This handbook is intended to provide authoritative information and guidance to school board members in meeting the responsibilities of service. Frequent reference is made to pertinent sections of the Wisconsin statutes, and in many such instances the number of the statute is given. The guide begins with an outline of the role of the school board…

This report provides a review of literature published in the past 2 decades on the role and effectiveness of school boards. Though school boards are but one component of school district leadership--the superintendent and other district administrators and staff constituting the other main components--school boards are the focus of this review…

This publication is designed to help members of boards of education understand and work effectively within the requirements of New Jersey's Open Public Meetings Act, also referred to as the Sunshine Law, which requires that the public must be given adequate notice of, and be permitted to attend, meetings of all public bodies empowered by law to…

Asserts the importance of the board-superintendent relationship and discusses some of the areas in that relationship that have the greatest potential for difficulty. (Published by the Kansas Association of School Boards, 825 Western, Topeka, Kansas) (Author/IRT)

According to these authors, the Catholic board of education is the church's structural response to the need for the community to be broadly represented in educational policy decisions. This book of readings is intended to be an inservice tool for board members. Chapters concern the areas of board of education role, the organization of the Catholic…

This booklet is intended to aid board members and administrators of independent American overseas schools in developing the policies and working relationships necessary for the effective operation of such schools. It mainly emphasizes the principles of boardsmanship and administration and presents guidelines for the development of policy and…

Considering the issue of whether or not school boards should have separate staffs, three models are presented: a "two-hat" concept of metropolitan governance; a separate staff operating on a needs basis; and, the "federal model" with legislative, judicial, and administrative branches. These models raise two political questions: In routine,…

This report examines the issue of student teacher ratios as a focus for a discussion on the utilization of social science research findings by policymakers. The author notes that such findings on the issue of student teacher ratios are in agreement on the fact that minor changes in the ratio are insignificant. Notwithstanding, educational…

This report provides board policy samples and other policy resources on student discipline. The intent in providing policy samples is to encourage thinking in policy terms and to provide working papers that can be edited, modified, or adapted to meet local requirements. Topics covered in the samples include corporal punishment, student safety,…

This report provides board policy samples and other policy resources on leaves and absences. The intent in providing policy samples is to encourage thinking in policy terms and to provide working papers that can be edited, modified, or adapted to meet local requirements. Topics covered in the samples include (1) sick leave, (2) maternity leave,…

The Gaston County (North Carolina) board and superintendent have developed a board self-evaluation questionnaire and a community questionnaire to improve the board's effectiveness as a policy-making body. The 30-item community questionnaire is appended. (MLF)

To govern the schools well in today's climate of confrontation and conflict, school board members must be ready and willing to make unpopular decisions when necessary. (Author)

This paper presents the findings of a single case study of a particular board of education's decision-making process in a crisis situation, and explores interpretation of those findings from two theoretical perspectives. The crisis resulted from the charges against and conviction of the superintendent for a sexual assault on a 17-year-old female…

School board difficulties are not a problem of people, but of process. This book presents a radically new model of board governance that energizes board members to build a strong, vibrant organization that achieves its goals. Following the preface, chapter 1 recounts the varieties of boards, their predictable difficulties, and the need for more…

Addresses two questions: Who are the influential actors in the process through which the states establish public school policy? What factors might account for state-by-state variation in the policy-making influence of a particular actor? (Author/IRT)