Service is, indeed, what it is all about for those individuals who aspire to school governance. Ninety-six percent of those parents, alumni, community leaders, and others who chair independent school boards do so because of their commitment to, and interest in, the schools they serve. Only a small number of board chairs (17 percent) are motivated to join a school board because of professional development, and fewer still (5 percent) are in it for the prestige of joining a board for the contacts they'll make. Interestingly, when heads are asked the same question, 99 percent agree that trustees serve because of their commitment to the school's mission; however, 31 percent of responding heads speculate that the prestige of joining a board also plays a role.
It's Not Just About Commitment
What does it take to be an effective trustee today? It starts with a strong desire to help, but it also takes a serious commitment of time. Around three in ten trustees (31 percent) spend at least four hours per week on board work, another 28 percent spend five to six hours each week, and another 30 percent spend 7-15 hours (that is, one to two hours per day) on work related to their school board. One in ten trustees spend even more than two hours per day on board-related matters. These findings suggest a high level of engagement, but they also suggest that, given the time it takes to serve effectively, trustees and heads of school should be clear about the time commitment when inviting others to serve.Trustees also tend to serve on independent school boards for a considerable amount of time. Almost six in ten trustees (58 percent) have served more than six years on their current school board.
For those who govern independent schools, service to other sectors of the nonprofit community is also important. Although only eight percent serve on other school boards, 65 percent serve on some other kind of nonprofit board.
Given the substantial time commitment, how satisfied are board chairs with their service? Fifty-one percent report that they are extremely satisfied with their governance experience, while an additional 39 percent report that they are very satisfied. The high level of satisfaction bodes well for schools being able to attract new trustees to service in the future. For those 10 percent who are less satisfied with their service, the experiences of others should be motivation enough to figure out ways to improve the board process in order to better enjoy the board process and effectively serve the school.
Role of School Head
| Role | Trustees | Heads |
| Instilling climate/values consistent with the school mission | Rank 1 — 2.5 | Rank 1 — 2.5 |
| Recruiting and hiring quality staff and faculty members | Rank 2 — 4.0 | Rank 2 — 4.2 |
| Developing and managing effective school policies | Rank 3 — 5.0 | Rank 6 — 5.5 |
| Long-range and strategic planning | Rank 4 — 5.1 | Rank 4 — 4.7 |
| Ensuring the school's financial well-being | Rank 5 — 5.5 | Rank 3 — 4.5 |
| Fund-raising | Rank 6 — 6.2 | Rank 7 — 6.1 |
| Working effectively with trustees | Rank 7 — 6.4 | Rank 5 — 5.1 |
| Developing and implementing curriculum | Rank 8 — 7.6 | Rank 10 — 8.7 |
| Establishing positive public relations | Rank 9 — 7.6 | Rank 8 — 6.8 |
| Managing conflict | Rank 10 — 8.8 | Rank 9 — 8.2 |
| Counseling personnel | Rank 11 — 9.3 | Rank 11 — 8.8 |
| Negotiating salaries and benefits | Rank 12 — 9.5 | Rank 12 — 9.2 |
| Enacting appropriate disciplinary measures | Rank 13 — 10.8 | Rank 13 — 11.0 |
| Teaching classes | Rank 14 — 12.8 | Rank 14 — 12.3 |
Which Hat Do You Wear?
Although trustees appear to be united on the reason they choose to serve, do they have the same views of their role? For responding board chairs, the most important roles of a school board are serving as an oversight body assuring the school's accountability and serving as a group supporting the chief executive. Ninety-eight percent rate the former as very important or important, while 99 percent rate the latter the same way. They also rate fund-raising (94 percent) and policy making (93 percent) as highly important, as well as the ability of a board to serve as a community ambassador for their school (82 percent). School heads agree with trustees on the key roles of the board, with 96 percent and 95 percent respectively responding that the top roles are assuring accountability of the organization and giving support to the head.Responding trustees note that it is very important (19 percent) or important (33 percent) to be a group representative of those whom they serve. These rates of response are worth noting in that, clearly, a large number of trustees understand that their main purpose is to ensure the well-being of the school, not to be a representative of the parent or alumni body. However, since a slight majority (52 percent) sees this as a key role, it is important to make clear, through a formal board orientation, which "hat" one wears (see Martha Johns article on page 18) when serving on a board. A great amount of board frustration arises when board members act as representatives of other parents or alumni. When all board members clearly understand that such a role is inappropriate in a board meeting, boards are more productive and harmonious.
The Well-Oiled Machine
Trustees come to the job of governing from many different backgrounds. Some bring skills from their own professional lives, some bring a sense of passion about the school, and still others bring extensive governance experience. Despite this diversity, an effective board needs to operate like a well-oiled machine, with all members working together for the good of the order. When assessing their own performance, how effectively do boards think they operate as a unit? Responding board chairs rate their boards as doing extremely well or very well in terms of providing effective fiscal oversight (91 percent), selecting and supporting the head of school (90 percent), and determining the school's mission and purpose (90 percent). The board is also seen as performing extremely or very well in terms of maintaining board structures and operations (80 percent), strategic planning (78 percent), and understanding the relationship between the staff and the board (75 percent).
| Rated issue as being one of the top five issues facing their school | Trustees | Heads of Schools |
| Recruiting, retaining and compensating quality faculty | 73% | 74% |
| Renovating/enhancing school facilities | 54% | 45% |
| Developing a sound five-year financial plan | 52% | 46% |
| Marketing/branding the school | 52% | 52% |
| Expanding parent and alumni giving/support | 52% | 44% |
| Creating a 21st-century program and curriculum | 44% | 45% |
| Increasing availability of financial aid | 44% | 41% |
| Identifying sources of non-tuition revenue | 42% | 36% |
| Creating a diverse/inclusive school community | 43% | 42% |
| Communicating with internal and external audiences | 33% | 42% |
| Managing and expanding use of technology | 19% | 17% |
| Improving parent/school relationships | 19% | 15% |
However, it appears that, for responding trustees, school boards could use some improvement in selecting and orienting new members, enhancing the school's public image, and approving and monitoring the school's programs and policies. Only 54 percent of responding trustees think that they do well in the area of monitoring school programs and services and 50 percent think the same in terms of their role in enhancing the school's public image. The lowest marks (48 percent) are given for selecting and orienting new board members.
School heads should consider what kind of resources they can make available to boards to help them in these key areas. One such resource is the organization BoardSource — a nonprofit organization helping boards of other nonprofits. To learn more about its resources in the area of board orientation, go to www.boardsource.org.
Interestingly, school heads are almost in complete agreement with board chairs as to what roles they perform the "most" well and those they perform the "least" well. Eight-seven percent of heads report that they think the board performs extremely or very well in providing fiscal oversight, 85 percent in determining the school's mission and purpose, and 82 percent in supporting the head of school. They give the board the lowest marks in approving and monitoring the schools' program and services (60 percent), enhancing the school's public image (58 percent), and selecting and orienting new board members (48 percent).
Staff vs. Board Roles
One of the age-old discussions among trustees and school administratrs focuses on how their roles differ. Some see this as very clear cut, while for others the lines are a little more blurred. However, they see their various roles, board chairs and trustees are in close agreement when asked to rate the importance of various duties usually carried out by a school head. When asked to rate 14 functions, with "1" being the most important and "14" being the least important, trustees and heads agree that instilling climate/values consistent with the school mission and recruiting and hiring quality staff and faculty members are the most important. They also agree that counseling personnel, negotiating salaries and benefits, enacting appropriate disciplinary measures, and teaching classes are the least important. Although there are subtle differences in how heads and trustees rate the importance of other roles, these differences are not significant.
The Road Ahead
Leading a school in the ever-changing 21st-century landscape is a challenge for both school boards and key school administrators. NAIS wanted to get a sense of the greatest challenges and how closely aligned school heads and board chairs are on their views. Therefore, we asked survey takers to comment on what they see as the most challenging issues confronting them in these complex times by choosing, from a list of 12, those top five issues facing their schools. The good news is that their views are in close alignment. Seventy-three percent of trustees and 74 percent of heads identify recruiting, retaining, and compensating faculty as the top issue. The fact that heads and trustees agree on the key issues means that, overall, heads and trustees are on the same path in working towards the sustainability of the school. But also, with a reduction in the number of people entering the workforce in coming years, combined with a new generation of workers who will demand greater flexibility, NAIS sees workforce management issues as some of the most pressing for schools in the next five years. Clearly heads and trustees also see this as a front-and-center issue.For trustees, four other issues take top billing — 54 percent see renovating and enhancing school facilities as a key concern, while 52 percent report developing a sound five-year financial plan, marketing/branding the school, and expanding parent and alumni giving support as top issues. Heads are in fairly close agreement. Fifty-two percent see marketing/branding the school as the second-most pressing issue, with developing a sound five-year financial plan, renovating/enhancing school facilities, creating a 21st-century curriculum and program, and expanding parent and alumni giving support close behind with 46 percent, 45 percent, 45 percent, and 44 percent of heads respectively identifying these as key concerns. Interestingly, with all of the media stories about hard-to-manage parents, only 19 percent of trustees and 15 percent of heads identify this as a top issue.
