Articles
In the long-distant past, by which I mean before computers became commonplace in the 1990s, school boards revered their policies and procedures so much that they kept them in beautifully preserved, classically bound books. Standards of board professionalism were so high that members very seldom had to refer to these books as their conduct was highly professional and respectful, and so conflicts almost never arose. In any case, board members fulfilled their duties more by habit and chivalrous behaviour than by policy, so the Board Manual (or Board Handbook) never really needed checking, updating or revision.
Everything in that previous paragraph is, of course, complete fictional fantasy. For many school boards in the pre-digital era, the reason that the Manual was almost never used was because it often didn’t exist, at least in form of a single collection of documents. School boards would have had a brief document outlining the method of appointing new members and their term of office, they would have kept a file of the minutes of board meetings, and they would have had their constitution (or Memorandum and Articles of Association – or an equivalent under some other name), and often not much else. Even when these documents existed, they were seldom consulted.
During this pre-digital age, boards usually kept what documents they needed in ring binders which could be updated as required by inserting replacement pages. Some school boards used filing cabinets instead, especially where many years of minutes had accumulated, with files arranged alphabetically, numerically or by subject. Documents were typically handwritten or typed with typewriters, with copies being made using carbon paper, at least until photocopies became widely available.
These systems required meticulous organisation, frequent manual updates, significant physical storage space, and someone with a well-developed set of organisational skills. Not every school board rose to these basic requirements.
The digital age has completely transformed the traditional Board Manual as schools now try to make the storage of data more secure and the retrieval of information more efficient. These days, school boards use technologies such as digital document management systems (DMS) like Google Drive or Microsoft SharePoint, or online portals such as a secure section of the school’s own website, where the Manual is split into themed files using standard formats such as Microsoft Word, Apple Pages or Google Docs, or preferably converted PDFs which ensure consistency in formatting and prevent unauthorised edits.
It is sound practice to keep at least two backups of the Board Manual and all-important documentation offsite, either at remote locations and/or on a reputable cloud storage platform such as Google Drive, Apple’s iCloud, Microsoft OneDrive or Dropbox. All these platforms are secure and allow collaboration on editing drafts if desired, with tracked changes and ready availability of previous versions.
In the high-compliance environment in which today’s schools operate, it has never been more important for school boards to maintain thorough, complete, up-to-date board manuals. This is important for new board members who need information about the school, the board’s structure and operations as part of their orientation. It is also important for continuing board members and senior staff who need to refer to an expanding array of policies, precedents, minutes of meetings and financial records to perform their duties with proficiency.
The contents of a Board Manual will vary from school to school depending on its location, size, and legal requirements. When I conduct workshops on this topic with school boards, I provide a VERY comprehensive checklist of possible items to be included in the Board Manual, but such a long list is unlikely make captivating reading here, so I will simply list some of the most common key requirements:
The Board:
Historical and foundational documents for the organisation:
Bylaws:
Strategic framework or plan:
Board policies:
Staff:
Finance:
Other information:
- Dr Stephen Codrington
We offer support for school leaders and board members in many areas, including individualised help with setting up and maintaining board manuals, and workshops to help board members understand their fiduciary and non-fiduciary duties.
Further information on this and many other facets of best practice in school leadership and governance is provided in the books “Optimal School Governance", and “Insights into School Leadership and Board Governance”, which can be ordered directly through Pronins.
You may also be interested in previous articles which are archived at https://optimalschool.com/articles.html. You can subscribe to receive future articles by e-mail using the red button below.