Should newly elected or appointed school board members speak up confidently at their very first board meeting? Or does the old adage, “silence is golden,” apply?
That’s one of the questions I’ve been asking spanking-new board members, wizened veterans, and wise sages at state school boards associations across the nation. It’s all part of my research for an August ASBJ article on how to maximize your effectiveness during your “first 90 days” in office.
So far, opinions are pretty divided on this question. Certainly a new school board member will need, on occasion, to ask questions at board meetings-but some suggest taking a cautious approach to speaking out at first.
“I was smart enough to keep my mouth shut until I knew the facts,” one board member told ASBJ in a previous article on boardsmanship. “I opened my mouth to learn and to ask questions I didn’t know the answers to.”
Others suggest board members, by the very nature of their duties, have an obligation to voice their views. As one state association official put it, “When we’re sworn in, we hit the ground running.”
But a good school board member must never forget that good boardsmanship involves dealing with the “human factor.” Your new colleagues might feel ambushed if you raise a controversial issue at a meeting without talking to them beforehand. Criticism of a school program might cause umbrage if you aren’t aware that many long-time board members worked hard to implement the program years ago.
In short, a lot of school board members suggest you can and should speak up. But if you’re “wet behind the ears,” just make sure you research the history behind an issue-and know your colleagues’ opinions -so you don’t put the proverbial foot in your mouth.
I’ll share some more of my questions—and the opinions— I’ve heard-in the weeks before the August ASBJ hits your doorstep.
Del Stover, Senior Editor
