Board holds State-required trustee continuing education on communication, stakeholder engagement

The Moxie and G Bennett School District Board of Trustees convened a board workshop for trustee continuing education required by the State Board of Education; the record shows all seven trustees were present.

Trainer, training facilitator, led the multi-hour session and asked trustees to open and review LACES profiles, use highlighting tools and practice sharing links so trustees could adapt their communication styles to different personality cues. “The tool is about understanding each other,” the trainer said, explaining that the framework helps leaders recognize the “story” playing in someone’s head and adjust to reduce anxiety.

The trainer described practical exercises in which participants examined descriptors for low- and high-stress cues and practiced scanning for communication preferences. She said it took about six months of attending meetings and observing before she could point to visible progress in interactions; she urged trustees to establish teams and measurement systems so campus goals can be tracked and reported over time.

On messaging, the trainer advised a strategy of “under promise, over deliver” and urged unified, factual communications from the office of the superintendent and building principals so the community hears consistent information. She emphasized tailoring messages rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach: trustees should vary phrasing for different combinations of head/heart and energetic/caring preferences.

The session included brief guidance on school fiscal management: the trainer provided a short structure for notes trustees can take at board meetings to monitor goals, measures and evidence. She recommended keeping goals short and simple to enable monitoring and suggested semi-annual stakeholder reviews as a way to increase leader presence and accountability while acknowledging some staff may view increased visibility as threatening.

There were no formal motions or votes recorded during the workshop. Trustees and the trainer exchanged brief technical and logistical comments as the session proceeded, and the trainer closed by framing leadership work in values terms: “We are all created for purpose,” she said.

The workshop was presented as training and discussion only; no policy changes, contracts or budgetary actions were proposed or approved during the session.