Chat: Are Local School Boards Obsolete?

Edweek Producer: Jennifer:
Today’s chat “Are Local School Boards Obsolete?”, produced with generous support from the Wallace Foundation, is now open for questions.

The chat itself will begin at 3 p.m. Eastern time. Thank you for joining us. Thursday October 22, 2009 9:59 Edweek Producer: Jennifer

Carey Harris:
Hello Everyone -

My name is Carey Harris and I’m the executive director of A+ Schools. A+ Schools is an independent community advocate for improvement in public education in Pittsburgh. We work to inform, engage and mobilize families, youth and the community to work for good governance, equity, and excellent teaching. I am also looking forward to our conversation. Thursday October 22, 2009 3:02 Carey Harris

Carey Harris:
Hi Thomas,

I can’t ensure that a program like Board Watch will be a success in your community. But I think that public pressure and engagement can be a powerful force for improvement. Things that have contributed to our success are that we have been as transparent, honest, and deliberate as we’ve asked teh school board to be. We’ve also been fair and respectful of the work the board does and the fact that the members are elected officials. We’ve grounded our work in governance research and in the facts.

The volunteers are key. Having 6-10 members of the public at each board meeting evaluating the proceedings puts alot more public focus on what is happening. The volunteers scores are regularly released to the public which also contributes to the visibility and importance of the work the board does.

Finally I think the community/public should have clear and high expectations for the board.

Thursday October 22, 2009 3:20 Carey Harris

Carey Harris:
Hi Mary,

I am agnostic about the “right” structure for school governance. In Pittsburgh we have a school board and that’s what we’re working with. Its purpose is policy leadership of the school district. It has the power to levy and collect taxes. At issue is how to do this work well in an increasingly dynamic, complex and high stakes enviroment. I am optimistic that it can be done well if there is the will to do so. That requires school board members that understand their role as collaborators with the superintendent - not a check or balance. And it requires a superintendent that considers her board collaborators and works to enable their success.

Thursday October 22, 2009 3:32 Carey Harris

Anne Bryant:
Margaret, there is good evidence that continuity for board members and superintendents alike results in higher student achievement. When there is too much turnover in the leadership, the careful goals and implementation strategies that have been set forward by the leadership team often come under fire. It takes at least three years, school board members tell me, to learn the ropes. It is also important that board members understand the role of the board vs. their individual opinions. It is the work of the board that matters and it takes time to pull a concensus together.

Thursday October 22, 2009 3:35 Anne Bryant

Carey Harris:
Hi Jean,
We spent almost 2 years developing Board Watch before we launched it. We solicited alot of community feedback, we consulted the literature, we enlisted an advisory panel of governance and education experts, we conducted focus groups with parents, teachers, superintendents and former school board members, we talked with our current school board members, and then we quietly piltoed the project.

If you are interested in learning more about how we developed it and how it works, we’ll be hosting a free webinar on November 18th at 4 PM through the Public Education Network. You can go to our website to register www.aplusschools.org and click on the Board Watch logo on the left side. Thursday October 22, 2009 3:42 Carey Harris

Anne Bryant:
Doris, you’ve asked a question we’ve often pondered. What training would mayors receive in order to know about the very complex nature of running a school district? Would they take the time to understand the financing of school districts? How important is it for example, to set aside enough money for professional development of teachers and staff along with the acquisition of technology? Would they truly look out for all of the students, special ed and English Language Learners, would they ask the tough questions about why certain schools are not providing an adequate education, while others thrive? Would they be able to make the tough decisions about giving more resources to struggling schools in high poverty neighborhoods when the richer tax payers and business owners have more direct access to the mayor?

Would the codes have to change? In most states, the legislature does have the ability to give more power to the mayor, but they do so at their own risk. Thursday October 22, 2009 3:48 Anne Bryant

Carey Harris:
Micromanaging is the result of - among many things - a lack of clarity about the role fo the school board. We ask our volunteers to look for whether or not the board is focused on its goals and whether or not its conversations are concentrated on policy making, review or revision and whether the board is concerned with the overall budget of the district or individual line items.

Another factor that contribute to micromanaing are the school code. In Pennsylvania, the code calls for the board to approve field trips and operate cafeterias - among other managerial and administrative tasks. This just invites micromanaging.

In Pittsburgh, we’ve noticed that when the board is discussing matters other than its own goals, its not talking about policy. This is when the board gets “in the weeds” and its role clarity scores go down. The Board has scored C’s for role clarity in our first two report cards. WIth the last report card, we recommended that the board set aside time to discuss policy and strategy at each legislative meeting and that they support a change to PA School Code that would elminate many of the micromanaging functions from their role.

Thursday October 22, 2009 3:54 Carey Harris

Anne Bryant:
Many states do have mandatory training and our state school board associations provide excellent workshops and seminars on the Key Work of School Boards and other topic areas. In addition, NSBA provides the best conference for school boards in the country at both the T+L (technology plus learning) Conference coming up next week in Denver, and at our Annual Conference in April (this year in Chicago).

At these conferences, board members and often their superintendent teams are exposed to best practices in governance, the latest trends in technology integration, an understanding of how to turn around struggling schools, exposure to 21st century learning and content, and the most effective ways to connect to their communities. Always the focus in our meetings is to make sure the board’s major work centers around student achievement and learning. Thursday October 22, 2009 3:59 Anne Bryant

Carey Harris:
Absolutely! That seems to me a perfect role for the school board. In the non profit world board members are expected to champion the organization and help raise friends and funds. I think the same is true for school boards. In fact, school boards - as elected entities - are in a great position to raise public awareness - as well as federal and state awareness - about the financial needs of their district. School Boards benefit from state and national associations - such as the NSBA run by my esteemed colleague on this panel - that can leverage their collective voice to be great advocates for our children.

Thursday October 22, 2009 4:02 Carey Harris

Carey Harris:
In my experience the low level of interest in school boards is the result of a few key things:

1. The general public does not understand what the board does or should be doing. In Pittsburgh for example, the District’s budget is bigger than the City’s budget. The District has more employees and the lives of 26,000 children in its hands. Many people don’t realize how much is at stake.

2. Many people do not have children in the school system in Pittsburgh. Only 13% of Pittsburghers have children in the public schools - the other 87% may not believe that the board’s business matters to them.

Okay - time is up. Thanks for the opportunity to chat with you all. I enjoyed it!

Thursday October 22, 2009 4:07 Carey Harris

Anne Bryant:
Public appreciation of our schools remains strong, according to PDK polls. But you are right, we need to have more community members voting in school board elections. One of NSBA’s priorities is to help boards reach out to their communities, not necessarily at election time, but year round so they better understand what schools are actually providing to the children in their community. If they had any idea of the many services we provide to the poorest in our land, I think our fan club would increase.

In the case of Pittsburgh, we’ve clearly seen what the A+ program has brought to that community. Three cheers for Carey’s work. Thursday October 22, 2009 4:07 Anne Bryant

Edweek Producer: Jennifer:

Today’s chat “Are Local School Boards Obsolete?”, produced with generous support from the Wallace Foundation, is now closed. A transcript of this chat will be available shortly on this page. Please make sure to check out Education Week’s other upcoming chats at www.edweek.org/go/chat

Thursday October 22, 2009 4:09 Edweek Producer: Jennifer