One of my most interesting consulting roles that I’ve fallen into after retiring from the superintendent position has been working with local school boards. My initial work has been board orientations, focusing much of the time on defining their “why” and providing a deep understanding of their role and that of the superintendent. Later this spring, I’ll be engaged in the processes of board and superintendent evaluations.
In my review of the role of boards, every board has development as part of their work. But what does that look like? My career in central office working directly with boards spanned over 19 years. I can honestly say that seldom did I worry about board development other than when an election was held, and a new board was formed. That in itself, was a little self-serving, as I really wanted board members, especially new board members to know the difference between their role and mine. Plus, in most cases, board development became a responsibility of the superintendent under that famous contractual phrase, “and other duties as assigned.” While superintendents should have the opportunity to co-learn with their boards, it should not be part of their work. The superintendent is the “sole employee” of the board and as such, can be placed in an awkward position leading the learning of the board. Remember, the role descriptor is board development not board/superintendent development. Superintendents already have a massive commitment to their own learning and that of leading their overall learning community.
There was a time in education when professional learning happened at an event. While those events could be powerful, we now know that once or twice a year sessions are insufficient to impact ongoing improvement. Boards who believe that their involvement in bi-annual meetings (of which some PD is offered) is sufficient to place a check mark beside their board development role do not fully understand their responsibility. There is an expectation that educators be lifelong learners and engage in continuous improvement yet, many boards settle for simple attendance at annual meetings as evidence of board development. Tone at the top is important and so boards should never expect their employees to engage in ongoing professional learning if they are not prepared to engage in the same themselves.
Board development is vastly different from individual trustee development. Trustees should always be on a learning journey, but it is the corporate board that does the work and therefore that development must be prioritized. I’ve been pleased to witness many boards engage in book studies but dismayed that most were facilitated by the superintendent. Again, the co-learning opportunity is essential, but it needs to be directed by the board or an outside consultant.
One of the easiest first steps I’ve found to get development front and center on a monthly basis, is to have board members review their own meetings. Successful boards understand their role better than anything else and it can be relatively easy to see if the board is operating in their correct lane by their meetings. Some sample questions to lead the reflection and discussion might be:
- Reviewing the agenda of the board meeting, when did you act in the following modes:
- Fiduciary (Oversight)
- Strategic (Foresight)
- Generative (Insight)
- Innovative (Continuous Improvement)
- What policies did you review?
- If you made any changes to a policy, how did it better support the role of the board?
- What are some board actions or conversations that focused on the board’s priorities?
- What evidence would you use to support your board meeting was successful?
- What might you change to improve the work of the board at the next board meeting?
These are just a sample of questions that have the intent of generating dialogue on the work of the board during meetings to ultimately lead to further development. Just as educators are called to be reflective of their practice to initiate improvement, so must boards. Board development is not a sprint but a marathon. It must be intentional and ongoing! If the general public is to see the value in school boards and the work being done, then it is critical that boards commit to getting better and engage in ongoing development.
