It’s late April in Wisconsin. Although spring weather has not shown itself yet, newly elected members are present and being seated at their respective school boards. Congratulations new board member, your community voted and you should be proud of their confidence in you. The easy part, achieving election, is over for these new school officials. The hard part, doing the work of a school board, is just beginning.
The official work of the local school board is governance of the school district as outlined in Chapters 118 and 120 of the Wisconsin Statutes. It is relatively easy to be a member of a governing board. A member can read agendas and pre-meeting briefs, listen to reports, consider policy recommendations and discussions and go with the flow. Just vote with the majority and let the work of the school district unfold. However, the acts of governance provide only an organizational structure and process for a school board member’s real work.
When you speak of yourself as a school board member, in what context and how many times do you use the word “children?” If school district governance is the legal responsibility of a school board member, provision of a quality education for every child is the essential purpose of a board member’s work. Children are a board member’s clients. Each and every child in the school district is a board member’s ultimate constituency.
You may shake your head and say firmly, “I was elected by the local taxpayers to control school spending.” Or, “a group of parents concerned with (fill in the blank) asked me to run for election to see what I could do to resolve their concerns. I need to speak for them.” Or, “politically, I believe in local control of education and will do all I can to assure that federal and state interests do not supersede our local interests.” Or, “our school community is divided by significantly differing points of view about the school. I will try to mend these differences.” As true as these and other statements may be, the interests of taxpayers and adult constituent groups do not address the purpose to which you were elected. They and their interests are secondary at best to your concern for children.
Let’s examine why children and not adult interests are the focus of a school board member’s work. You are elected to fulfill the state’s responsibility in educating its resident children. Very concisely, the Wisconsin constitution authorizes the State Superintendent to supervise public education and the legislature to establish school districts. The State Superintendent sets the goals and expectation for public education in Wisconsin and “…each school board should provide curriculum, course requirements and instruction consistent with the goals and expectations established under sub. (2).” Your elected purpose is to provide a local school system that fulfills the state’s requirements and regulations and standards for the education of all children. That’s it. The remainder of Chapter 118 supports this purpose. And, Chapter 120 authorizes the scope and governance processes available to the school board for conducting its purpose of providing a public education. There is nothing in the statutes about decreasing local taxes, assuring activation of the special interests of some parents or community members, engaging in federal and state politics, or acting as a community social worker. These ideas are the political grist churned up in an electoral process. The statutory purpose of the school board and each of its elected members is educating children.
Newly elected board member, when you take your board seat, think children. Think broadly about the scope of your district’s educational programs and assure that all children have access to the knowledge and skills and problem solving processes they will need to become the next generation of community adults. The breadth of 21st century educational programs continuously expands as you contemplate the yet unknown needs of the year 2050 and beyond. Even though you don’t know the specifics of that future, you are responsible for educational programs that must provide children with ideas, skill sets, and dispositions they can adapt for success in their future lives. Then, think vertically to assure that each child is receiving the education she or he needs. Your programs must be deeply stacked to challenge and advance the gifted child and the child that learns quickly, as well any child who needs special assistance achieve quality learning. And, while attending to the needs of these exceptional children, your decisions about educational programs must advance the hundreds or thousands of children in your district who are in the middle ranges of aptitudes and abilities and will become the majority of their generation.
Certainly, there are topics that may appear to be outside the term “children.” But, they are not. Once you have a grasp of programs, you must contemplate program delivery and that means personnel and facilities. Every time you think about school district personnel – a teacher, coach, advisor, custodian, cook, or bus driver – consider how this person relates to children. There are many people who are experts in their field – math or chemistry or vocal music, safe driving, building maintenance, and food preparation. However, if they cannot establish quality connections with children and advance the learning, well-being, safety and nurturing of children, they should not be in your employment. Schooling is a people business and at the center of all the people working for and with the school district are little people. Your consideration of school personnel must always begin, revolve around and end with your concerns for children.
Because most school districts in Wisconsin have existed for more than a century, aging school buildings and grounds and the quality of these facilities are on the agenda of most school boards. Current interests in “greening” and economic efficiency blend with needs to upgrade infrastructure, especially technology, and board discussion of school spending builds community interest and concern whenever these topics are on a board agenda. But, even in these decisions, the essential interest for a board member is the education, safety and well-being of children. Board discussion about school facilities must advance teaching and learning with a healthy and safe physical environment. Money is the vehicle for accomplishing these ends; children are the compelling issue in these decisions, not money.
The seemingly controversial issues of educational programming, personnel decisions and facilities management can command public attention, especially the attention of local media. They also invite the comments and sometime tirades of the vehement who support or oppose board actions. A school board member’s chair can become heated by the verbal pyrotechnics. Although the majority of a board member’s term will be involved with the routines of educational decisions, there is nothing like a business meeting packed with parents, community residents and the media to cause a school board member to wonder “why am I doing this?” But, you know why.
So, now the hard work begins. How will you use your term of office to advance the learning, well-being and future promise of each and every child in your school district? It may be hard work and most often under-appreciated, but it is the hard that makes working to improve the lives children great.