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Trainer urges trustees to build relationships with legislators before session
Summary
Workshop guidance: board members should identify a positive district story, explain local needs, and make specific asks of legislators; reach out before the legislative session and use stories to highlight funding and mandate burdens.
Trainer Cheryl Weinsberg encouraged trustees to begin building ties with state legislators before the session begins: introduce yourself, bring a short positive story about the district, explain specific needs (for example, funding or relief from unfunded mandates), and make a clear, single ask. "Find a story, identify the need in that story, and pick a specific ask," she said.
Board members discussed statewide budget pressures, declining enrollment and the complexity of unfunded mandates, and were encouraged to attend legislators' local events or invite them to school board meetings. The presenter said boards' firsthand knowledge of district needs can be more persuasive than lobbyists in shaping lawmakers’ views.
