Running for a school board seat is more than just attending bi-monthly meetings that average 2 – 2 ½ hours each to vote yes or no. At present, many members of our current DASD Board are, or could be spending an average of 10 – 12 hours (+/-) per month wearing their director’s hat. Those hours could consist of attending regular, executive or committee meetings as well as attending school activities to support the district administrators along with the students/staff in various ways and with an observant eye.
Though it may be a matter of opinion, some of us feel that a major and very important component of sitting on a school board would be your participation in committee assignments. Here at Derry, we have the following committees: Athletic, Building & Grounds, Finance, Personnel, Policy & Public Relations. Additionally, we have two board members sitting on boards at the JOC (Eastern Westmoreland County Technology Center), the WIU (Westmoreland Intermediate Unit), Derry Area School District Foundation and one on the Adams Memorial Library Board. Representatives and chairpersons for these committees are appointed by the school board president with meeting times varying between morning, afternoons, and evenings and with the lengths of these meetings/assignments depending on the content. Example: Personnel meetings may take longer when interviews are being conducted and May – August are the peak periods for those.
We are proud to have an overall active and engaged board of directors, at present, here at Derry. Over the last three years (with our newer board members being more active) we have pushed to make attendance at all meetings and committee assignments a priority! We believe that to make good decisions and vote issues appropriately we need all board members attending as much as possible to gather the details. The committee meetings prepare us for the discussions and votes of the regular meetings.
What we can no longer afford is complacency in any area and not showing for meetings, committee assignments, etc. is what breeds that.
Please review “000 Local Board Procedures” found in your school district policies to be sure that you know, understand, and can abide by the policies put into place for your district and that you can be a hands-on representative for your district. It is for the good of our students, our schools, and our communities.