Salaries for new superintendents form a highly visible factor that has direct implications for school-community public relations. To provide a means for guiding school board members and to provide a format for justifying salaries, a model is presented that serves both purposes. Within this model, attention is afforded to specifying a relevant…

In April 2009, a high school principal in a large Arizona school district met individually with 18 of his most senior teachers to inform them that they would not have a job the following year. Why didn't tenure protect them from wholesale dismissal? The answer is they all had one thing in common: they were retirees who had been leased or hired…

Recent educational reform initiatives have caused the state to examine its role in regulation of schools, and the current regulatory processes have been found to be in need of revision. The current system, in which the state grants "recognition" to schools that meet its standards based on whether they meet a rigidly defined set of…

The text of the Higher Education Act of 1969, which established the Utah System of Higher Education, is presented. To govern this system as a single governing board, the legislature established the new state board of regents, which is composed of 16 members. Institutional councils were established to assist in the government of the institutions.…

This handbook is intended to provide school board members with a good basic understanding of the school board's duties and functions and its relationship to the community, the school administration, and the school staff. Chapters 1-4 focus in turn on the topics of school board organization and operation, school board-superintendent relationships,…

This is a detailed description of an assessment that can be used in a graduate level of study in the area of public school finance. This has been approved by NCATE as meeting all of the stipulated ELCC standards for which it is designed (1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3.). This course of…

In the interest of enhancing children's environments, communities around the world are "greening" school grounds, replacing asphalt and manicured grass with a diversity of design elements such as trees, shrubs, gardens, water features, artwork and gathering areas. Despite a growing body of research from a number of disciplines exploring…

Policy makers increasingly include provisions aimed at fostering professional community as part of reform initiatives. Yet little is known about the impact of policy on teachers' professional relations in schools. Drawing theoretically from social capital theory and methodologically from qualitative social network analysis, this article explores…

This article offers suggestions to school board members for developing effective grassroots lobbying. Tips include: (1) hook up with an organized network; (2) set an advocacy policy; (3) select an advocacy strategy for policy issues; (4) reach out for broad support; and (5) deliver the message through the media. Guidelines are offered for writing,…

School board presidents identified what they perceived to be critical incidents in their work with superintendents. The study was a sequel to previous research concerning superintendents' perceptions of critical incidents with school board members. Researchers conducted telephone interviews with 59 school board presidents and asked them to…

This handbook is aimed at improving the effectiveness of school board members. Effectiveness of the individual board member has a direct bearing on the effectiveness of the whole board, superintendent of schools, school district, and policy formation. The major functions of the school board are discussed: (1) selection of the superintendents; (2)…

The materials in this manual are designed to help workshop leaders prepare for and present a workshop for school board members or candidates in school board elections on the role and function of school board members and on the programs, services, and staff of the state school board association. Access to information and resources useful to board…

THE USES OF TEACHER POWER IN INFLUENCING THE WORK CONDITIONS, REWARDS, AND ACTIVITIES OF TEACHERS ARE DISCUSSED. THE STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, AND APPROPRIATE USES OF VARIOUS TACTICS FOR THE EXERCISE OF THIS POWER ARE DESCRIBED. PARTICULAR ATTENTION IS GIVEN TO SANCTIONS, STRIKES, INJUNCTIONS, AND MASS RESIGNATIONS. PICKETING, SCHOOL BOARD ELECTIONS,…

A school board must operate in such a way that it can cope with the increasingly larger size, complex organization, and sophisticated programs of schools. The relationships among the community, board, and school can be viewed as component parts of a system. Formal and informal lines of communication exist among these parts--between the community…

Analyzes interviews with 31 school board chairpersons across Canada on the subject of effective school board operations. Summarizes and quotes responses to questions about leadership styles and roles, conflict resolution among board members, informal communication networks, policy development, organizational structure, school board size, and…