Starting from Scratch
Starting from Scratch
Guess I have to learn about School Boards now...
It has been an interest of mine to stay involved in our local community for the last several years. I enjoy being part of the process, working to find solutions to real world problems. I have been part of our HOA and MUD Boards for about 7 years, learning everything I can and implementing the processes used to run our community. This has enabled me to understand a great deal about how low-level government works and to better understand the everyday people who interact with these systems. There is much people do not understand about how HOAs or municipalities work, so much so that it can become quite emotional when these things intrude into your life. Having an ability to explain these things to upset people becomes an art form, and I can say my stick figure doodles are getting pretty detailed.
In my professional life I am a Solutions Architect, which is a fancy title for a high-level IT role for someone who designs and implements technical solutions (e.g., software and integration). With over 16 years working in many different areas of IT, I consider myself a jack-of-all-IT-trades person that can consume just about any technical challenge you put in front of me. I also take part in industry councils and speaking engagements to help explain how things work to decision makers who may or may not be technical themselves.
Back in my volunteer roles, the key area I find fascinatingly (boring) is how Texas Law is applied to homeowners and utility providers. If you’ve ever heard about ‘fiduciary duty’ I imagine your eyes roll into the back of your head just like mine. I have become more familiar with these things than I would like to. Like a teacher who just wants to educate and not worry about an angry parent making their life miserable, I just want to help my neighbors and keep things running smoothly for everyone without having to listen to neighbors bicker on Facebook about parking. Instead, I have to constantly consider the risks of our actions with law, liability, and of course the most concerning topic - algae growing in the community lake.
However, even with my familiarity with what a local Board does and how they operate, School Boards have been a black box to me. They have an interesting relationship with the District in that they "co-manage” along with the Superintendent, and there is a dynamic between the Board and the public that blends politics with performance (both theater and student achievement). How different are they from local Boards?
Even with meetings streaming publicly, and all information publicly available, I sense there are things behind the scenes that most of us do not understand as it relates to how School Boards work. I have many questions about how much time is actually spent preparing versus posturing, and which Board members stay actively engaged versus just showing up to meetings. I imagine School Boards are not unlike most other local Boards, in that they are filled with a variety of characters and personalities, all who have their own view of how things should work. Some are friendly, some are not.
What started my newfound interest for School Boards? My beautiful, loving, most wonderful person in my life - Denise - a woman who has worked as a teacher for over 13 years, is calling it quits. She is leaving the teaching profession for her mental health, which I completely support. The thing that makes me most upset is that she’s what we call in the corporate world a “high performer”. She always wanted to be a teacher since she was a kid. She went to school to become a teacher, earning both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees specific for education. She earned two separate Teacher of the Year awards from the same campus within three years, has been a team leader for most of her career, puts on PDs for District every summer, writes curriculum for District, does SciMathalon, UIL, field trips, and just does all the things without question. The education system isn’t just losing good teachers. It’s hemorrhaging its top talent.
This is not sustainable, and as someone with children, it really concerns me where we are headed within the next five years.
Therefore, I am starting from scratch to begin learning about School Boards, and specifically the Conroe ISD School Board. My plan is to read as much material on Boards as I can, talk with current and former School Board directors, and start volunteering time with the local school advocate groups to see how they work. I understand there are many people who write and speak about Boards already, and I should probably just consume as much of that as I can. The reality for me is that I need to write about what I am learning to better embed it into my brain. I'm sure many of you can relate.
Through my technical career I have found that unless you can successfully explain a complex subject in laymen terms to the non-technical people, then you are not knowledgeable enough on the topic. Therefore, my goal is to share information about Boards in a manner that most people can consume it. Whether anyone reads my posts here or not is not important for my growth, but hopefully someone will find this information useful.
Wish me luck!
P.S. Send me people to follow that you think will help me learn about School Boards!