We’re facing tough times in community colleges these days and finding ourselves getting political at the state level to salvage our programs. But there are other ways to get political too. Here are some reflections on one Chief Student Services Officer’s experiences in local politics on behalf of public schools.
Getting started
A few years ago, my younger child got his driver’s license, and demands on my time changed dramatically. After two decades of balancing tight family schedules with a demanding professional career, I was free to look around for other interests and commitments. Like most of you, I am used to a full calendar of meetings and deadlines and get a little bored with too much free time. As if the walls had ears, an old friend called and asked if I would consider serving on a community committee to assess the needs for facilities modernization in our local school district. One thing, of course, led to another, and I not only chaired that committee, but also co-chaired the bond campaign that resulted from our facilities assessment. I met many new people in my community and thoroughly enjoyed both the service aspects of the involvement and the political aspects. A few months after the successful bond campaign, I was approached to consider running for the school board at the next election.
Making the decision to run
Making the commitment to run for office was not an easy decision to make. The position is highly visible, and the commitment is at least four years of intense service. What contributions could I make? With all my years in administration, did I know too much to avoid micro-managing? What would it feel like to drive down the streets in my town and see my name on yard signs? What if I lost? Without repeated encouragement, I probably would have decided against running. And like getting on a roller coaster, once you commit, there’s no graceful way to get out in the middle of the ride. Making the decision to run turned out to be the hardest part. Because I am an extrovert, I actually enjoyed the campaign and the opportunity to reflect on what is important in our town’s schools and where we could do better. The speech-making and public visibility turned out to be mostly pleasant, and when the votes were counted, I had a new job.
How does the role differ from administration?
I now have about 15 months of experience on the school board, and things are making more sense. The biggest adjustment has been membership in a team of decision-makers that has to deliberate and take action in a very public setting. As vice presidents, we are accustomed to participating in collaborative decision-making, but we do it in relative privacy with interested parties where the discussion can be free-wheeling and explore lots of ideas. We also have a boss who makes the final decision when there is disagreement. As a board member, consideration of issues is more subtle and indirect because it is all happening in a public forum and no one board member has authority over the others. You judge timing and persuasion differently because you’re sizing up the feelings and opinions of your fellow board members. The Brown Act severely limits the ability of board members to discuss issues outside of open session, so you are often forced to do this with a room full of observers, including the reporter from the local newspaper. While understanding the spirit of the law, I believe it unfortunately stifles open communication among board members and, as a result, ends up shifting power to administrators.
A related difference is the awareness of community sensitivity to issues in the public schools. Parents are, of course, much more involved in their children’s lives through high school than they are once they reach college age. Going to the grocery store takes longer because people let you know their opinions on everything from the latest coaching controversy to standardized test scores. The end result is that sometimes the practical decision from an administrative point of view has no chance of success from a political community perspective. As community college administrators, we rarely have that level of interaction with the community on a specific issue. However, our board members are sensitive to community ill-will to a much greater degree than we are as administrators.
The other major difference between board service and administrative service is that boards advise and administrators implement. As administrators, we get to largely control the execution of a project, making sure it covers the components we think are important. As a board member, you give general direction, then have to let go of the details and trust your superintendent and staff to implement the idea effectively. While this sounds obvious, for someone with lengthy administrative experience it is difficult and frustrating.
What I have learned about the political process
I have learned several things about the political process that will help me be more effective in my term of office. First, while you campaign as one candidate, you govern as a member of a team. As in administration, compromise and cooperation are much more successful than confrontation and conflict. As soon as you move quickly or strongly into a new area, you can feel the other board members resist until they are ready to consider the merits of an idea or position. It is a much more subtle and cautious process than when you are the line administrator of a team.
Second, a board can actively support only a limited number of projects or initiatives at one time. Those project managers who speak up and present their need are likely to get the most support. Small, focused projects are easier to understand and fund than larger, more complex improvements. This means that some of the more substantive issues, like overall student learning, are much more difficult to address. Like our legislators in Sacramento, you can end up funding a small project that nibbles around the edges of a problem rather than making foundational changes because there’s not enough money and too much resistance.
Finally, I have a new appreciation for the amount of time the political process takes. In the campaign, we all promised to listen to constituents. Unfortunately, constituents rarely agree with each other, and can do so at great length. Twice a week, a large packet is delivered to my home with the word “confidential” stamped all over it. Most of the contents are not confidential, but dull. The packet has to be read anyway, or I’ll ask some dumb question that was addressed in the materials. The board meets twice a month for about 3 hours each meeting. But then we have sub-committees and public ceremonies and retirements and graduations. I now spend more awake time with my fellow board members than with my husband. I asked a school board member why she didn’t run for a second term and she replied that she didn’t see how people could maintain that pace for more than four years.
Having said all that, would I do it again? Yes, I would. I would do it again because the opportunity to contribute to my community at this level is a satisfying and demanding experience. I have learned a great deal about our schools and the roles of a large number of both formal and informal decision-makers in my community. It has broadened my perspective far beyond my usual community college point of view to include city politics and the concerns of families. And it has given me a very different feeling for the roles of our own community college board members.
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