According to the National School Boards Association there are eight critical factors that a School Board Committee should focus on. These are Accountability, Alignment, Assessment, Climate, Collaboration and Community Engagement, Continuous Improvement and Standards. These focus areas are intended to help members of School Boards facilitate better student results through goal-orientated governance.
University Gene I Merhoff writing in his latest book “High School Boards of America: A Flawed Democracy” is how they should aspire to their positions in the first place. Ought they to be self-appointed members of an elite group, or be democratically elected on the basis of their promises?The only formal criteria for eligibility are residence in the area and American citizenship. This is hardly irrefutable proof of character or of suitability for the job. These rules are silent on members’ understanding of the principles of sound education – in theory they need not have attended School at all. Merhoff believes that 90% are chosen through election, with the balance appointed. This begs the question as to why people stand for election - are they driven by their love of education, or perhaps by narrower parochial interests as they work their way up a local political ladder?
, sometimes from the same Schools as well. It is anybody’s guess how much time is being wasted in political skirmishes, and how much of the balance invested in the key success factors of the School itself. This is not to say that some School Boards are not working exceptionally well, just that there is just uncertainty in an industry which otherwise seems to work so well.The current School Board system reflects the American public’s love of local representation through grass roots. It seems evident that the criteria for constitution should be reassessed. Hopefully this can be done without debarring many dedicated School Board Members from re-election to School Boards. After that, American education could start hitting targets once again.
