Monterey County Grand Jury
• 2017-2018
• Agency Response
Response to:
The Role of Local School Boards
School Boards Make a Difference, Improving Education: The Role of Local School Boards*
⚠️ Aviso de traducción: Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.
⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.
Findings and Recommendations 8 findings
F1
Student achievement suffers when school districts are unproductive or dysfunctional. It can be very costly and take years to address problems if MCOE or the CDE have to step in to support or save a school district. The SUHSD agrees with this finding. •
Related Recommendations (1)
R1
School Boards should adopt a policy to commit to all National School Board Association best practices. Requires further analysis – The SUHSD Board was a member of the NSBA and several current • policies include the NSBA framework for effective governance. However, the SUHSD no longer is a member because of the lack of support given to local boards and therefore the SUHSD will continue to be an active member of CSBA and will review the opportunities for support provided by NSBA in the next six months.
F2
There are proactive steps that can be taken by MCOE in collaboration with school boards to prevent many pitfalls of poor governance. The SUHSD agrees with this finding. •
Related Recommendations (1)
R2
School Boards should adopt a bylaw to make initial training and ongoing workshops mandatory. Requires further analysis -Current Bylaw 9240 demonstrates the Board's commitment to training but mandating will require funding and a policy for what happens if a mandate isn't met. Not yet implemented - The SUHSD Board has a bylaw (9240) that expressly outlines their . commitment to ongoing training including participating in training provided by CSBA. However, the Board does not have "mandates" for training and what would be the potential consequence for not completing the "mandate". Therefore, the SUHSD Board will have the Superintendent review sample policy including policy related to "mandates" for training prior to become an officer on the Board. These will be discussed in August of 2018.
F3
MCOE and local school boards can do more to promote effective local governance that is accountable to the community and produces better district outcomes. The SUHSD agrees with this finding. •
Related Recommendations (1)
R3
School Boards along with their superintendent and teacher union representatives should make annual public presentations on school district goals and student achievement. Being implemented. The SUHSD district staff give an annual summary of student during Board ٠ Sessions that include the attendance of the union representatives. These presentations are mirrored at school sites through their parent and governance committees.
F4
Promoting effective local governance requires better public information, communication, and a strong commitment to board development. The SUHSD agrees with this finding. •
Related Recommendations (1)
R4
School Boards should provide clear, concise, and easy to find communications on their district's goals and outcomes on their district's website. Not yet implemented – will be added to current front page in September of 2018. .
F5
Although each school district has individual priorities, school boards can each make a commitment to adhering to best practices, training, and ongoing professional development when it comes to school board governance. The SUHSD agrees with this finding. •
Related Recommendations (1)
R5
School Boards should provide information on their district's website about the role and responsibilities of school board members to educate parents, the public and potential school board candidates. Not yet implemented – is already in process with video production as well. Completion • scheduled by September 2018.
F6
While MCOE cannot dictate how school boards govern, they can provide stronger leadership in promoting a culture of effective school board governance. The SUHSD agrees with this finding. .
Related Recommendations (1)
R6
School Boards should provide access to informational sessions to educate potential school board candidates on the duties and commitment associated with serving on a local school board. Been implemented but not consistently. Board Bylaws are in place for the process. Will be . offered for the pending November 2018 election. We thank you for the opportunity to respond to the findings and recommendations of the 2017-18 \, Monterey County Civil Grand Jury Final Report. Sincerely, Patty Padilla-SalsbergBoard President Dan Burns Superintendent
F7
Information posted on MCOE and district websites is insufficient and not user-friendly. It does not provide the public with adequate information about what school boards do, how to evaluate school board performance, or how assess school district outcomes. The SUHSD agrees with this finding. •
No recommendations for this finding
F8
School boards can do better in fulfilling their responsibility to communicate with school district stakeholders. The SUHSD agrees with this finding.
No recommendations for this finding
* This report's PDF did not contain easily extractable text and required Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for analysis. There may be minor errors in the extracted findings and recommendations due to OCR limitations with scanned documents.