Workshop examines board and superintendent roles
The voices of 120 urban school leaders rose in disbelief when Brian Perkins, formerly of the New Haven, Conn., school board, said his longest board meeting in seven years as president lasted one hour and 20 minutes.“We would start board meetings promptly at six, and shortly after seven, we were on our way out.”
How did he manage that?
The agenda of each board meeting was carefully crafted to keep the board on task, he said. And to make certain that the board didn’t get distracted in a lengthy discussion with community members who wanted to raise concerns with the board, Perkins made sure there were district administrators on hand to take care of matters.
“If you don’t have people who can make decisions and help your parents, you’re going to spend 20 minutes listening to a parent going on and on.”
“You have to have people who can make a decision and help your parents, or you’re going to spend 20 minutes listening to a parent going on and on,” he said.
This was just one thoughtful observation offered by Perkins, director of the Urban Education Leadership Program at Columbia University’s Teachers College, during a Saturday workshop on the roles of urban school boards and their superintendents.
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