Why should voters care about school board elections?

By STEVE BRAWNER

School board races aren’t the highest profile ones in a particular election, but they are important. This year, all of the contested ones across Arkansas will occur in the March 3 primaries.

That’s a change from how it’s been previously, when school districts have had the option of holding their elections in either the party primaries or the November general election. Lawmakers removed that option during last year’s legislative session.

For many years before that, school board members were elected in September school elections. Voter turnouts then often were extremely low.

Why should voters care about school board elections? What do school board members do, and what are their powers and limitations?

First, I should disclose that, since 2008, I have published an ad-supported magazine in partnership with the Arkansas School Boards Association (ASBA).

School board members serve as the board of directors for local public schools, which in many cases are a town’s largest employer and the heart of the community. They set district policies and pass budgets. They work closely with superintendents on those matters, often following his or her lead. They employ and evaluate the superintendent and ultimately employ school staff, although they often follow the superintendent’s recommendation on that, too. ASBA in its training strongly discourages board members from involving themselves in the school district’s day-to-day business.

The positions are nonpartisan, though there have been legislative efforts to change that as well.

Being a school board member requires a significant time investment but offers no salary or any other financial benefits. Jeff Lisenbey, the Sheridan School Board president and the ASBA’s immediate past president, estimated he invests about 20 hours a month in his school board service counting the at-least-four-hour monthly meetings, chance encounters with townsfolk in the store that turn into school discussions, athletic contests he otherwise might not have attended, and other duties and responsibilities.

Furthermore, school board members are held to high standards when it comes to the state’s Freedom of Information Act. They must conduct all school business in a legally called public meeting. In fact, they’re not even supposed to talk with each other about impending school business at other times – including during a run-in at church or during their trainings. 

This past legislative session, state legislators voted to require all boards to allow for public comment during their meetings. Before board members can vote on an agenda item, they must let community members have their say.

Some of Arkansas’ highest-ranking elected officials were once school board members. Those include Sen. John Boozman, U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman, and Arkansas Speaker of the House Bryan Evans, R-Cabot. Sen. Breanne Davis, R-Russellville, the primary Senate sponsor of Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ 2023 LEARNS Act education law, previously served on the Russellville School Board. Rep. Paul Childress, R-Benton, is serving simultaneously in the Legislature and on the Benton School Board until his board term ends.

It’s been an eventful six years for school board members. While many meetings cover mundane subjects, they had to make some tough votes about masks, remote attendance, and other subjects during the COVID pandemic. However they voted, they were sure to anger many of their constituents (and neighbors). 

Then came the aforementioned LEARNS Act, which ushered in major changes to the state’s education system. Those included providing families money for private and homeschooling. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette recently reported that total public school enrollment declined 1.9% this year. The LEARNS Act also set a minimum teacher salary of $50,000, which required school boards and school districts to rework salary schedules. 

Another major change is that voters now have more information about how their school district – and, by extension, their school board – is doing. This year, for the first time, the Department of Education assigned overall school districts a letter grade after previously assigning grades only to individual schools.

Twenty-two districts and charter schools received an “A.” On the other end of the spectrum, 18 districts and charter schools received an “F.” Another 28 received a “D.”

Voters should probably re-elect the incumbent school board members at those “A” school districts. As for the D’s and F’s, some of those districts might – or might not – need a change in leadership.

That’s why we have elections. The next one is March 3.

Steve Brawner’s column is syndicated to 21 outlets in Arkansas. Email him at brawnersteve@mac.com.