School Boards' Responsibilities to the Public

       A recent Education Week article discusses the difficulties that school boards are currently facing in taking advantage of technology and digital communication, while still maintaining sufficient transparency to the public. The problem is that, while state laws call for school boards to have open-meetings and open-records, it has become common for school board communication to happen digitally. There has been a vast grey area developing around the question of whether such digital communication violates laws that are designed to prevent secret communication. The counterpoint, however, is that new technologies are improving communication capabilities and the accessibility of information to the public. Digital communication can very well be seen as a tool that is enhancing government transparency and public engagement.

       I find the topic of this article particularly interesting because I recently attended a Baltimore City school board meeting. This article sheds light upon a concern that I gave much thought to after attending the meeting--that is, in what ways can the Baltimore City school board improve its engagement with the public and their concerns? It is obvious why citizens would want School Board business to be open and accessible to the public--the people want to be able to have a say and input in the happenings of their children's schools. This article speaks to this issue of School Boards being more open and better serving the community through engaging with them and their ideas.

       Throughout the Baltimore City meeting that I attended, I could not help but continue to think to myself that the meeting was not panning out as I had expected. I was expecting that this meeting would be the forum where actual meaningful dialogue would take place between the Board and the audience. I figured that during the portion of the meeting designated for public/general public comment, there would be parents, local organizations, student groups that would take the floor and express questions, concerns, or ideas that they had. In turn, I thought that the Board would respond accordingly and even allow for discussion about next steps. I realize that this could be a lengthy process, and perhaps I was expecting too much; but it just seems to me that a School Board meeting should allow for substantial, purposeful discussion between the Board and the public.

       Well, unfortunately, my expectations of the School Board meeting were not met. Most of the time that was designated for public input was given to organizations and groups, who came to the floor to say words of gratitude for the Board showing them support in recent initiatives. It was not until the end of the general comment portion that a concerned parent spoke up about his dissatisfaction with the BCPSS code of conduct, and a high school student complained about a BCPSS policy that affects high school student athletes. These two concerned citizens were only able to speak very briefly, and when they did speak, there was not much discussion to be had with the Board. Instead, a member of the Board responded very briefly and generically and then assured the concerned citizen that someone would be in touch with him to follow up on the matter. While I understand that there can only be but so much time dedicated to discussion with the public, I also feel that the BCPSS School Board could do more to ensure that it is truly engaging citizens and allowing the voice of the people to be heard and addressed. The Education Week article discusses issues with Boards using digital communication as a means of engaging the public. Well, I think that the Baltimore City board has communication issues to address as well, because at the end of the day, the community desires to truly be “in the know” and to have a means by which to play an active role in their children's school system. It is not good enough to just have a meeting to which the public is invited, but then they play no significant role in the proceedings and decision-making. Rather, the Board must truly hear and openly engage with Baltimore citizens.

To read the article, visit: http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2013/04/17/28openmeetings_ep.h32.html?tkn=WNUFUMfv%2Be0fluX0yVElgp5k9OffYS%2B6gCKY&cmp=clp-edweek