Communications Corner: Hitting Your Second-Year Stride

By Theresa Kelly Gegen

Many of you are starting your second year as members of your local board of education. A year ago, you were experiencing cascades of information, from your constituents, from your administration, from your fellow board members, and from IASB.

Much of that information was clear to you, or at least you understood enough to proceed with the support of your leadership team. But – and this is normal and understandable – maybe you set some of that information aside for later clarification, because the timing wasn’t quite right for you to dive into that particular wave. Now, as you begin Year Two, it is the perfect time to look back at what you might have not-quite-gotten.

Although it’s the perfect time, it’s not the only time. You don’t have to be in Year Two to revisit leadership concepts, governance principles, local customs, and overall best practices for leading your school district. You can have an “oh, now I get it!” moment at any time in your school board member service. There is a learning curve not only to effective board leadership as a whole, but also to each subtitle you might acquire: Policy proficient, meeting maven, accountability authority, finance aficionado, advocacy ace, equity expert, and many more.

The most important information you can revisit now comes from your district. What do you need to look at again, and what changes can you expect to see as a board team? Are you comfortable with your district’s mission, vision, and goals? Can you articulate them, anchor them in your work, and adhere to them in your decision-making as a board? How is the work of the board going? Do you know what to expect in the board’s annual calendar and budget review process? Are you anticipating a change in administration?

Not every district manages these exactly the same, but there are some requirements that you’ll want to be ready for.

The next most important information you can revisit comes from yourself. What didn’t quite make sense last time? What concept is your district working on, that you want to get more comfortable with? What do you need to know more about, and what did you set aside to take up later when the deluge of information eased up a little? Do you have knowledge gaps you want to fill?

This is where IASB resources can help, filling knowledge gaps and bringing clarity. Now is a great time for a second look at the basics, such as The Effective School Board Member and Coming to Order, will enlighten you upon re-reading and help you make your practices best practices. Although I’m not a board member, I do read nearly everything IASB publishes, and I can attest that everything is a lot clearer the second time around.

Other quick refreshers are free, online, and may even be new-to-you considering the cascade of information you had last year. Check out A School Board Member’s Approach to the Job, How School Boards Work, and of course, The Foundational Principles of Effective Governance to reset, recharge, and revitalize both your mindset and your knowledge base for the next stage of your school board service. You can also gather great takeaways from the Inside IASB podcast series and an abundance of Online Learning, including upcoming webinars and recordings of past webinars on all sorts of topics.

A final, but no less important, resource for support and advancement is your peers in school board service. Attend your Division Meetings for insight, networking, and often some delicious treats. Make your plans now to attend the Joint Annual Conference, which offers an abundance of opportunities for personal and board member development. Also, make it a point to take part in the IASB Community, a platform to exchange ideas, advice, and common interests with peers across the state.

Learn more about these resources and opportunities, and much more, starting at IASB.com.

Theresa Kelly Gegen is Editor of the Illinois School Board Journal and Director of Communications/Editorial Services for IASB.