I have personally experienced what disastrous results can happen when the Board/Head relationship is destroyed. I’ve also personally experienced what stupendous progress can occur when their focus is united. So, how does it come apart and how we do our best to keep it stupendous?
Open Communication
Frequently, Boards tell their Heads to minimize surprises with open communication. That’s great advice, but this is a two-way street. A wise consultant once told a Board I was serving with to do away with any meetings that didn’t include the Head of School. He pointed out that these Executive Meetings were undermining the relationship between the school’s leadership. The Board declined and we, not surprisingly, parted ways the next year. An openness of communication at the highest level builds unity and focus. When either side decides to tear the communication bridge down, the path to disaster is formed.
Clear Strategic Focus
Strategic plans need to be clear, current and precise. They should be living documents embraced equally by the Board and Head. They are each entity’s scorecard. Additionally, the three foremost strategic objectives for the year need to be agreed upon by both the Board and Head. If there is a clear focus for leadership, working together toward these common goals, the school’s community will feel a unity from the top that is reassuring and promising. If, on the other hand, the Head is working on objectives that the Board doesn’t deem crucial, clear discord will abound.
Clear Distinction of Roles
Heads should not set the school’s mission, vision or values. Heads should execute toward agreed upon goals. Board’s should not make operational decisions. They should work through their one employee, the Head. When either of these boundaries are crossed, chaos will follow. Heads should communicate through the Chair of the Board. Boards should communicate through the Head. If these rules are thoroughly followed, potential confusion will be prevented. It’s when Boards begin directing school leaders other than the Head, that doubt is brought into a school’s Leadership Team. Likewise, when a Head finds a friendly ear other than the Chair, suspicion is sure to follow.
A Final Note
Schools are more fragile than you may think. They might be multi-million dollar businesses, but they should, at their heart, be loving, caring learning centers. They are staffed by educators, not business people. They are child-focused and should be built on a bedrock of trust and thoughtfulness. We would be well-served to remember that the behavior we model will be an excellent example for the children we serve.
