Administration and Governance of Education at Municipal Level

Municipal institutions (representative[1] and/or executive[2]) implement the national education policy in the municipality. The representative municipality institution:

• Implements national education policy in the municipality, establishes long-term goals of education development and means to reach it.

• Establishes, reorganises, and closes education departments in the municipality administration.

• Forms a network of educational institutions, i.e. a network of schools providing pre-school, pre-primary, primary, lower-secondary and upper-secondary education, non-formal and informal education for children and adults; provides conditions to implement compulsory education. Initiates the formation of a network of VET providers and adult education providers that is in line with the needs of the inhabitants of municipality, and independently forms the network of non-formal education providers.

  The executive municipality institution:

• Analyses the state of education, ensures the implementation of national education policy.

• Organizes pre-school education, pre-primary education, general education, vocational training and vocational guidance, other non-formal and informal education for children, non-formal adult education for adults.

• Organizes and coordinates the provision of educational assistance to the pupil, teacher, family and school, the implementation of the child's minimum care measures, approves the criteria for preventive programs, contracts with psychological assistance providers providing educational assistance.

• Appoints heads and specialists of educational departments of the municipality administration according to the legal acts.

• Performs the attestation of the municipal schools heads, their deputies, and heads of educational institutions according to the procedure established by the Minister of Education and Science.

  From 1 January 2018 it will assess only annual reports of the heads of municipal education institution according to the procedure established by the Minister of Education and Science.

• Organizes the attestation of municipal schools’ teachers and education assistance specialists according to the procedure established by the Minister of Education and Science.

• According to the procedures established by the Government, it organizes and maintains accounting of children living in the municipality’s territory; ensures that all children are trained in compulsory education programs.

• Organises assessment of the achievements of pupils from its territory.

• Organises free pupils’ transportation to and from school.

• Provides information about the state of education to the Ministry of Education and Science and society.

Each municipal administration has a department (departments) responsible for the activities of educational institutions in a particular municipality.

The Law on Education and the Law on Local Self-Governance establish the authority of municipal institutions in the field of education.

In order to promote society’s participation in shaping and implementing education policy, the municipal education council and councils for concrete education sphere can be established. The pupils, teachers, parents (foster parents), social parents, education providers and/or their associations are represented in the municipal education council. Municipality council approves the statute of the municipal education council. Municipal education council analyses how municipality implements national education policy, approves long-term education goals and gathers society to reach these goals.

Administration and Governance of Education at Institutional (Educational Institution/School) Level

The institution implementing the rights and obligations of the school owner or its authorised institution solve some administrative and managing matters. Its functions:

• Closes, reorganises or reforms the school.

• Organises public tender to the position of the school head, composes the tender commission, assigns the school head through a public tender, and resigns him/her from the position.

• Is responsible for the quality of education together with the education provider.

• Supervises the school activities.

• Organises external school evaluation.

• Establishes the admission procedure to the state and municipal schools.

• Evaluates learning achievements.

• Allocate funding for infrastructure maintenance according to its established procedures.

• Supports school’s strategic plan which is later approved by the head of the school.

• From school year 2017-2018 decides on how extra days from the prolonged educational process will be used.

• From 1 January 2018 reassesses the annual activity report of the school head, if it is determined that the school does not have the capacity to ensure the quality of the school management or the school council negatively assesses the annual activity report of the head of the school (if the school council negatively assesses the annual activity report of the head of the school two years in a row, the decision to dismiss the school head is taken).

• From 1 January 2018 is responsible for public presentation of the evaluation of the annual activity report of the head of the school.

• Implements other functions.

Administration and Governance of Pre-School Education Institutions and General Education Schools

Pre-school education institutions and general education schools are managed by the head of the school. The head of the school:

• Organises the preparation of the school strategic plan, annual action plans and curricula, approves it and manages the implementation.

• Manages implementation of the recommendations for violence prevention in the school.

• Assigns and dismisses teachers, other personal participating in the education process and service staff. Moreover, from 1 January 2018 he/she also will be responsible for the work conditions of the teachers and other staff, will organise the search of teachers in need.

• Is responsible for democratic school management, guarantees relations based on cooperation, maintenance of the teachers’ ethics (from 1 January 2018 the Teachers Code of Ethics should come into force, therefore the head of the school will be responsible for the maintenance of the Teachers Code of Ethics), transparent decisions, information of the school’s community, continuous professional development of teachers and other staff, healthy and safe environment that prevents any occurrence of violence and harmful habits.

• From 1 January 2018 together with the school council will address the issues of creating an environment favourable to education.

• Analyses the state of the school activities and management resources, and is responsible for the results of the school performance.

• May impose disciplinary punitive measures for the violation of pupils' behavioural norms, provided in the Law on Fundamentals of Protection of the Rights of the Child.

• According to the procedure established by the Law on Child’s Minimum and Average Care, the head of the school applies to the director of the municipality administration for the provision of minimum and average care measures for the child.

• From 1 January 2018 will submit his/her annual activity report to the school community (except for higher education) and school council, and will publish it. The Minister of Education and Science establishes requirements for the annual activity report of the head of the school.

• From 1 January 2018 will be responsible for the schools finances, will adopt decisions related to the use of school finances and property.

• Implements other functions.

Self-governance bodies of the school collectively discuss issues of school activity and funding and, within the scope of their competence defined in the statute of the school, adopt decisions and influence decisions of the head of the school and perform public supervision of the school management. The variety and competence of self-governance bodies and the principles of their establishment are defined in the statute of the school.

The school council is the school's highest self-governance body, representing the pupils, teachers, parents (foster parents, guardians) and local community. The school council accounts for its activity to the members of the school community who have elected the school council. 

From 1 January 2018 the provision that the school council consists of pupils, teachers, parents (foster parents, guardians) and representatives of the local community will come into force. A member of the school council can be a person who has the knowledge and ability to help achieve the school's strategic goals and fulfil the school's mission. A member of the school council cannot be the head of the same school, state politician, civil servant of political (personal) confidence. Every year, the school council will evaluate the annual activity report of the head of the school and submit its decision on the report to the institution implementing the rights and obligations of the school owner or its authorised institution. If, for two years in a row, the school council assesses the activities of the school head unsatisfactorily, the institution implementing the rights and obligations of the school owner or its authorised institution will decide upon dismissal of the school head.

Other school self-governance bodies (Teachers' Council, Pupils‘ Council, Parents' (Foster Parents', Guardians') Council) may also function at school.