, may be prepared as a document to be completed and signed by the board member, notarized and then maintained as an official board record.