Local School Board

• Establishes mission, vision and goals for the district based upon having students achieve the standards, involves all interested parties in the process, and communicates them to all in the community
  
  
• Adopts policies that guide the development of the academic content standards for the district and gives final approval to such standards
  
  
• Engages the community in meaningful dialogue about improvements and changes needed in the district
  
  
• Sets policies that promote the recruitment and retention of well qualified and competent staff based upon the academic success of students
  
  
• Approves budgets that reflect a commitment to the classroom as the most important element for delivering quality education to students
  
  
• Acts as a collective body in the best interest of all children-puts aside petty politics and personal agendas
  
  
• Works collaboratively as a board with the superintendent to bring about needed improvements
  
  
• Selects a well qualified, competent person to serve as superintendent of schools
  
  
• Demands information on the research base for programs before they are adopted

Though local school boards and citizens are further from the student core, their support is greatly needed by those teachers, parents, and principals working on the internal circle of the model. Such support strengthens the resolve, reinforces commitment, and builds the capacity of those who work closest with the students.

Local boards of education are the elected representatives of the people and are empowered to establish both the strategic direction and policies for the district. They hire the superintendent, who is the educational leader of the district, which may be the most important decision they make as a policy body.

Working with the superintendent and the citizens of the community, they establish the mission, vision, and goals for the district, adopt policies that guide the development of the academic content standards, give final approval to such content standards, and assist in communicating them to all citizens.

Local boards must engage the community in meaningful dialogue about the goals of the district, the improvements needed to realize those goals, and the changes needed in order to gain their support in carrying out those needed improvements. Their policies must be mission driven, advance student learning, promote recruitment and retention of well-qualified, competent staff to teach the students of the district, and adopt budgets that reflect their commitment to the classroom as the first and most critical element for the delivery of quality education.

Boards of education may only act as a "collective body" because it is only when they sit as a board that they have any authority or powers under law. Thus, the ability to put individual agendas and partisanship aside and to act on behalf of all children becomes paramount. They must unite with the superintendent to form and advocate a shared/collective agenda for children and quality education. Many people are questioning the ability of local boards of education to rise above the "petty politics" that too often characterize the office and to truly act in the best interest of all children. Critical to the success of this countrys educational improvement efforts will be the ability of local school boards to join with their superintendent, other staff, and community to bring about the dramatic improvements that we desperately need in our public schools and to meet the responsibilities outlined above. Without their commitment to collective and shared responsibility, local boards may increasingly find they are in competition with alternative governance models, as parents and communities search for more effective means of educating their children.

The state typically prepares and publicizes district and individual school results and holds local boards and superintendents responsible for addressing areas of needed improvement. Local boards are responsible for holding the local superintendent, building principals, and teachers responsible for designing and implementing clearly articulated improvement plans.

Failure on the part of local authorities to successfully address the deficiencies identified must be challenged by parents and citizens of the local community.

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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

July 2008 - Running for School Board: It's About Students - Information on filing periods, campaign finance rules, the role of the School Board and more, Minnesota School Boards Association.

February 2006 - Put Learning First: A Portfolio Approach to Public Schools - Calls for school boards to operate districts using a portfolio model - Progressive Policy Institute.

March 2005 - School Board Standards: A Framework for Good Governance, Minnesota School Boards Association.

Minneapolis Public Schools Governance Compact (Revised October, 2002)

School Boards' Role - Learn about the purposes of the local school board, why they are a critical "public" link to the public schools, and their role in improving education in their communities, National School Boards Association Center for Public Education.

Proceedings of Public Conversations; The Roles, Structures, and Functions of Dialogue and Trusteeship in Public School Governance, The form of citizen governance represented by the school board is a hallmark of the nations's civic tradition, Public Education Network.

School Board FAQ, E-Democracy Citizens Guide to St. Paul.

ARTICLE ARCHIVE