Board runs workshop to refine goals; members prioritize finance, instruction, facilities and metrics

The Board of Education conducted a facilitated workshop to refine its board goals for the year, using five categories — finance/budget, instruction, facilities, culture/outreach and governance — and asking members to vote and annotate priorities. The session combined small-group rotation across flip charts and a plenary debrief to distill the board’s top priorities.

During the workshop board members prioritized: aligning budgets with student-achievement priorities and long-term multi-year planning; using data to drive instructional improvement and to close opportunity gaps; long-term capital planning and fiscal responsibility for facilities; and strengthening family/community engagement with consistent, accessible communications. Board members repeatedly called for measurable metrics and key performance indicators so the board can evaluate progress toward its goals.

Christine Gabbard distributed thought-starter materials adapted from national and state board association standards and asked members to select two items per category and suggest edits or additions. Jamie and Christian both stressed that goals should be actionable and measurable: "we all support everything that's on here, but is that a goal? Is that something that we're we can look at at the end of the year and say we furthered that, particular goal," Jamie said during the debrief.

Board members suggested adding operational deliverables such as a board self-evaluation, a retreat, and clearer operating standards as part of governance goals. The board asked staff to consolidate the workshop input and circulate a draft of refined goals and suggested metrics before the next meeting; a final vote on board goals was targeted for a subsequent meeting.

The exercise was framed by a recognition of role boundaries: several members emphasized that the board sets policy and allocates resources but does not run day-to-day school operations, so goals should reflect activities the board can influence or measure. The board will use the consolidated feedback to create specific, measurable goals and will discuss metrics and timelines at the next meeting.