The world of this board seemed so natural to everyone involved. They spoke candidly when it was their turn and every board member expressed an opinion on one matter or another. They all took each other's decisions into consideration. However, there really wasn't much debate until later in the evening. The earlier discussions had a few board members sharing their ideas. Then, the board member in charge would say "that's a good viewpoint. I agree." There were no arguments, no conflicting points or no "I don't think that will work." Perhaps this group of people have been working together for a significant amount of time that their ideals have begun to mesh. I have never been able to make decisions this quickly. Usually, after a discussion, I weigh all the opinions and evidence in order to form a new opinion or revise my original idea. The board moved so rapidly through these items that it was hard to decipher if they were considered important or not.
There was even a two minute discussion about whether or not the state of Indiana would be able to fund full day Kindergarten next year. The president of the board explained that she would hate to see this happen. Then the conversation ended. There was no "should we talk to our legislature about this?" or "should we as a board consider pooling money from our resources or raising money to support full day Kindergarten?" Instead, the board shared their opinions and moved on to the next subject.
To make matters worse. The next subject of conversation was about spending $500,000 to replace all the windows at one of the local high schools. There was definitely some debate about this issue. Three board members explained that $500,000 was way too much money to simply spend on windows, especially when Kindergarten might be taking a financial hit in the next year. Other's explained that it would have to be done at some point anyway because the windows are currently letting in cold air, which increases heating costs within the school.
Overall, my experience at this board meeting can only be described as culture shock. The meeting was extremely formal. Board members sat around a desk, each displaying a nice black laptop right in front of their faces. The entire meeting they were writing and reading to each other. Their were microphones set up, which was good because I don't think they would have been able to hear each other without the microphones; they were all so soft-spoken. Each member also had a specific position and duty which was clearly met. The secretary seemed to be taking the most extensive notes. The vice president always gave the first motion. The secretary would remind the president when she would forget a formality such as a motion by the vice president. They all had their duties and followed them rigidly. I am not used to this type of meeting. I am used to a committee coming together over coffee and having a free discussion about what should be done. There might be shouting, talking out of turn and not a ton of note taking.
After watching this board meeting I see both positives and negatives to how this effects education. This process seems to prevent actions from being decided quickly. This can be good and bad. If a scenario is presented to the board that would effect whether or not a school is shut down and the decision is not made quickly enough, the school would be shut down. However, the good thing about how this system works is it allows plenty of time for board members to think individually and then to present their opinions to each other in a small debate format. If the board is not ready to make a final decision, it is motioned to bring up the issue at the next board meeting and is saved for a later date. Thus, taking time allows the board to make a more informed decision.
I see that as a teacher I will have to work with these board members. I may not be able to expect quick results if I run an idea by the board. In fact, I may have to wait several weeks or months before a decision is made. However, I know this is simply because the board is careful in making decisions. They want to do what is best while at the same time being economically and financially sound. They have tough decisions to make and I would rather they take their time to make a well thought-out decision rather then quickly making one they did not consider thoroughly. There are many challenges to being a board. They have obligations to the state, they have limited funds and they are trying to do what is best for many schools, not just one.
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