MiG: Leadership development for governance teams

Whatever the arguments are for or against specific theories, practices or laws about education, everyone can agree on one crucial point: We all want to see all K-12 students succeed to the best of their abilities. Providing professional development opportunities for teachers and school administrators—with its expected outcome of helping to improve learning for schoolchildren—is an important step toward achieving that goal.

But what about board members? After all, boards are looked to for guidance and action not only by education staff but parents as well. Isn’t it logical to conclude that trustees, too, stand to benefit from ongoing training?

“Boards can demonstrate their own commitment to a continuous cycle of inquiry and improvement by becoming reflective about their own work,” says Holly Jacobson, CSBA assistant executive director for Policy Analysis and Continuing Education. “Boards that are reflective about their own work and their own professional growth, whether through board workshops or formal school board training, create a culture for such activities at all levels in the district.”

CSBA’s groundbreaking Masters in Governance leadership program is a significant contributor to ongoing education for board members and superintendents. Participants attend nine modules, which define the roles and responsibilities of school governance teams and provide tools that keep efforts focused on student learning:

• Foundations of Effective Governance focuses on trusteeship and governance

• Setting Direction helps districts clarify their vision, beliefs and strategic goals

• Human Resources provides a framework for employing and evaluating superintendents and discusses personnel practices

• Policy and Judicial Review teaches governance teams everything they need to know about developing, setting, communicating and supporting district policies

• Student Learning and Achievement instructs participants in setting expectations, curriculum development and implementation, communication and assessment of student achievement

• School Finance guides participants in establishing budget priorities, processes, implementation, monitoring and auditing

• Collective bargaining provides an overview of collective bargaining and discusses boards’ responsibilities, methodologies, and setting goals

• Community Relations and Advocacy explores strategies for building community support, keeping the media informed and engaging in advocacy

• Governance Integration merges the concepts of trusteeship and the governance team with the jobs of the board. Program graduates receive the Masters in Governance certificate.

More than 1,800 board members and superintendents have participated in CSBA’s Masters in Governance program. Ninety percent of graduates strongly recommend this program for governance teams, and more than 80 percent reported that the overall program gave them the knowledge base needed to perform their governance responsibilities.

“Our strong reliance on our Masters in Governance training allows us to model for all employees the value of professional development and our personal commitment to it,” says Kelli Moors, president of the Carlsbad Unified School District board. “When the press, community members and other districts’ board members ask us why we seem to be cohesive and effective, we proudly attribute our functionality to Masters in Governance.”

—Marsha Boutelle