Governing for Student Success

The World, Wisconsin, and the expectations of public education are changing. If school district leaders expect to be successful in this climate, they need to reconsider their leadership strategies. The traditional top-down leadership style that worked in the past is not effective in the current climate. Instead, leaders need to develop the same 21st century communication skills we now expect from students. The governance consultants at WASB are committed to developing board members’ capacity to lead their districts’ efforts to implement change that will lead to improved student achievement.

The key works of school boards

The Key Work of School Boards is to improve student achievement and increase community engagement to promote student achievement. The Key Work framework, developed by the National School Board Association in collaboration with the American Association of School Administrators, serves as the core curriculum for WASB board governance development.

Introducing Key Work Power Point Presentations

The WASB governance team is developing a series of presentations that offer a brief overview of the components of the Key Work framework. We are beginning with Collaboration and Community Engagement. Additional components will be posted in the coming weeks.

View these presentations to get an understanding of how the Key Work framework can help you improve board governance in your district.

View Key Works Power Point Presentations

Connecting Key Ideas to Key Works

We all know that public education is under pressure to change. Over the last few months a number of white papers focusing on school transformation have been published. WASB is featuring a series of events and publications that take a look at various aspects of vision and transformation. The Presidents/Leadership Conference was the first of these events. Look for more information in the upcoming issues of School News and hear more this fall at the Regional Meetings and Legislative Issues Conference. In January, the annual convention will include opportunities to further explore issues of vision and transformation.

If you were not able to attend the Presidents/Leadership Conference, or want to further explore the issues and ideas presented at the conference, you can use the materials listed below to learn more and engage in conversation with your board and community.

Critical Key Work Components in Visioning Work
While the Key Work framework was conceived as a system and all of the parts relate to each other in various ways, when talking about transformation, some of the components play a more important role in the early stages of the conversation. Use this worksheet to guide your transformation conversation.

President/Leadership Conference Recap
Look here for handouts from the conference.

Additional Resources
The resources listed here can help you think about changes in the world and how they are affecting public education. Use them to engage in further conversation about how these changes are affecting your district.

Back Noise Responses

The resources listed here can help you think about changes in the world and how they are affecting public education. Use them to engage in further conversation about how these changes are affecting your district.

At the last session at thetPresidents/Leadership Conference, board members had an opportunity to engage in conversation about all that they learned. A social networking tool called Back Noise was available for comments and questions. Here is a list of the qeustions that were posted to the site, including responses.

Key Works of School Boards Book

Overview of the Guidebook

Chapters that cover the elements of the framework include

3-4 page explanation of the element
Self-Assessment
Questions the School Board Should Ask Itself
Questions the School Board Should ask the Superintendent and Staff
Planning Team Considerations
Possible Agenda Items
Role of the Board and the Superintendent

Four “Profiles of Leadership” that illustrate how several districts have the concepts of The Key Work to achieve positive results for student achievement.

Pulling it all Together addresses the need for a strong information foundation that provides feedback data at all levels.

Purchase the guidebook and get guidance on eight essential, interrelated action areas needed to address to improve student achievement.

Governance blogs

You can follow the blogs of governance consultants Deb Gurke and Paul Hardt. Check for information on important issues related to school district leadership.

Leadership for Excellence in Education in Public Schools

School Performance Improvement

Wisconsin School District Success Stories

The Cashton Public School District has updated its mission to reflect the needs of 21st century learners. The initial stage of the process brought community members together in a Visioning Team to learn more about how our changing world is affecting education. Phase 2 invited even more citizens to talk about Cashton in a World Café activity where citizens considered important questions. This link takes you to Capzles a Web 2.0 tool, that allows you to create a visual timeline. The Elk Mound School District has worked to develop trust between and among board members, staff and community. Learn how these efforts have impacted districts.

Improving Board Performance

WASB provides consulting services for boards who want to improve governance. Many programs and services based on the latest research in school board leadership are available to meet our member's needs. For more information contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .