Charter school board members’ readiness to serve and implications for training
| Published date | 08 April 2019 |
| Pages | 102-117 |
| Date | 08 April 2019 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JEA-05-2018-0099 |
| Author | Marytza Gawlik,Ann Allen |
| Subject Matter | Education,Administration & policy in education,School administration/policy,Educational administration,Leadership in education |
Charter school board members’
readiness to serve and
implications for training
Marytza Gawlik
Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Florida State University,
Tallahassee, Florida, USA, and
Ann Allen
College of Education and Human Ecology, Ohio State University,
Columbus, Ohio, USA
Abstract
Purpose –Analyzing data collected from the charter school board members and the superintendent in a
charter school district in a southeastern state about the quality and usefulnessof training, the purpose of this
paper is to provide an important foundation for understanding training and development for charter school
boards in the USA.
Design/methodology/approach –This study uses a qualitative case study approach to examine a charter
school district and the preparedness of charter school board members to serve in that district. The authors
sampled one charter school district in the southeast region of the USA and interviewed five charter school
board members and the superintendent.
Findings –The first theme is composition and responsibility of charter school board members, which
outlines the roles and responsibilities that charter school board members assume when they serve on this
charter district board. The second theme is preparedness to serve, which traces the readiness of charter school
board members to serve on a board. The final theme is training and documents related to the kind of training
charter school board members receive once they are appointed to the board.
Originality/value –This study provides a conceptual framework about the dimensions and standards
associated with preparedness to serve as a charter school board member and broadens the authors’
understanding of the roles and responsibilities of charter school boards, their preparedness to serve and the
training and development they receive.
Keywords Training, Governance, Charter school boards, Charter schools, US schools
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
In recent decades, school boards in the USA have been on the receiving end of criticism by
those who perceive them to be outdated and incapable of effectively leading school reforms
to address student achievement, especially in urban areas (Chubb and Moe, 2011;
Danzberger, 1992, 1994; Danzberger and Usdan, 1994; Ford and Ihrke, 2015; Ford and Ihrke,
2017; Kirst, 1994). Despite their long-standing presence, there have been few empirical
studies to inform the discussion of what role they should have and how prepared they
should be in order to address student achievement. In a time of increased accountability and
high expectations for educational reforms, the public school board’s role is evolving. While
the charge of the job is to provide oversight to public schools, the job description has been
vague and privy to broad interpretation in its 200-year existence (Frase et al., 2001).
As McAdams (2002) posits, the demand forpublic education reform would best be led by
school boardssince, he argues, that mandatesfor accountabilityare coupled with demands for
effective school governance. He asserts that school board members equipped with increased
knowledge and skills regarding roles and responsibilities will be best able to reform school
districts with increased knowledgeand skills. There is some consensus inthe field regarding
the need for capable board members (Chaddock, 2002; Coeyman, 2000). Coeyman (2000) and
Chaddock (2002) both indicate that some communities are so concerned with the ability of
Journal of Educational
Administration
Vol. 57 No. 2, 2019
pp. 102-117
© Emerald PublishingLimited
0957-8234
DOI 10.1108/JEA-05-2018-0099
Received 30 May 2018
Revised 8 August 2018
21 October 2018
22 November 2018
6 December 2018
14 December 2018
Accepted 14 December 2018
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/0957-8234.htm
102
JEA
57,2
board membersto be policy and reform leaders thatthese communities are appointing, rather
than electing board members, in the hope that appointments will render members already
possessing needed skills to improve public education and address school reforms.
Charter schools[1] are public schools that are granted more autonomy than public district
schools in exchange for meeting certain conditions outlined in a charter agreement. Charter
schools have become a significant part of the American urban education landscape. It is
important to note that public schools in the USA are governed according to individual state
laws, not federal laws. The US Constitution does not address education, but state
constitutions do. Therefore, charter school laws are state based and, as such, vary according
to each state’s charter school law.
Charter schools as public schools must adhere to the same open meetings laws that
public school districts do, but charter schools are designed to have a distinctive purpose and
increased autonomy to fulfill that purpose as set forth in their charters or authorizing
documents. Typically, each charter school has its own board, and board members are
appointed by a nominating committee according to their by-laws. Sometimes appointments
are relegated to people they know well. Usually, the charter school board is set up in a
similar fashion to a non-profit board with a board chair, vice-chair, secretary and treasurer.
But there are models that stray from this. We identified a charter school district board in the
southeastern part of the USA that oversees six schools (four elementary, one middle school
and one high school) and is part of a larger public school district.
Charter school boards make policy decisions, analyze and monitor budgets, approve
personnel decisions and decide numerous other matters brought before them. These
decisions impact local charter schools and may have an impact on districts across the state.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the preparedness of charter school board
members to serve in one charter school district and discuss implications for charter school
board training. We selected this charter school district in part because it has been in
existence since 2003 allowing for stability over time, and it is located in a state where charter
schools have experienced growth over the last decade. The state has enacted laws requiring
mandatory training of charter school board members while about half of the states do not
require any training for new or prospective school board members (Calvert, 2004;
Ficklen, 1985). Despite the available opportunity for charter school board members to
receive instruction, there are minimal requirements the training covers as charter school
board members attempt to fulfill their purpose of accountability and the charter. This study
provides an important foundation for understanding training and development for charter
school boards and may contribute to decisions about ongoing training for charter school
board members.
Overview of Sunshine Ranch[2]
Sunshine Ranch is a rural community at the edge of a large countywide school district.
The county school district enrolls nearly 100,000 students in 150 schools. As such, it is one
of the largest school districts in the country. The K-12 charter district that serves Sunshine
Ranch is a coordinated district system of charter schools including four elementary charter
schools, one middle charter school and one charter high school. The charter district enrolls
approximately 2,000 students. Prior to becoming charter schools, teachers and parents in
the schools voted on whether to convert their district schools to charter schools. Four of the
schools, the elementary schools and the high school, voted to be converted into the charter
system. The charter school district’s middle school was built as a start-up charter school.
The other two schools in the community, a district elementary and a middle school, voted
not to join the charter school system. All but two of the schools in Sunshine Ranch are
charter schools that belong to one charter system, so there is little competition among
schools in Sunshine Ranch.
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Charter school
board
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