What You Do
In each of the 14,000 public school districts in the U.S. a small group of devoted leaders work to assure that students get a quality education that positions them for life long success. There are 95,000 people serving on school boards, and like other elected positions the size of a school board depends on the size of the community.
School boards help determine educational policy and administrative procedures in a school district. Their core responsibility is to establish a vision for the community’s schools that reflects the goals of its residents and the district staff. Sometimes school boards share power with other institutions, like the local municipal government or the state and federal departments of education. Some school boards are elected, but some are not.
School boards in the US are both elected and appointed, covering K-12. Some school boards represent one small district while other localities have merged two or more cooperating or unified districts designed to save resources.
“We need your voice because everyday people need to be represented by everyday people.”
Luisa Santos
School Board Member, Miami-Dade County, Florida
Responsibilities
School boards have three essential duties: developing the budget (and advocating for it at the town/city council level), setting school policies, and hiring and evaluating the superintendent. They also oversee other things like adopting the school calendar, negotiating contracts with employees, and allocating funding for social services and extra-curricular activities for the school district.
School boards recently have waded into territory previously left to teachers including approving curriculum, setting academic standards, and even bathroom policy. Unfortunately for students, some school boards are now banning books.
Helpful Skills
The most helpful quality will be familiarity with the school system. Ideally the candidate has a connection to the school system whether that be children attending, the candidate attended, or the candidate is tightly connected to the school and community. Sound communication skills and the ability to listen to concerns empathetically will be helpful. Attendance at school board meetings and sub committees will be helpful.
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Salary and HoursDepending on the jurisdiction city/town councils meet every other week, or one time per month. You can view a sample council meeting agenda here. Often, members will serve in sub committees in addition to the council at large. In many cities and towns council members are reimbursed for travel, or they receive a salary for their service. Salaries on the low end are approximately $10,000 and the high end at $320,000. Some jurisdictions offer benefits like health care insurance and pensions. The staff supporting city/ town councils usually includes an attorney and at least one clerk and secretary. The president of the city council in larger jurisdictions may have their own Chief of Staff. Like their legislative counterparts, city/town councilors work hard, often spending their time away from the council chamber in the community meeting with or serving constituents.
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Sample CampaignA campaign for city council in Nebraska will look vastly different than a campaign in New York. The cost of campaigns is directly proportional to the size of the voting population: more people equals more money, smaller population equals more canvassing and person to person communication. Targeted communication, an essential component of a winning campaign, requires money for postage and other forms of paid media. Candidates don’t need millions – increasingly cities and towns are building public funding mechanisms for local campaigns – but every candidate will need the resources to communicate with the voters that can get them elected. Starting as early as 18 months out from an election will be super helpful in affording the time a candidate needs to build a winning campaign structure. Most local races are run and won with part time campaigns, and volunteer staff.
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Requirements to RunTypical requirements include: Be 18 years of age at the start of the term. Be a resident of the district that the individual is running to represent. Be a US citizen. Be free of felony convictions. Mentally capable to serve (not to have been determined mentally incapacitated by a court of law). Legal requirements to seek and serve on a city/town council vary by jurisdiction. Most places require that the candidate live in the district they seek to serve, either before the election or shortly after. Candidates must almost universally be registered to vote in the district. There are no particular education requirements.