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Revised (Dec 15 2009)
Relationships with the community
How you deal with issues affects your reputation and your relationships. As a school trustee, it is critical that you build durable relationships with key individuals in your community. By doing this, you will build an informal network of people who are able to provide feedback and guidance on initiatives and issues. Over time, these relationships—built on honesty, responsiveness and ethical behavior—will foster a legacy of goodwill. They also reinforce the commitment of other community leaders, elected or otherwise, to stand by you
when their support is needed.
Often, board of education work and decisions are not well understood by the public. This is especially true when difficult decisions have to be made around budget planning, labour negotiations and controversial issues such as school closures. To offset stereotypes and misconceptions, boards need to actively involve the public on education issues in their communities.
Open board meetings, special events, school activities and ceremonial occasions provide the best opportunities for exposure for trustees. However, ongoing engagement in district activities is important to building relationships with the public and developing appreciation for the work that trustees do.
Working with local business associations is another way to establish good community relations. With the expansion of career and vocational education programs, many districts are seeking input from the business community on what skills students will need after graduating from high school. They’re also working on joint projects that train, educate and provide work experience for students.
Boards can seek public advice about fiscal and educational challenges in neighbourhood schools and communities by consulting with school planning councils and the district parent advisory council. Trustees can also gain insights on student issues through student leadership councils and student advisory ad hoc committees.
Members of the community often contact individual trustees with requests for assistance or information that requires follow-up. Be aware that a person who brings an issue to your attention likely considers it very important even though it may be low on your set of priorities. On the other hand, be careful not to treat an individual situation as symptomatic of a widespread issue. Be wary of adopting their cause or jumping in to solve the problem. This undermines the processes, upsets staff and compromises your neutrality if the issue comes before the board. As a general rule, forward the information to senior staff who can research and report back to all trustees.
When you are contacted, you can use your knowledge of district policy and how the system works to coach the complainant in using the processes effectively. You can give useful advice about whether the action they want (e.g., fire the teacher) is realistic and whether their approach (e.g., picket the principal’s office) will be counterproductive. You can help them focus on a remedy for the precise nature of the problem. You can be a coach, but not an advocate.
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TIPS FOR POSITIVE RELATIONSHIP-BUILDING:
- Treat all concerns seriously and respond promptly
- Never dismiss a concern as too simple or extreme. Almost every issue is more complex than it appears on the surface and every group deserves to be heard
- Invite your most vocal critics to participate in the decision-making process. This increases credibility and ensures all views are heard
- If the public has already expressed anger about the issue, hold pre-meetings with key people to prevent potential hijackings
- Address issues before they become controversies. Ask your network of contacts to alert you to brewing issues
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For more information about community engagement see Section 2, The Key Work, How the work is done, Community engagement, and Section 5 Reference materials, Community engagement.
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Relationships with other trustees
