Royal Palm Beach council appoints Tanya Small to Education Advisory Board, backs principal survey to guide support

Royal Palm Beach — The Village Council on May 15 appointed Tanya R. Small as an alternate member of the Education Advisory Board for a term ending March 2026 and instructed staff to circulate a draft survey to the village council for comment before sending it to local school principals.

Council liaison to the Education Advisory Board recommended Small for the single alternate seat after interviewing two candidates; a motion to appoint Small passed unanimously. The appointment fills an alternate vacancy and will allow the board to draw on additional community input during its academic‑support work.

Separately, a council member presented a draft principal survey intended to solicit input from the six schools that serve Royal Palm Beach. The council directed that the draft be posted on a future council agenda and that council members submit suggested edits to the village manager for incorporation. Council members discussed timing and asked staff to place the item on the July 17 meeting agenda for further action; the village manager will circulate the draft to council members for comment before that meeting.

Council members said the survey is intended to gather principals' views on how the village can best support schools — for example, programming, volunteer support and coordination with districts — while avoiding commitments that would require significant village funding. Council members also suggested considering whether assistant principals should be invited to respond and cautioned against leading survey questions with examples that could bias responses.

The council also heard informal offers of support from a local youth‑council leader and agreed to explore mentorship and collaboration opportunities with Royal Palm Beach High School students involved in civic clubs.