Whether you elected them or the superintendent appointed them, members of your own community make up the school board. Knowing where they live, where their children go to school (if they even have children) and what they do for a living, and taking into account your personal relationship with them will all affect how you communicate with them.
Most people working in corporations or the military have experienced the “chain of command.” In other words, you understand that to get results, or at least achieve an acceptable compromise, you need to go to your supervisor before you “go over their head” to their supervisor. In order to be effective communicators, parents need to understand and follow the chain of command between themselves and the school board: teacher or counselor first, then principal or assistant principal, assistant superintendent, superintendent, then school board.
Knowing your facts and sticking to them is the one of the best ways to maintain emotional control when communicating with school personnel, especially the school board. You don’t want to come across as a whiner, complainer or trouble maker. Instead you want to be heard and taken seriously. As a parent, its easy to let conversations become emotionally charged when your children’s safety and futures are involved. However, it takes much longer to come to an agreeable and fair conclusion when you let yourself get out of control.
If you have followed the chain of command all the way to the superintendent and have not achieved a fair and agreeable solution to your problem, then it’s time to approach the board. Be aware of how your next steps will affect your children. Board meeting minutes are public, unless the board is in what’s called a “closed session.” If you want to keep the issue private, be sure you communicate to the board and superintendent that’s what you want.
Write a letter outlining your concerns, the steps you have taken so far, the results, and what you consider to be a satisfactory conclusion. In your letter, ask for a private meeting with the board and superintendent. Send a separate copy of the letter to each board member at his official address or email, and one to the superintendent.
You should receive a response to your request within two to five business days. This is a typical amount of time required for responses to official requests, as evidenced by the policy of the Wake County Public School System in North Carolina and the Lake Stevens School District in Washington State, for example. The response should either be an invitation to speak to the board, or its final conclusion. If you get a response that you still don’t agree with, you can call the superintendent’s office and ask to be put on the agenda at the next school board’s public meeting. Since the board and superintendent would rather not have negative issues aired in public, you are likely to get your private meeting after all. Prepare as if you are going to a job interview. Your appearance and presentation of the facts will help you more than getting emotional and making demands.