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Illinois School Board Journal - ARCHIVES
May-June, 2003
ASK THE STAFF:
Board work includes few 'means' decisions
Gerald Glaub, IASB deputy executive director, communications/policy services, and Cathy Talbert, senior director, policy services, answer the question for this issue.
Question: Should a school board ever be involved in deciding how its ends will be accomplished?
Answer: As a general rule, no. Board involvement in developing "means" as opposed to "ends" injects the board into staff work.
However, here are some exceptions to the rule:
First, the board decides the means to accomplishing its own work. Only the board is responsible for determining board procedures and processes, such as the conduct of meetings, although most boards typically need the advice of the superintendent. This is "means" work, but it is not work that should be delegated.
Second, the board needs to become involved when the staff wishes to do something that exceeds the authority expressly delegated by the board. An example would be a large expenditure that is not included in the budget.
Ordinarily, programs designed to pursue board "ends" will be developed by the staff and brought to the board through the regular budget-making process. But opportunities to make progress don't always occur at the convenience of budget making. Sometimes, the superintendent will bring a proposal to the board for an undertaking that was not anticipated when the budget was constructed. At this point, it is appropriate - even essential - for the school board to decide whether the district can afford the undertaking and/or whether the benefits out-weigh the cost.
Third, the school board is ultimately accountable for the performance of the entire district, both board work and staff work. Consequently, the board needs to establish parameters for staff work, or "limits on staff authority." Such parameters should reflect state and federal laws, community values and ordinary prudence. Some parameters relate to a specific legal requirement or the need to minimize the district's potential legal liability in a specific area.
Examples of such parameters:
"The superintendent shall present to the school board, no later than the first regular meeting in August, a tentative budget with appropriate explanation. The budget will be based on multi-year projections of revenue and expense, and demonstrate a clear relationship to district ends."
"The superintendent or designee shall develop and implement a comprehensive safety and crisis plan incorporating both avoidance and management guidelines. Day-to-day operations will be consistent with the plan."
"No district employee or board member shall solicit or accept a gift that he or she has reason to believe is offered in an effort to influence his or her official position or employment."
Sometimes these parameters are called "executive limitations," or "limitations on staff authority." If carefully crafted, such parameters limit staff means, but do not dictate the means themselves.
Combined with the board's "ends" statements that describe what the district is expected to accomplish, these limitations on "means" complete the picture of what the board expects of the superintendent and staff.
In establishing parameters, the board is not doing staff work and is not implementing its policy. Rather, the board is simply establishing standards that it expects the superintendent and staff to meet.
Although these parameters reduce the range of options available to staff, it would be imprudent to grant authority without limits. In fact, the absence of such parameters can create uncertainty and discourage the staff from making decisions that need to be made. Parameters, therefore, are an essential element in the delegation of authority.