What new board members should know

Joining a school board can be quite overwhelming, especially at first.  It is understandably intimidating to be presented with huge pile of paper (or large digitised files) containing the board’s handbook of policies and procedures, minutes of past meetings, financial statements, organisational charts, and so on, together with your obligatory “welcome to the board” card (or e-mail).

Burdensome as these may appear, these documents are necessary because becoming a board member means accepting legal duties and potential liabilities.  Being fully informed is not a luxury; it is an expectation.

Let’s imagine that you have taken up your place as a new board member, you have received, read and understood the documents, and hopefully have had a tour of the school with the opportunity to meet key people, have some informal conversations and “sniff the mood” of the campus.  

You have realised that there will be more work than you had expected, more responsibility than you had been given to understand, and potentially more frustrations than you might have anticipated.  On the other hand, you can see real potential for making positive, substantial and lasting changes that will bring life-enhancing benefits to countless young people whose education has been entrusted to the school by their parents.

Wow!  What a joy, privilege and honour you have!

So what is next?  I suggest that there are ten things a new board member should know and understand.

• Joining the board of an independent school is a sacrificial act of servant leadership that is exclusively for the benefit of others.  You are called to serve, not to be flattered.  Any board member who disagrees with that assertion should probably not be occupying a place at the table
• The perspective you bring to the Board is just as valuable at your first board meeting as your 100th meeting – perhaps more so because your views are fresh and untainted by board procedures and protocols, or by the ‘comfort zones’ that long-standing board members may have erected around themselves.
• The board is not a disassociated attachment to the school.  The board is the future-focussed, mission-driven, strategy-initiating driver and protector of the school’s direction and identity.  It is an active partner that oversees and monitors the school’s day-to-day management and operations, which are responsibilities delegated by the Board to the Principal.  In other words, the board is a team player that functions in partnership with the school’s staff in a manner that is somewhat akin to the captain (or chief strategist) of the team. 
• It is important that you receive a thorough orientation to the board.  This should include coverage of the culture of the school, an intensive explanation of the governance vs management boundaries of decision-making, an explanation of board responsibilities, personal and participation expectations, and important program and administrative information, that enable new trustees to perform effectively without undue delay.  Additionally, new board members should sign the board’s standard “conflict of interest” and “code of conduct” documents.
• Although the board’s authority is collective (which means it can only make formal decisions when its members gather in a formal meeting with a quorum), informal board work continues between meetings.  For example, it is usually expected that board members will be advocates (or even evangelists) for the school when appropriate as they network socially or at work.
• You are expected to contribute to board solidarity by maintaining the confidentiality of board discussions and publicly support board decisions, irrespective of your personal feelings or how you voted during a board meeting.  If you can’t publicly support a decision the board has made, your only recourse is to resign from the board.
• As a board member, many staff and others in the school community are likely to treat you a little differently from your pre-membership existence.  They may be more wary of you, perhaps more fearful of you, or maybe even more respectful.  It is important that you understand that your authority as a board member exists only when the board meets (as the board’s authority is collective), and you cannot make statements (or decisions!) on behalf of the board as an individual.  Membership of the school board is never a reason to bully, threaten or abuse members of the school community – remember, servant leadership with unwavering humility is the key. 
• If you need to miss a meeting, you should ensure your apologies are received and recorded.  If you are likely to miss two or more meetings in a row, you should advise the Board Chair as a courtesy.  Some boards have provisions for automatic removal of board members who miss two meetings without receiving prior dispensation from the Board Chair.
• It is essential (indeed, a legal requirement) that you avoid situations where your personal interest or the interests of a relative or interests of a close associate may conflict directly or indirectly with board decisions, whether actual, perceived or potential.  Any such conflict of interest must be declared and recorded.
• And finally, enjoy it!  There can be few more important or rewarding tasks than building the future of our world.  As a board member, you have the capacity to shape that future.

-Dr Stephen Codrington