Questions and answers from and to board members. Please click here to ask a question or email klamb@vtvsba.org.

If you have an answer (or suggestion) to a question please click the Q: to the question you are responding to or email klamb@vtvsba.org. All questions and answers are anonymous.

	How is the Administration set up in your school? Do you have 1-2 (or more) principals or 1 principal and 1 vice principal; and what is the enrollment for these situations? Posted 4/22/08
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	How do other Boards deal with a change in Calendar? Is it strictly up to Administration or is it a collaboration of Boards and Admin and SU's? e.i. ; being a make up snow day. Posted 4/21/08
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	Email Protocol - As a new member to my school board, how do other boards handle emails from one school board member to an administrator? Does the Board Chair get a cc or does the email go directly through the Chair? Posted 3/21/08
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	Our school board meetings are televised. In the seating plan, Should there be a definite and physical space between board members and the administration or should people sit wherever? How do other school boards set up the seating? Posted 3/20/08
	We are televised. Our board table is set up as a "U" with the Chair and administration sitting at the head, facing the public. The public has seating behind the camera, usually two or three rows of chairs, but the camera will rotate to catch them on camera too. If we have a presentation, they usually come up to the main table to do that portion. We usually have a microphone in the middle of the table setup for the TV station reception. We have Board members and admin sitting mixed together. Posted 3/23/08 I think as a viewer it would be less confusing and for camera angle if you had a seating plan with a name/position card in front that could be read by the viewer. I find it nice to mix it up especially if there is any advisaril feeling going with board visitors/issue - this creates less of an us/them atmosphere. Posted 3/23/08 Our Board members along with our administrators, which includes superintendent, and building administrators as well as our recorder sit at the Board Table. The student reps also sit at the table (they do not vote).Our meetings are televised. We open each meeting with introductions. If there are invited quests we make sure to explain who they are and why they are at the meeting and they may be invited to sit at the Board table. We have worked very hard to develop a relaxed environment at our Board Meetings. Generally the Administrators are at the table seated together and the board sits together, however we have not defined nor encouraged a seating arrangement. The question, seems to indicate, there is something inappropriate about an informal seating arrangement. What is the Board trying to say at meetings? For me as a Board member, I want open and frank discussions on issues. I do not not want to "stop" the discussion of ideas because of an individuals position. It is critically important that discussions be open and comfortable at the Board Table. This conveys to the community a sense that we are working collectively for the best outcome and environment in the school, even when the issue under discussion is a difficult topic. Boards should not convey to a community a "them" vs. "us" mentality. Posted 3/23/08 We are a union school district within a supervisory union, with three schools represented by administrators, plus the superintendent of the supervisory union, so there can be 4-7 people in the administrator group, not counting special appearances. Posted 3/23/08 By accident or design (I suspect the former), our administrators generally, but not always -- sit together, at one end of a u-shaped layout or otherwise together if it’s a square doughnut. For video purposes, sitting together would make sense, of course. We’ve never separated the administrators from the board members by a defined space, though. Posted 3/23/08 We did not separate our board from the administration but the superintendent and principal often sat on the left side and the board sat around the table filling in whatever spaces were available. We did reorganize our seating into a u shape to avoid being distracted. The shape helped us focus on the issues at hand but also move out during community question and other segments when we sought a wider range of opinions. Posted 3/23/08 Our board (UD-3) does not have assigned seats, per se, but as human nature would have it, most tend to sit in or near the same seat. More out of tradition, the board chair, vice-chair, and supt. sit in the center of the row. The administration do sit together off to one side and the board makes up the balance. Large name tags are placed before each person for clarification. Posted 3/23/08 We are a small 3-member board and Board members and Administration all sit together around the same table. There is not a defined physical space for either party, i.e. a board member may be seated between the Principal and the Superintendent. Even at the Supervisory Union level meetings, members from various Board are intermingled among Administration and Central Office staff in no particular pattern. This works well for us, but our meetings are not televised. I personally don’t think it matters where people are seated, but for the televised audience who may not know who is a Board member and who is Administration (or staff), it may be helpful if everyone introduces themselves and states their position/role at the beginning of each meeting. Posted 3/23/08 We generally have board members sit on one side of the "U" and administration on the other with the board chair in the center - this works well for us. There are times though when we need to have administrators join us for only part of our meeting and we let them sit wherever they choose. Posted 3/23/08 Currently our board and administrators all sit together at a slightly curved multi table arrangement. The board usually sits in the middle with supervisory union administrators on one side and the school’s administration on the other. The board does not feel comfortable with this arrangement because it does not create close working relationship with all the parties involved. We are now looking at changing the seating arrangement to a rectangular design possibly with one end open so visitors can be actively engaged and feel comfortable with the process. Administration and board members should work as a single unit when problem solving. If they are all part of the same seating configuration showing that they are all valued players in the process it will create a positive working relationship. We are not routinely televised but on occasion TV cameras do show up. It does help visitors of any kind to know who the players are if the members are properly identified either with opening introductions or with name cards. Posted 3/23/08 When our Board meetings are televised (and not),we don't have a designated seating arrangement. Ordinarily, the Board chair and Vice Chair sit at one end of the table arrangement facing any community members who might be there (not at the table)(we have 15 members, 2 student members,and up to 7 administrators at each meeting). Administrators sit together at the other end or, if it is a U shaped configuration, on one side. Again, this is an informal arrangement but seems consistent and works well. Posted 3/23/08 At our local school board meetings (which I chair), board members and administrators all sit around one table (actually, several of those trapezoid tables put together in a ring). My personal feeling is that we're all in this together, and I don't like to create an artificial barrier between the board and the admnistrators. However, at the S.U. level, it is done differently. The S.U. chair prefers to have the board members and the superintendent at several tables placed together in a row, and have the other administrators and any audience sitting in chairs facing the tables. I find that too formal, but that's just my personal opinion. Posted 3/23/08 We have attempted to open up the entire process and have elected student representatives and faculty members sit in at Board meetings along with administrators and administrators. The Chair sits at the center of a "U" shaped assembly of tables, but that is largely to accommodate the local Public Access TV station. The superintendent usually sits nearby, but that is largely because she is asked a lot of questions and its easier for her to be seen and heard when she is sitting there. Everyone else simply grabs an available seat. The result is an atmosphere that is both collegial and a little informal. Our hope is that our student members will see that they can participate in, and influence board policy. On several occasions, they have done just that, and to good effect. Likewise, our hope has been that by asking our teachers to designate members to sit in at meetings we can break down any US/THEM alienation and misunderstanding between the board and the teaching community. We seem to be making progress. While only Board members have votes, discussions include everyone and we strive for consensus whenever possible. We have taken the same inclusive approach with many of our various committees. Students and faculty participate in committees on policy, and educational progress, among others. We have even gone so far as to designate our community relations committee to be an "open committee." In addition to the student/board/parent/faculty members designated by the Board, community members are welcome to drop in and participate at Saturday morning meetings held around a big table at a popular local breakfast spot. This is the second year we have used this approach. Initially it seemed a little awkward from time to time. However, as people have become used to it, I think it has drawn the various stakeholders together and generated more thoughtful policy and improved oversight. I would recommend it to any board in the state. Teacher morale seems to be better. Our contract negotiations seem to be less stressful, and we have made some dramatic improvements in out test scores relative to the rest of the state. Posted 3/23/08 As chair of the board, I like to have the superintendent sit next to me in case we need to confer on something. Otherwise, everyone just sits where they want. I think this keeps the meetings from feeling adversarial. I personally view the administration as part of the team. And if staff attend meetings, I prefer to have them at the table to discuss things. We want everyone to feel that we are open to the entire school community. The camera being there, should not affect how you sit nor the "feel" of your meetings. The camera should be showing the rest of the community what a great job you are doing and how they should be supporting the school. If the camera being there is creating insecurity, you have more to worry about than who is sitting where. Although I don’t know the board, and the entire situation, but may I suggest that there may be some adversarial issues that need to be addressed that go deeper than the presence of the community through a camera. Posted 3/23/08 The superintendent, board members, including student member, and building principals all sit at the same u-shaped table in that order. We face the public access TV camera and the public who attend. This is a change in the past year from a more awkward set up where building principals sat in back of room and had to come to standing microphone to address the board and TV. Posted 3/23/08 We are not televised and don't have a formal seating arrangement. We use the staff room which has 2 large tables (Tshaped) but everyone seems to gravitate to the same chair each time. We are however, flexible as sometimes guests and visitors arrive prior to all Board members. Posted 3/23/08 I think, to function well, administration and board member need to feel comfortable together. At our board meeting, we just sit wherever there is a place. So no, I don't think there needs to be an artificial separation at the table yet it does seem to be rather common practice to separate the wheat from the chaff when there is a camera (tv) involved. Guess it helps the viewers figure out who is who! Posted 3/23/08 At LES there is not a defined seating plan. The only request made by a parent was to have the group sit more in a horseshoe shape (a line was too harsh). We agreed because we could all see each other better and we felt we could communicate easier. I believe the closer the group sits (even though there seems to be a personal comfort with the administration sitting on one end and the board on another) the more it displays individuals working as a team. Posted 3/23/08 Our meetings are televised as are many others. I believe this give the general public, especially in Winooski, an opportunity to see what we are considering and how we interact with the issues and how we vote. As to the seating arrangement we configure our meetings with the board sitting all at the head table with the principals and administrators sitting at an adjoining table along the right with the superintendent and recording secretary sitting on the left. The full table arrangement is configured in sort of a U shape. The audience sits in chairs to the left of the head table and when making presentations either stand and address the board or sits on the end of the principals section for their presentation. Seems to work. Posted 3/23/08 We have five members on our school board for the three elementary schools in our town, and our meetings rotate between the three schools, normally three months of meetings at each school. Usual attendance at the twice a month board meetings includes the five board members, the board recorder, the superintendent, the three school principals, the EES director, and as needed, other invited school staff and administrators. And, of course, occasionally, interested people from the general public, teachers, and students. We have no formal seating plan, and because of the tremendous rapport among all parties, none is necessary. Meetings are relaxed and informative, and the accomplishments are good. We are not televised, but even if we were, I am sure that nothing would change. Posted 3/23/08 Our board table is set up intermingled. Board members and administrators sit randomly at the table. Our meetings are not televised. Our guests sit at one end so that it is easy to see all board/administrative members clearly. Posted 3/23/08 On our SU board, I am the Chair person so I have our Superintendent sit on one side of me, and the vice chair sits on the other side of me, the rest of our 16 person board sits whereever they want, usually each district sits with their own fellow board members. Seating here is divided into two rings: the board members sit in assigned seats at the inner ring - really a "u" shape - with the chair and superintendent at the head. All other admin staff are seated in the outer set of seats. Visitors sit separate from both.
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	At our high school, we have 6 one-hour bands per day, and are on a trimester system. A full time high school teaching load consists of 2 trimesters teaching 3 classes and one trimester teaching 4 classes. The rest of the day (3 hours for two thirds of the year, 2 hours for the other third) are devoted to prep, lunch, duty, and TA work. This appears to be an even lighter load than one unassigned 90 minute block per day. What are other high schools looking at in terms of a teacher schedule? I'd be interested to hear comparisons with elementary schools as well. What else should we be looking at - number of preps, class size, unique classes, etc.? Posted 11/12/07
	I know that high school teachers get a disproportionate lower amount of contact time with students compared to elementary teachers. Our elementary teachers get 30-40 minutes per day for prep that is usually scheduled around specials. A short period of time after students leave for the day, 15-20 minutes, is usually taken up by parent conversations, meetings, or extra help for students. In my opinion, elementary teachers are shortchanged on this issue. High school teachers often teach more than one section of the same class, enabling prep to overlap. Conversely, elementary teachers spend their day with the same group of students and must prep for 5-6 hours of contact time each day. Along with chairing my local board, I also work as a 1:1 para in an elementary school. From first hand experience I can tell you that the daily classroom routine for these teachers is intense with few opportunities for a break, as students transition from one activity or lesson to the next. All the while in the same class with the same teacher. Understanding that the high school environment is more complex both intellectually and socially, I still find it disconcerting that these professionals are allowed so much of their contract time away from the primary focus of their profession, their clients - students. I would submit that other professional occupations insist on a more significant ratio of client contact time each day. If one does look at the ratio it is astounding. In this question 2/3 of the year is spent at a 50% professional to client contact time ratio. Would an insurance company allow a doctor to see patients for only half of his/her working day, yet bill out for a full-time salary? I think not. Certainly there are more layers to this onion than meet the eye. However, as a board member I see this situation as one of many large gaps in our system through which many many education dollars fall; at the same time it is a systemic inequity for the professionals involved in primary and secondary education. Posted 3/26/08 Our elementary teachers are expected to be in school a minimum of 7.5hrs of that they are in class all but a 1/2hr. lunch and a 45min. "specials" period. They also have rotating lunch and recess duty, but a great portion of those are done by TA's and itinerants. It seems to work well. I'm not sure what our HS does, but your teaching load sounds pretty light. Posted 3/26/08
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	We’ve just accepted the resignation of our principal. Has anyone ever gone through the process of hiring another principal? Who and how many people were on the interview committee you had? Posted 11/11/07
	I was chair of our search committee when we hired a new principal three years ago. I am a board member at Otter Valley Union HS and our principal gave notice in April that he would not be returning - so we had a very short time - at the end of the hiring season - to find someone. Our superintendent, Bill Mathis helped create an excellent and inclusive process which included a search committee with 20 members. There were board members, teachers, guidance, administrators, parents, students, and support staff on the committee. We organized the group and created an effective and inclusive process. At our final interviews, we had teams of each constituency, led by their committee members, ask prepared questions of the candidates. Our most valuable group was the student group, led by our two student board members, who were on the committee. Two of our candidates had major "melt-downs" when faced with a group of students on their own. We knew neither of these two would ever make a good high school principal. I don't know whether your school is an elementary or a high school/middle school. I understand a similar process was used by an elementary school in our S.U. - Neshobe - with equally good success. I would refer you to our superintendent with further questions, 802-247-5757. Posted 11/13/07 Our search committee last year consisted of all three board members, one representative of the teachers, two parents, three community members (one is soon to have a child in the school), superintendent. We also solicited input from the support staff and the older students (4-5-6 grade). Posted 11/13/07 On hiring a principal we had two board members, two teachers and two parents. In addition, the Superintendent was there for most of the interviewing process on most of the candidates. Each individual participating prepared questions except for Superintendent who did the introduction. We each had a certain amount of time in order to ask the questions. Many of my questions were asked by other members of the group so the time frame did not become an issue. Good luck. Posted 11/14/07 Yes, we just went through the hiring process for a new principal (not in my school board district, but in my school, so I'm responding as an educator who served on the committee). We had a group made up of 1 school board member, 2 community members, 2 teachers, 1 guidance counselor, 1 para educator, 1 special educator and the 2 principals from the other schools in our district (they were co-chairs on the committee). We started by going through the principal job description and brainstorming qualities/characteristics that we were looking for in a leader. We used these characteristics to come up with interview questions. We used School Spring to review resumes/applications and rank our candidates and come up with the 3 we wanted to interview. After interviews, we split up into groups and went on site visits, where we asked additional questions. The three candidates were then interviewed by the school board and the admin. team. Then we had a community forum...one candidate dropped out after the community forum. There was one candidate who was stronger...and that person is proving to be a great fit for our school! It was a wonderfully collaborative process, and was done in a fairly short time period. Best of luck in the process! Posted 11/14/07 I have been part of 4 principal searches since getting on the Whitingham school board. Our board prefers this process to involve a search committee consisting of 1 - at least 2 of each of the following: parent/community members, teacher/staff, students, board members, superintendent. The student participation was from the high school and middle school when we were hiring for our K-12 system then only from the middle school when hiring for our K-8 system. It is challenging now because our building principal is hired by the Whitingham Elementary School board, but we include 2 of the Twin Valley board members in the process also. It can be a pretty bulky committee, but I truly feel having a broad spectrum committee helps to find a principal that meets the schools goals and the best interests of the students. There was one time we used a smaller committee when hiring an interim principal. Posted 11/14/07
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	What do you see as the most reasonable answer to solving the SLP (speech language therapist) shortage question? Posted 11/10/07
	Get rid of the teacher’s union.
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	Our K-6 elementary school is beginning to conduct a search for a new principal. A neighboring K-6 elementary school is in the process of doing the same. We are part of the same supervisory union, yet two districts with different boards. We are considering hiring a principal and an assistant principal in some incarnation. Has this been done before? If so, did it work? Posted 11/09/07
	Whiting and Sudbury town school districts were working towards a merger and hired a principal that serves both schools. I believe the principal is technically hired as a part-time administrator in each school district. Both Whiting and Sudbury are in the Rutland Northeast S.U. and the Superintentant is Bill Mathis. The S.U. phone number is 802-247-5757 if you have any questions. The merger was voted down, but the principal will remain working in both schools. The schools already have some joint sports teams, teachers, and other activities, so a single administrator makes sense. Posted 11/13/07
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	Does anyone have experience with creating and using a capital fund for long-term expenditures? We got voter approval to create such a fund, and would like to hear from others what items they consider appropriate to come under such a fund and how much they allocate to a capital fund annually. Posted 6/13/07
	We have two Capital funds. Building and Bus. Each year we have separate ballot items, asking voters to approve putting $7,000 in each fund (yes, we are small school). This does count as additional per pupil spending, if approved. Bus fund is just for purchasing new buses. Building fund is for major repairs (roof, furnace, carpeting) not routine maintenance. Winooski voters were asked a couple of years ago, on the ballot item, for permission to transfer any school year surplus into a capital improvement fund for use in long-term improvements of a direct non-educational nature. This would be for major repairs or upgrades to the grounds and facilities that we seemed to have to cut each year in order to get our budget passed. For the last three years it has proved quite successful and actually has allowed us to improve certain areas passed over many times. Fortunately we have been successful in having surpluses for the past several years and this was a great use of them. This also has allowed us to re-create our five year capital improvement plan which never seem to work until we received this permission. Winooski voters in allowing us to do this were the recipients of successful financial outcomes for these years and as such also allowed us the ability of not having to include these items in the annual budget year after year. Our five year capital plan is now upgraded every other year as we eliminate certain items completed. Posted 3/26/08
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	Robert's Rules of Order indicates that the chairperson of a board does not vote except during a tie. Do other boards follow this protocol? Especially where it concerns hiring a principal? Also, do you allow board members who have not been present at the interviews to vote via absentee ballot? Posted 3/15/07
	Much depends upon the size of the board. Robert's Rules have a special section for so-called small boards, where the rules are necessarily much looser. For example, we have a three person board. Under these conditions there is no reason why a chair cannot move or second a motion. Within a board of significant size (our union HS board is thirteen) then the regular rules would be more appropriate, and there would or should be no need for the chair to take such actions.~~ Posted 3/22/07 We had an issue on our board about a vote and whether it was a legal vote. We also had questions about abstentions so I did a lot of research on this. In my quest, I was in touch with Mark Eagle, Esq., at the Dept. of Ed, John Nelson at the VSBA, and Kathy De Wolfe at the Secretary of State’s office. Mark Eagle said he is happy to try to find answers for school boards on issues but that he would defer to the Secretary of State’s office on matters of voting as they are the authority. In reviewing Robert’s Rules, I have found that in the case of small boards, the chair should be voting on all matters and not just to break a tie. After discussing this issue with John Nelson, Mark Eagle, Esq., and Kathy De Wolfe, the mutual agreement is that we should always have all members voting on motions, including the chair. I also found that the chair can make motions as well. Posted 11/13/07
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	Do any other boards regularly meet with staff without inviting administrator? Posted 3/14/07
	We don't. We often have staff meet with us for presentations with administrators. I would be very interested to know if other Boards have such meetings and how they work out. Posted 3/15/07 Never - at Dover School. Posted 3/15/07 In some instances that may be appropriate. Certainly if a staff member requests it. Posted 3/15/07 No, the Windsor School Board does not meet with staff without inviting administrators. The Superintendent would typically be present. Depending on the situation, a principal or another administrator would be present as well. Posted 3/15/07 We do not attend meetings regularly with the staff. The board chair does attend the State of the School meeting and the board is also invited to the end of the school Staff meeting but the board as a whole does not meet with the staff. The staff representatives do come to the board when concerns arise and the administrators are present. Posted 3/15/07 No. Boards are supposed to manage the Superintendent and in some cases the senior administration, and really no one else. If a Board meets directly with faculty or staff without the Superintendent or senior administration present, it can lead to decisions being made or conclusions reached without the benefit of their input, review, and experience. This can in turn result in a breakdown in communications and loss of trust between the Board and those they are supposed to manage, and impact the effectiveness of both groups. Even with good intentions, this is a very slippery slope. Posted 3/15/07 As a board, absolutely not. If staff members were on a committee (either Board or school generated) that could happen. If the reason is some problem w/admistration, the board better be very clear, careful, legal, and open about what's going on. Posted 3/15/07 Absolutely not, absolutely not. The staff member should have already met with the administrator. If that is not resolved the staff member should then meet with the superintendent. The superintendent then deals with the administrator and if necessary the Board. If the staff member is still not satisfied the administrator, superintendent and staff member could meet with the Board as approved and arranged by the superintendent. Unless you are talking about a contract negotiation and then a board can meet with the staff. Posted 3/15/07 I don’t believe we ever have. I can’t imagine a situation, other than contract negotiation, where at least one administrator (super. or principal) would not be present at a meeting with one of their subordinates. Posted 3/15/07 Oh my! Absolutely not. Talk about undermining your administrators! Posted 3/15/07 Our board makes it a point not to meet with staff in the absense of administration. Think of it as running a business. You are paying serious money to trained experts to run your enterprise. An enterprise in which, by and large, you are not trained to run. By meeting with staff outside the admin, you are undermining their authority. It may be an ego trip, but it is not good practise. Our approach is that we have hired the Superintendent and Principal to run the school (s), we set the standards for what we expect them to accomplish, give them the resources we deem appropriate, tell the what they cannot do, measure the results and stay out of their way. By having stayed out of the way, they have no excuse, and can be held accountable. If you interfere with the staff, they have their excuse readymade. Check into the concept of Policy Governance, which the VSBA can help you with. Posted 3/15/07 We, Manchester School Board have not met with staff on a regular basis. We have not had the need to. However, the staff knows and are comfortable with requesting a meeting with us Posted 3/15/07 Any meeting of a school board is a "public meeting" therefore everyone is invited. I do not believe that a special invitation should be needed for anyone. If an administrator is involved he/she should be on the warning. All school boards are required to warn a meeting, no exception. If an executive session is needed the meeting must first open in a public meeting format and then, after an appropriate motion, enter into executive session which then must be brought back to open session before a vote can be taken or a decision made. Posted 3/15/07 My experience is that it does not work and sends a message from the Board to employees that the administrators are suspect. An annual meeting with employees in a social situation is an idea that works. Why would you not want administrators in attendance? It would appear that the Board wants to micro-manage or staff want to go around administrators. There are better ways to have your staff heard. Posted 3/15/07 Our board NEVER meets with staff alone. The two superintendents I have served with, over 10 years, have been very clear in discouraging this and discouraging individual board members having private conversations with staff about Board issues. Posted 3/15/07 We have not done that but it is under consideration especially in the evaluation process. The question is who speaks for the staff. Union Rep???? Board selected spokes person(s)???. We do get the Principals to complete and Evaluation on the Supt. and incorporate it into ours. Posted 3/15/07 We have not since I have been on the board met with any staff without the administrator of the building. The principal (administrator) is the educational leader of the building and thus should be involved in all discussions regarding the building, staff, curriculum etc.. I can't think of a situation that would involve such a meeting. I was in administration for many years and always sat in. I suppose it has happened but would like to know the circumstances. Just my thoughts. Posted 3/15/07 No, we do not (Williston SB) Posted 3/15/07 Great question. Our Board does not do this as it can seriously undermine the ability of the Administrator (Principal) to do his or her job. It is a similar issue to the Board accepting/discussin/addressing complaints from staff members directly, rather than channeling them through the complaint procedure - usually calls for direct addressing, then addressing to Principal, then addressing to Superintendant, and lastly addressing to the Board. That said, we do try to meet with staff at least once per year with the Administrator present. This has worked well and often surfaces more reasoned discussion of issues. We also circulate an Administrator Evaluation survey and are piloting a School Climate Survey and encouragin staff to respond to both. Posted 3/15/07 No, never. Nothing leads to poor working relationships faster than that. It is the administrator's work to manage staff. Posted 3/15/07 We have not met with staff without administrators, but according to Jake, we can. We are going to do a staff survey. We did this last year and it was very informative. We were shocked and learned a lot. People tend to be more honest and probably more negative , on paper. Posted 3/15/07 We don't do it regularly but we have done it. Posted 3/15/07 Yes! And everytime I do have an informal meeting with a staff member in the hallway (which is what happens most frequently), I get very diplomatically reprimanded by our Building Principal! It’s one of those items on the learning curve for a school board member that I personally have struggled to deal with. But I just keep reminding myself that it’s my job to make sure the school is well run, but not to run it. And it only creates problems for the Building Administrator when Board members interfere in her work. We have a collaborative and trusting relationship with our Building Principal, so she feels free to speak frankly with Board member, and we are open to what she has to say. I’ve become much more practiced at steering staff/faculty and parents through the proper channels in a diplomatic and respectful way. It makes administration much more orderly and reduces conflicts. Posted 3/19/07 Our Curriculum Committee meets fairly often with staff, particularly this year. Since there are administrators on the Curriculum Committee the answer I guess is yes. However, there are some years we meet more with faculty than others. Posted 3/19/07 We do not meet with the teachers without the administrators being present. I'd think that would undermine the administration and risk administrative turnover! Unless that's your intent...! Posted 3/19/07 Our board used to meet with teachers for ‘listening’ sessions on a regular basis and although I believe staff felt it was a valuable tool, there were instances were the board could easily have stepped over the line and been involved in micro-managing. We have not engaged in that practice for many years. Instead, our superintendent and assistant superintendent hold ‘chalkboard chats’ where they are engaged in listening to staff on a regular basis. This more recent communication has been very successful both in giving staff members a venue to participate in district-wide improvement and also in having our superintendent more visible in the school buildings. That being said, individual board members are always available to speak with staff and guide them through possible complaint processes just as we would a parent. It is important that we learn to say "I can’t talk about that particular topic, but here is some information that will help you deal with this problem" and then guide them to appropriate policies, etc. Hope this has been helpful. Posted 3/19/07 It is not the school board's job to meet with staff unless a hearing is required because a problem couldn't be solved with the principal and superintendent. Posted 3/19/07 Definitely NO. I think this is a very bad idea since it undermines your trust in your administration. I believe that the school board's role is to supervise, not to micromanage. Casual conversations, 360 reviews of administrators, that's ok. But if you want to have your school managed by the administrative team, you must trust in the process and stay away from by-passing the administrators. If you have issues with the administrators, take care of those issues, but it is not the role of the school boards to micromanage and to go behind the administrators' backs. How would you like to work for someone that is constantly second-guessed by his boss? Posted 3/19/07 I think meeting directly with staff with admin not there is a HUGE recipe for disaster. It invites staff to do an 'end run' around administration if they have issues they want to bring up. There's a pretty clear chain-of-command and if it begins to break down, bad things happen. Posted 3/19/07 The Essex Town School Board does not meet with teachers unless an administrator is present. Usually the Superintendent. e respect the chain of command. That's an interesting question. Our Teacher/Curriculum Committee works frequently with staff, but it would be very unusual for an Assistant Principal to br present as well. This generally helpful to all, because the staff person has an administrator available to work with should a particular project or directive be requested by the committee. Posted 3/19/07 Maybe, but I think that boards should only meet with staff when the administrator is present, unless there are serous allegations of misconduct by the administrator - something illegal or potentially very damaging to the school. The board's primary responsibility is to the administrator. This of course does not mean that the board should solicit input from the staff when evaluating an administrator. Posted 3/19/07 It would be a highly unusual circumstance if we did that, like if we were investigating some sort of personnel complaint or something. In the normal course of things, administration is always invited to any meeting we have. Posted 3/19/07 My experience has been that the board that I currently serve on does not meet on a regular basis with the staff without inviting administrators. In general, we do not meet with the staff on a regular basis. I would like to see more interaction with the staff & board in a venue that would allow both parties to be candid with each other in regards to issues surrounding the school and its day to day operations. Our board has always been receptive to when the staff has attended meeting, at times the staff has provided information that we would not necessarily received from an administrative level. The practice of the staff accessing the board directly without going thru proper communication channels is not in particular encouraged by the administration and the staff is strongly encouraged to go thru administration first(proper channels of communication). On occasion, the staff has contacted me directly regarding different issues. I have always been available for such discussion but I also have encouraged the communication to first take place with the administration and if it is not resolved at that level, then to bring it forth to the board. Posted 3/19/07 No Posted 3/19/07 We never meet with staff w/o administration. Doing this would undermine administration. We deal with the administration, they deal with staff. We have grievance procedures, if necessary. Posted 3/19/07 No, our board would never meet with a member of our staff without admin being present. As a board member it is our responsibility to build the budget, make policy and solve problems that come to the board level, not to micro manage building problems/concerns with staff or parents. We hire superintendents and building principles to deal with staff. I can't think of a time that our board has dealt directly with a staff member. Posted 3/19/07 We do not meet with teachers unless invited by the Principal and/ or Superintendent. If Boards bypass the chain of command (Teacher-Principal-Superintendent), they will undermine the authority of the administrators that the Board hired and empowered to manage their schools. Posted 3/22/07 No. Sometimes we meet without either the principal or the superintendent. I hope that in the future we will move to having the superintendent attend once per month. We are a member of a Supervisory Union. Posted 3/22/07
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	I have proposed to our High School Board that we investigate teacher sharing. We are the only High School in the Union so we would need to share with a High School outside our authority. An example of the need for this process is we currently offer Latin. Our class sizes are 10 or less. Instead of hiring a year round teacher we would like to offer the Latin class ½ of the year and maybe another High School could do the same for the other half. We are told that there would be contract problems, but I say this is the way to go if we want to continue to offer Latin. What do others think about this, and is this happening elsewhere? Posted 2/21/07
	I feel that there needs to be more ways to conserve than to spend where it is unnecessary. A language is always money well spent, which ever one it is. But, at what cost. I think that it is a great idea to share teachers among the schools. In our school, we share our gym teacher, nurse, art and I think our music teacher. I believe in our school district. I don't see where the contract should be a problem as long they are hired with a 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 or full time position. Posted 3/14/07 One of the best ways to cut costs and be able to offer courses to students as enrollments continue dropping is by sharing resources between districts and SUs. The issue about contracts frequently comes up when these kinds of creative ideas are discussed...though your current contract may prohibit such flexibility. This is an area that should be negotiated in future contracts. You may even want to request from the association that you jointly open the agreement to look at this one issue and arrive at a side-agreement to supplement the current contract until it expires and can be renegotiated. Personally, I am becoming more and more convinced that the issues related to contract and teacher associations are a red herring. Take the issue back to your mission. Get people thinking on a higher plain and not getting stuck in the weeds of why something won’t work. Our job as Board members is to set direction - it is the administration’s job to figure how to do it, not just complain about all the ways it won’t work. The issue needs to be brought back to what is best for our students, what is best for our community, what is the best delivery option for us, and how can find cost-savings that will permit to run an effective school. Posted 3/14/07 As a response to sharing a teacher from one school to another. We have a PE teacher that teaches at three small schools in our district and 1 school in another district. We have not had any trouble or conflict and this has happened for several years. Posted 3/14/07 At our high school, we have 6 one-hour bands per day, and are on a trimester system. A full time high school teaching load consists of 2 trimesters teaching 3 classes and one trimester teaching 4 classes. The rest of the day (3 hours for two thirds of the year, 2 hours for the other third) are devoted to prep, lunch, duty, and TA work. This appears to be an even lighter load than one 90 minute block per day. What are other high schools looking at in terms of a teacher schedule? I'd be interested to hear comparisons with elementary schools as well. What else should we be looking at - number of preps, class size, unique classes, etc.? Posted 6/13/07
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	Our High School is on a four block schedule. Currently teachers have one free block and Department Chairs have two free blocks. With declining enrollments we are looking to change our free block policy and student-teacher ratios maybe reduce free blocks for teachers to two or three a week. What free policy do other schools have and if a block is 90 minutes are we too generous with one per day? Posted 2/22/07
	We, at our elementary school do not have blocks. There does seem to be a lot of free time for teachers. Some days more than others. Because of music, art, gym, library, recesses and lunch. I wonder how much of the basic learning subjects are they really learning. Our high school has 80 min. blocks, which I believe will be changing. My feelings are that, are students really learning with more class time. They thought they would be. I think there is more problems with student getting into trouble because they get bored (boys more so than girls). They get lost in it all. Posted 3/14/07 I work at Bratt High school, in addition to serving on the Westminster board. At BUHS, teachers teach three blocks of four, but one of the two semesters, they are assigned a duty for half the other block. Duties are study hall, cafeteria, computer lab coverage, that sort of thing. Posted 3/14/07
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	Our High School is grappling with budget increases and budgets that are voted down. We have heard from students, teachers, board members, and the community that funding sports is a sacred cow that nobody ever cuts. I wondered if asking the question about cutting sports should be put forth to the voters as a non-binding question to settle the question OR putting the sports expenditure as a line item for the voters to approve separate from the budget. Do other boards have this festering question about pitting education versus sports and what are their thoughts? Posted 1/15/07
	Our community once put sports on a separate ballot from the budget along with a few other items. Sports was the only item that was passed. Communities feel strongly about students having outlets besides academics. It may be the only tie they have to the school and it is fraught with memories for adults. Separate articles may leave you with the same outcome. Posted 3/14/07 In response to the sports program being a sacred cow; it does seem to be. I am a school board director, and we recently warned our sports program, literacy program, expanded Pre-K, and an After-school program in order to get public involvement. The only program of these to be passed by the voters was the sports program. The rest failed. Posted 3/14/07 Our School District (St. Johnsbury) is very concerned with the lack of physical activity of our children. We view sports as a major activity to combat obesity as well as to give our students the opportunity to participate in team building. Team building and the behavior associated with team activities is vital to being successful in life. Our school also has made great strides in introducing healthy diets in the cafeteria and has eliminated fatty and sugar rich foods. We are presently discussing ways to double our sports teams to give students a greater opportunity to participate and benefit from physical activity. The recommendation to cut sports seems incompatible with the goal of achieving a balanced curriculum. Posted 3/14/07 Our Curriculum Committee is beginning to investigate our sports programs and hope to develop principals and guidelines for our all of our athletic programs. We are beginning to ask why we offer sports. I find this discussion encouraging. If the purpose of developing a sports program is to win championships, then I think the athletic program takes away from our core mission. On the other hand, if our purpose is to instill core values such as discipline, respect, responsibility, fairness, trustworthiness and good citizenship as well as offer our students healthy physical activity, then the athletic program can compliment the academic program and can truly be a co-curricular activity. Positive competition and a spirit of excellence are defining values that can be promoted through sports. We are studying a model developed in Maine called Sports Done Right. You can read more about it at this website: http://www.sportsdonerightmaine.org/ I encourage board members to read the report posted on this website and to think seriously about how to structure and support their sports programs. We don’t itemize other aspects of our budgets. I think it would be counterproductive and destructive to a cohesive educational program to put bits and pieces up for vote every year. On the other hand we will be more successful in passing school budgets if we are clear about our purpose for each program and can publicly justify their expense. Posted 3/14/07 You might remind members that a line item budget for sports could pass while the budget goes down. Posted 3/14/07 I have 5 children, all who have played sports or who play sports. Basketball, soccer, field hockey, lacrosse and football. I truly believe that each child needs to find something good in themselves. For some students that's all they feel they have. As for your question, I don't feel that the tax payers should foot the whole bill. I think that all students should do more fund raising and have to be a part of the before and after the glory. To many kids feel that it is owed to them and that they shouldn't have to work for it. What ever happened to work hard and you shall receive? It makes for a more well rounded student or young adult. Hope this helps. Posted 3/14/07 I am willing to guess that the line item for sports, after school, drama, etc. is a small percentage of your overall budget. I think that programs like these are what helps build school community. These are the kinds of programs that small towns rally around (large ones too!!) Having and supporting these programs within the regular school budget I believe pays off in the long run. The parents, grandparents, etc. that attend their kids sporting events, drama productions, the after school program's puppet show appeal to your core group of voters that will hopefully support your school budgets on Town Meeting Day. I wouldn't want to go down the road suggested. Having that part of your budget voted on seperately on Town Meeting Day (or whatever day your budgets are voted on) is not something I would not recommend. I don't think you want to lose your core group of voters who will support budget and schools. We need to support the students not only academically, but socially and physically via athletic programs and other programs. I understand the problem. I know that some might suggest that anything "extra" might be funded by the user. The problems is what about the family who might not be able to pay for the "extras." I'm going to fall back on the idea that it takes a village to raise a child. That offering such programs is perhaps a commmunity responsibility and it is the right thing to do. Posted 3/14/07
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	How is your district impacted financially by the Catamount Health Plan? Posted 1/10/07
	Unknown at this time. Posted 1/15/07 Our district(Westford) is not immediately impacted by the catamount plan but we could be impacted based on the number of less than FTE’s that we engage in. Our fellow district(Essex Jct) will probably be impacted more due to the higher number of less than fte’s that they hire. Based on this plan, we will (all districts) at some point or another be impacted by the ramifications of this plan. Posted 1/15/07 Catamount Health Tax is approximately $15,000 in our budget this year: crossing guards, subs and seasonal employees. We are asking the legislature for help in dealing with this. Posted 1/15/07 It cost us about $8,000 for subs and part-timers. Even though they are part time proportional payments are required. Posted 1/15/07 Not Affected Posted 1/23/07 We have not as yet been advised by administrators of any effect. Most of our employees have access, although not all of the nonteaching staff take advantage of it. Perhaps the subsidy allowed under the law will encourage more participation: that could raise our costs somewhat. Posted 1/23/07 Our district gives support staff a significant amount in an "HSA" that far exceed the $365/yr Catamount fee. Currently, this would not count as health insurance and we would have to pay the fee. We have talked to Sen. McDonald (on Ed Committee) and he says that this was unforeseen and there will be technical changes to correct this. Posted 1/23/07 For your information... the following two website hold a great deal of information regarding the Catamount Health Plan. VSBIT and the Legislature. Posted 1/30/07
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	Are all board meetings including meetings of sub-committees established by the board required to be publicly warned and minutes published (or available)? Posted 1/9/07
	Absolutely Posted 1/15/07 All meetings are warned whether or not there is a board quorum. Posted 1/15/07 Vt open meeting law treats Board meetings and committee meetings the same with respect to warnings and minutes. It does not distinguish between them, considering them both "public bodies". Your answer is found in the definition section of the open meeting law under public bodies. I believe the language refers to political sub divisions of the state and sub committees thereof. Posted 1/15/07 All our meetings are publicly warned and minutes are available within five days. They may not be typed but if anyone wanted them they could ask for. Posted 1/15/07 Yes. According to what I learned in 2006 at our annual legal briefing meeting, all meetings -- even committee meetings -- must be warned. I have assumed, therefore, that minutes must be kept and made available upon request. You could contact your Superintendent or legal counsel for more information or clarification. Posted 1/23/07 They are warned but and they have minutes available. Posted 1/23/07 Yes. I'm not sure HOW "available" the minutes of committee meetings are, but they are formally taken and kept, and could be obtained if requested. Posted 1/23/07
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	Does your board have a written policy or procedure regarding quantity of days prior to a board meeting a board member should receive his/her board packet? Posted 1/4/07
	No, but usually 3 days. Posted 1/15/07 I do not recall any formal policy that implies that we have to receive the board information so many days ahead of the meeting. Generally speaking, my experience is that the supervisory office has been very good in providing materials for the meetings well in advance of the meeting. Posted 1/15/07 We have a procedure in place as to the number of days we receive our board packets. Posted 1/15/07 No we don't have a policy on when we get packets but we should. We generally get the Fri or Sat before a Monday meeting. Not earlier enough for my liking to do the necessary preparation. Posted 1/15/07 We do not have a policy but a proceedure to have them in by Thursday noon for a Monday meeting . Posted 1/23/07 No such policy. Packets are typically sent out a few days before the meeting. If we require study, we try to provide materials the previous meeting to give more time for study. Posted 1/23/07
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	What are your school's policies regarding the delegation of responsibility to committees including community members? (esp. relating to the expenditure of school funds) Posted 12/14/06
	Our school doesn't have a policy, per se, about delegating responsibility to committees. However, we have 2 pretty active committees (School Forest Committee and the Early Education Outreach Advisory Committee) that meet regularly and make recommendations to the school board, even on fiscal matters. Posted 12/19/06 Our board often creates committees for specific purposes (i.e. Playground Improvement Committee, Building Safety Committee) that include board members, educators and community members. Sometimes the committees are given monetary parameters to work within, but the Board always retains final decision making power in all spending issues. Recommendations are brought back to the board from committee, and the Board decides to fund all, part, or none of the plan or proposal. Posted 12/14/06 Hope this helps ... Our policy since 2003 is embedded below. Unless specifically stated in the charge, the committee has no spending authority, power to act or communicate for the board. A number of years ago we did charge an enrichment committee for the duration of one year and allocated a sum not to exceed $ specified work outlined in the charge with specified report back dates. BOARD COMMITTEES Through resolution, the Board has authority to appoint committees, standing or otherwise, that may be required for better execution of its power and duties. A committee will not have the power to act or to communicate for the Board, except as the Board has specifically authorized an action, but will make recommendations to the Board. Committee recommendations and reports will become an official part of Board minutes. The Board may create committees of citizens to provide assistance and counsel. Such committees will conform to the provisions of this policy. The Board will name a committee chairperson and members annually. The Board chairperson, superintendent and the principal will serve as ex officio members on each committee. Committee members will be provided a charge, an indication of duration of the committee, and a list of committee functions as approved by the Board, and will meet at the call of the chairperson. A committee will be dissolved upon completion of its assignment, or it may be dissolved at any time by a vote of the Board. Minutes will be taken at all committee meetings. Membership and attendance will be recorded in the minutes of the meetings. Minutes of the committee meetings will be archived at the school building. Posted 12/14/06 I do not think it is appropriate for the school board to delegate its authority to committees made up of non-school board members. If a school board member feels he/she is not able to participate in a committee for whatever reason, that is OK. But don't refer your responsibility to a non-board member. Posted 12/14/06 We are in the process of establishing a committee made up primarily of on-board members, to oversee the transition process as it relates to the closing of one of our 4 elementary schools. Students from the school which is being closed will be reassigned, and the entire district is being realigned. The committee is tasked with creating a list of activities and a timeline to ensure that all families feel welcomed at the new school. The board has decided to allow a budget to this committee. They will need to establish that budget and bring it to the board for approval. Posted 12/14/06 The board chair is on all committees. Each board member is required to be on at least one committee. This process takes places when officers are elected, the first meeting after town meeting day. Posted 12/15/06 The Montpelier School Board only uses committees to make recommendations to the Board or to the superintendent. The type of committees we have used in the past include facilities recommendations (studying the need for an addition to the high school, for example), gifted and talented students, and food and fitness issues. The responsibility for approving expenditures of money cannot rest with a committee, since there would be no accountability. When the board approves money it does so in open session, accountable to the public. When the superintendent spends money, it is overseen by the board in some fashion. Neither of these apply to a committee. The committee could recommend that the board or the superintendent spend money, but I would never allow the committee to approve it alone. Posted 12/15/06 Lamoille Union has one policy regarding committees, and I think it answers all of the concerns of the member who wrote. it states: "The Chairperson of the Board of School directors shall annually appoint members of its body and any others he/she so chooses to necessary committees. These committees shall be delegated only those powers as prescribed by the Board. A committee may be terminated by a vote of the Board at any time." I would be willing to discuss this and other of our policies with the writer. Posted 12/15/06 My initial response would be that the committee would be charged to gather the requested information and review it. The committee would then submit a proposal (or all findings) but the ultimate decision is the Boards, and the Board alone would make decision on how funds are allocated. Posted 12/15/06 Our committees are not empowered to spend funds. They present their findings or recommendations to the full board for action. Posted 12/16/06 Any time the Williston School District has organized a committee, we've developed a charge for the committee so that they will understand what the Board is asking, clarifying roles, and anticipated time of a response back to the board. In general, we ask our committees to bring back a recommendation to the Board based on their work. Any formal action is taken only by the Board. If the charge does not expressly state anything about fund expenditure, the committee would need to return to the board to make that request. All of our committees have at least 1 or 2 board representatives on them also which we've found helps. Posted 12/15/06 We do not have such a policy. Nor do we have practices that allow RESPONSIBILITY (which I would interpret as be decision making) to committees that include people who are neither school board members nor administrators. We do have committees that involve the public, but they are advisory, such as the building committees we've had before building projects, and the community wellness committees. Certainly no such committee could authorize the spending of money. Posted 12/15/06 We have had and encouraged community members to get involved in a variety of issues. We make it clear that they are not voting members and that the board has the final say. We respect and welcome all input and have people understand that it is that. I have found it to be very helpful, sometimes uncomfortable and good policy. it most always leads to a better understanding. Posted 1/9/07 All community members and committees comprised of such always report back to the board for approval -- motion on action. No one has the authority to approve any kind of expenditure except the Board. There is a small fund which the principal can spend without Board approval for small school repairs. Posted 1/10/07 Committees are always advisory to the board. I find it works best to give them a very specific charge and to meet with them in the beginning to make certain they understand that they are making RECOMMENDATIONS to the board and that only the board can act. Posted 1/9/07 Our committees do the work on specific matters and recommend to the board. The board votes on their recommendations. They do not have the authority to take action on behalf of the board. Posted 1/15/07
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	What are other communities doing about declining enrollment within their elementary schools? Posted 05/23/06
	Restructuring learning teams, compressing the number of teams within the school and potentially increasing the number of multi-grade classrooms within multi-grade teams. Posted 12/14/06 I have been concerned about this for some time. Our community has been very supportive of the school budgets in past years; I'm concerned that without some action on our part, some drastic cuts will result. Some teachers are reluctant to make significant changes ( They doing enrichment and some multi-grade activities, ex. buddy reading & writing, etc.) However, some will not willingly go to a multi-grade approach without a board mandate. In an effort to empower the principal to go to multi-grade classes for all or part of the day, it was suggested that the board consider a policy to that effect. The VSBA's only policy on class size was one from Barre - but their problem dealt with classes that were too large. Nevertheless, I took their idea and drafted a policy that I thought was reasonable. My colleagues on the board did not support having a policy to deal with this concern. Felt direction could be given to the principal without having a policy. I have copied the draft policy I proposed below, for your information; I would have agreed to eliminate the list of recommended class sizes, but the board did not want to consider a policy on this topic. I am interested in any thoughts or information you have on this topic. DRAFT CLASS SIZE POLICY The ___________ Board of School Directors recognizes the correlation between class sizes and student achievement. The Board also recognizes its responsibility to ensure that class sizes do not impose an unreasonable financial burden on the community or have an adverse impact on other educational programs and operational functions at the _____________ School. The Board further recognizes that extenuating circumstances may exist for which an administrator may request that the Board consider an exemption from this policy. The _____________Town School ideal class-sizes are as follows: Kindergarten: 16 First: 18 Second: 18 Third: 18 Fourth: 20 Fifth: 20 Sixth: 20 Seventh: 20 Eighth: 20 The ________________ School Board expects that class numbers that fall below 10 will trigger the following: Multi-grade classrooms for all or part of the day. In some cases, this may permit professional staff to be used to address the needs of other students in the areas of remediation and enrichment. A review and possible reduction of classroom aide time, excluding those services required by student IEPs. A report to the School Board delineating how resources are being used. With input from the professional staff, the administration shall assess staff skills to determine what, if any, professional training shall be required to enable and assist classroom teachers in providing quality instruction in a multi-grade format and arrange for the provision of such training. Posted 12/17/06
	In Winooski our problem is just the opposite. We have declining enrollment in the upper levels of the middle school and in the high school. Our elementary population seems to be holding. What we have decided is to restructure our entire school system during FY09 and to look at which structure will best serve us given this problem. During this next school year but before budget time in November we will shape the structure by the board, with assistance from the administration and recommendations from a high school design committee. We will then invite, through a series of public meetings, staff, teachers, support groups from the community and the community itself to hear our plan and to enlist comments, suggestions, and direction from these groups. In the end we hope to vote on a structure that will best suit the needs of our community for the near and perhaps long-term future. Posted 3/26/08
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	I would like to know what action needs to be taken when a member of the school board speaks to the public about what has been discussed in executive session at a board meeting. Posted 05/16/06
	The board member should be talked to by the chair and other members in exec. session. Explain all the problems legal etc that this can cause, 1 warning then ask for resignation. Posted 7/12/06 This is a widely misunderstood subject and often coupled with a distortion of the law. It must be first under stood that the executive session section of the VT open meeting law is an exception to the public's normal absolute right to witness elected officials "doing the people's business." In essence it is a very limited power given to a the majority of the board to impose a restriction on the public. It is not in anyway a restriction on individual board members. Former Deputy Secretary of State (to Jim Douglas) Attorney Paul Gillies, is widely recognized as an authority on VT governance law. He dealt with this subject in his Sec of State "Opinions" publication in the 90s saying "there is nothing against the law about a board member revealing what was said in an executive session" He further went on to say there are certainly ethical issues but they are very specific to the subject discussed and the intent of the law. The mere disclosure of the content of the discussion is not unethical unless it violates the spirit of the law that permitted the exclusion of the public in the first place, I.E., severely disadvantaging the school district in a real-estate negotiation. If a board member told his neighbor that had no involvement in the transaction then there is no harm and thus no fowl. Yet disclosing sensitive personnel matters could subject the school and the member to civil action. But simply being sensitive or embarrassing to the board is insufficient to make disclosure unethical. Remember it takes a majority to go into executive session. This means that a dissenting member must permit the exclusion of the public but he or she hasn't personally agreed to anything. Of greater ethical concern to me is the unbridled abuse of executive session that occurs everyday in Vermont. Personnel and student matters are a given but most other matters like contracts, especially unilateral contracts, litigation etc. premature public disclosure must, by law, put the school at a substantial Disadvantage . Discussing eliminating positions at budget time does not qualify just because it is "sensitive" to those currently in those positions. Posted 1/15/07 It has been our boards experience, and we did have a problem a couple of years ago, that although this is considered highly unethical it is not illegal. We dealt with it by letting the community know that this rouge member was not speaking on behalf of the board but, of his own opinion and also made note of the unethical behavior of an elected official. The tide turned and public confidence in this particular board member was lost. Posted 1/23/07 We have been fortunate that this has not occurred on my watch over the last six years. Should it occur my plan would be to have a sit-down meeting with the offender and to re-affirm the unwritten policy of confidentiality surrounding the idea of executive session. Although there is no written law that prohibits a board member of divulging what was said in executive session, there is however an unwritten rule of trust that members will not make know what was discussed or determined. Without that element of trust then the very nature of a confidentiality, protecting the freedom of open dialogue between members discussing a particular subject will certainly be in jeopardy. Posted 3/26/08
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	What does your school do if parents do not keep sufficient funds in their school lunch credit line? Posted 05/11/06
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	Do you provide special services for the gifted and talented in your elementary and/or middle school? If yes, what do you provide and how do you determine which students are eligible? Posted 05/05/06
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	What percent increase in salaries are schools budgeting for next year? Posted 12/02/05
	Salaries and benefits are driven by the negotiated agreement and should be budgeted as such. If you are in a negotiating year - base it on your own past settlements, recent settlements within your county, or make a best guess. Posted 1/9/07
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	We can not find school bus drivers. Any suggestions? Posted 10/05/05
	We have tried paying a daily stipend for a bus driver that is also a substitute and/or paraeducator. The small savings has allowed for the expense of another paraeducator to ride the buses as disciplinarians. Posted 10/05/05 We have paid them unemployment in the summer months. Posted 10/06/05
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	We are having an issue with administrators following through with board requests. Any suggestions? Posted 10/06/05
	We have placed an item on our agenda for follow-up items and asked the administrators to use that time to answer questions asked of them at previous meetings. Posted 10/05/05 Remember that administrators do not necessarily have the time to answer questions and get information for individual board members and should only be expected to answer to items requested by the board as a whole. In addition, when making a request for information, make sure it is written down and that a realistic timeframe is determined at the outset. This way everyone know up front what is asked for and when it should be expected. Posted 10/07/05 We have an item on the agenda called To-Do list. This is used for us to review items that we have discussed during the meeting to follow-up on and is put in the minutes that way. We discuss with the administrators what the time-line is or what a realistic time to expect an answer for the board. When setting the agenda for the next meeting, the to-do items are reviewed and placed on the agenda for answer/action. We follow chain of command and all requests from individual board members go through the Chair and the Chair goes to the Superintendent with requests for information. The Superintendent is the point person with his/her staff and the Chair with his/her board. This is the best way to keep things organized and to make sure a principal isn't being barraged by 7 board members for information. It is vital that the lines of communication are clear. Posted 05/05/06
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	How do you inform/educate your community about your school budget to increase the likelihood of passage? Posted 10/07/05
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	If you are approaching the Act 68 spending cap penalty, or have reached it, what is your board/administration doing to reduce spending? Posted 10/09/05
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	Could other boards share the instrument they use for superintendent evaluations? Posted 11/10/05
	Our SU contracted with the VSBA for a workshop on Superintendent Evaluations. From that workshop we amended their model evaluation tool (available on their website) to fit our needs. Mainly we use a 3 number system (below expectations, meets expectations, exceeds expectations) instead of the 5 on the VSBA model. We also rewrote our job description so it more closely matched our evaluation tool. We are also following their model timeline (also available on their website). The most important item in our evaluation process is communication. Sounds simple, but isn't always carried out. The superintendent submits his written self evaluation to the boards in December at which time each board fills out an evaluation form. The SU executive committee (the board chairs) then meets, and compiles the four evals into one document with the superintendent. This ensures an accurate accounting of the super’s job performance as a lot of times the board only knows what isn't working in the district, and aren't aware of all the hard and good work the superintendent is doing. This draft final document is then sent to the board at it’s February meeting for final review and any changes the board would like to see. It is then presented to the superintendent as a final document for inclusion in his or her personnel file. A contract is then negotiated based on this evaluation. This is our second year using this method and it looks like we're finally on track to complete an accurate, and timely superintendent evaluation. Posted 1/02/06
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	When a member of the public comes to a board meeting with a concern, how does the board deal with it? Posted 10/07/05
	Our board has an agreement to handle concerns from parents or community members which is to direct the person to the superintendent who will follow up on the concern and direct it back into the system. Once this protocol is established and used for a while, the community becomes aware of how it works and most concerns work their way trough the system and get addressed at the best place. This also makes it appropriate, when someone comes to a board meeting unannounced, for the board to respectfully listen to the concern and then direct it back into the system with follow-up from the superintendent. Of course, board members must understand how the system works and restrain themselves from entering into a debate, even if the issue may be controversial. Posted 2/07/06
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	Who determines the agenda of the board? Posted 10/07/05
	The board chairperson sets the agenda - working in conjunction with the superintendent and/or principal. We have included an agenda item asking for topics for future agendas. This is to ensure that any board member or member of the public can request (on record) that an issue be considered. Posted 11/07/05 Our chairperson is charged with working with the superintendent to set an annual agenda and then meeting with the superintendent to set each meeting agenda in a timely manner so that supporting information can be sent out to board members in advance in order that they can be prepared for the meeting. Our meetings begin at 6:00 and end at 8:00 unless the board agrees to continue. Posted 2/07/06
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