Council coach asks Buffalo board to adopt governance implementation timeline; trustees ask for time to review
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Summary
Rodney Jordan of the Council of Great City Schools presented a draft implementation timeline and board operating procedures for adoption under a two-year coaching agreement; trustees raised timing, onboarding and policy‑supplanting concerns and asked for further review and legal/state vetting.
Rodney Jordan, a coach from the Council of Great City Schools, presented a draft implementation timeline and recommended board operating procedures as part of a two-year governance coaching agreement.
Jordan said the timeline is intended to help the board focus at least 50% of its time on student-outcome monitoring, to set interim goals and guardrails, and to build board capacities for onboarding new members. He described three baseline metrics the council will help the board monitor and suggested targets and quarterly self-evaluation milestones to be reached during the coaching term.
Jordan asked the board to place the timeline and draft operating procedures on an upcoming business meeting agenda for adoption, noting the document had been shared with leadership the previous day and that the council would continue monthly check-ins and supports.
Several trustees said they wanted more time to digest the draft before any adoption. Board member Beltman Cottman asked whether an orientation for incoming members was included; Jordan confirmed onboarding activities and a two-day governance workshop were planned in collaboration with district staff. Other members cautioned that operating procedures must not usurp legally required board policies and that any changes should be vetted with state-appointed reviewers such as BOCES and the district’s legal counsel.
At least one trustee asked that new board members be given the opportunity to weigh in rather than inheriting the timeline; others requested that the document be circulated earlier in future months to allow substantive review.
Jordan said the council’s intent is to build on existing board goals and guardrails and to align operating procedures with a student-outcomes focus; he invited written feedback through the board president and asked that comments be returned by the following Monday to allow placement on the business agenda. The board did not adopt the timeline at the work session.