My 1st School Board Meeting

Summary of Board Meeting

            I attended a School Board Meeting for Rockdale County School System on Thursday, May 18, 2017. The meeting was held at Heritage High School in the auditorium. The stage was set with a podium on the left side. In the middle of the stage there were four tables and each had a table cloth that said, “Rockdale County Public Schools”. There were 8 people at the table that included the Superintendent, the Chair, and the Board Members. There were four women, four men, and three people of color.

The meeting was called to order at 7:01pm by the chair. A fifth-grade student from Sims Elementary School performed an oratorical entitled “Rise Up”. After her performance, all in attendance were asked to stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance. After the Pledge, the Chair made a motion to alter to meeting agenda. One person seconded the motion and then all Board Members were asked if they all agreed. They all raised their hands in agreeance to the motion. The Chair recorded the motion; who seconded the motion and the time.

Next, students of Rockdale County Public Schools were awarded for various accomplishments. Some accomplishments were academic and others were extra-curricular. The students awarded included State Technology Fair, STAR Ensemble, Heritage Girls Soccer Team, Heritage Boys Soccer Team, Heritage High School Literary, Salem High School Track Team, Salem High School Literary Team, and many, many more. Students were awarded from the elementary level through the high school level. Students received awards for their accomplishments on the local, state, regional, national and international level. The youngest awarded was a third-grade student. She was awarded in the Young Authors category.

After the awards ceremonies, there was a brief recess and then the meeting was called back to order. The floor was then opened for visitors to address the Board. No one addressed the Board. Then, the meeting moved through a series of updates and motions. First, there was a Cabinet Update and Financial Report Update. During the Financial Report Update, the records were projected on the screen for everyone to view. Next, the Chair made a motion to approve the minutes from a previous meeting. The motion was moved. The Superintendent made motions to approve personnel and a tentative budget for the new school year. Those motions were moved as well. The next motion was made to offer insurance to Board Members. This motion caused a slight debate. The Chair was not for the offering of insurance. He made it known that when he started working for the Board he knew that insurance was not offered and that he was okay with it. Various members of the board offered their opinions as well, one saying that, “Times have changed…we must be proactive…”. The Board voted. The chair was the only against.

The meeting was then moved to Executive session. All other parties were excused and the meeting was adjourned. The meeting was adjourned at 8:15.

Reflection

I was very excited to attend a Board Meeting because I have never attended one before. When I walked into the auditorium I felt very intimidated. I sat in the last row on the right side in the last chair closest to the wall. I arrived around 6:50pm. I sat in my seat and looked around wondering who the people in the audience were. The auditorium was packed. Some people looked like students, parents and teachers. I decided to look on the website for more information about the meeting. I found a meeting agenda and discovered that “Certificates and Awards” were on the agenda, so that confirmed the students being present. I observed the board members. They were on the stage. Some were on computers, and some were walking on and off the stage talking to members of the crowd. I wondered if they knew the people they were talking to or if they were just making conversation.

Once the meeting started I felt more at ease. I was very impressed with the students’ awards. Some students were awarded in multiple categories. Their parents were proud and took pictures. I was very happy for the students and happy that the Board took time to award them. They called each students’ name and read their accomplishments for the category they were in. They received a certificate and shook the Superintendent’s and Chair’s hand before taking group pictures. The students seemed very proud and excited to be recognized for their hard work.

After the awards, the meeting took a recess. During the recess, the Board members walked around and greeted the students and their families. Some took more pictures. The crowd then thinned tremendously. There were only about four people, myself included, after the awards portion of the meeting. During the recess, a woman approached me and asked if I was there to address the Board. I explained that I was in leadership school and present to observe as one of my class assignments. She smiled and said, “Oh OKAY! I got you!”. Her response gave me the impression that they are used to students like myself attending meetings to gain experience in school leadership.

The Board members seemed very relaxed. They moved through the meeting quite quickly. I assumed that their relaxed presence was because they are used to this. The meeting was formal, but informal at the same time. I think that I expected their posture to be more rigid, but it was surprisingly relaxed which in turn made me feel more relaxed.

The one thing I took away from the meeting was accountability. I was intrigued by the fact that all propositions had to be motioned and agreed upon. Even something as simple as changing the meeting agenda had to be motioned. The Superintendent’s propositions had to be motioned. That told me that even in leadership, you can’t just make decisions off a whim. There are rules, laws and orders set in place. We all, including the Superintendent, are governed. We all must answer to someone. We all are subject to the laws of the land. Leadership is not about power. It’s about accountability and sound decision making and by being accountable we can hold others accountable. This was by far an awesome experience and I look forward to regularly attending school Board Meetings.