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Materials and Packets: Why they matter, how to assemble them, and ensure they're used

Are advance board packets really necessary? They seem like a lot of work.

Yes, they are necessary. In order to have strategic, policy-level discussions at your board meetings, members need to be informed about the items that will be discussed, read relevant materials, and come to board meetings prepared to take the required actions. This can only happen if board packets are sent out in advance.

Too much valuable board meeting time is often wasted sharing basic facts and figures. This can all happen in advance in a board packet, saving valuable board meeting time for discussing the strategic.

Who's responsible for assembling and distributing meeting packets?

It is the CEO's responsibility to assure that these packets are assembled and sent out in a timely way. BoardOnTrack is designed to streamline this process.

Agree on how far in advance materials should be available for trustees.

We recommend 72 hours in advance at a minimum for full board meetings.

What if people won't read materials in advance?

It’s interesting; charter schools are all about accountability. The whole premise of charter schools is that we are given a lot more freedom to operate in the manner we see fit, but with that freedom comes a great deal of accountability.

Why would you not hold your board members to the same level of accountability to which you hold the students and teachers at your school?

They might be volunteers, but for better or worse, the board members are on the hook to govern a multimillion-dollar public enterprise. They should be held accountable for doing their homework before every board meeting.

  • Discuss this as a group at a board meeting.

  • Vote to agree to all read the materials in advance.

  • Then, at subsequent meetings, if trustees ask questions about things that were already spelled out in the advanced material, don’t answer them. Say, “that was covered in the advanced materials, remember we all agreed to read it advance.”

  • If a trustee chronically does not read the advanced materials, then the board chair or chair of the governance committee should pull them aside and remind them that this is a requirement of board service.

Time is too precious to waste on repeating things that were spelled out in the advanced reading materials. If a trustee consistently can’t come prepared to board meetings, then you should consider removing them from the board.

If you have administor permissions, you can see when members have last logged in in the administration panel.

So if you posted the board meeting packet 5 days ago, and someone last logged in 3 weeks ago, and you are only sending materials out using BoardOnTrack, you can be certain this trustee has not read the materials in advance.

You may find it useful to show your trustees that administrative view so that there is transparency.

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