Educators: Having children in school not a prerequisite for school board service

Whether a school board member has children in the local schools isn’t a prerequisite to run for a seat on a local school board and shouldn’t make a difference since the board member is there to serve all children, say school officials and board members.

The annual election season for board members around the state is underway with election day set for Sept. 15. Prospective board members may file as candidates between June 30 and July 7, by getting 20 signatures of qualified voters on a petition. Petitions are now available at the county clerk’s office or at the school district administration offices. Candidates may begin circulating their petitions on June 7.

“That’s so subjective,” said Tony Prothro, executive director of he Arkansas School Boards Association. “I have worked with some really good school board members with kids and I’ve worked with some really good board members with no kids in the district. And, I’ve seen the adverse of that.”

Prothro said a good school board member is up to the individual. Prothro suggests a connection with the local schools, such as children or grandchildren, is good to provide “student-focused leadership” which is what school board service is all about.

State law doesn’t mention children as a qualification for a school board candidate, only that a candidate be a qualified voter and lives in the district or zone they will represent. The law also specifies a certain level of training for school board members. The school boards association provides that training. The association also has a 16-point Code of Ethics for school board members, which includes that board actions should focus on policymaking, goal setting, planning and evaluation and that decisions must be made as a whole with no personal promise and no private action that may compromise the board.

‘WHAT IS GOOD FOR THE KIDS’
Richard Abernathy, a former superintendent and now the executive director of the Arkansas Association of Educational Administrators, said he was never bothered by whether board members had children in the school.

“I was more concerned with providing good quality education for all kids,” Abernathy said. “My concern was to look at the issue or the data to make good decisions based on what is good for the kids.”

None of the Fort Smith School Board members have children in the district but Superintendent Benny Gooden doesn’t see that as a detriment to student-focused leadership. All of the board members at one time had children in the district, he said.

More importantly, Gooden said, the board members have served for several years and have become better board members, the longer they serve as they become more familiar with the language, laws and funding of education.

Fayetteville School Board member Justin Eichmann agreed, noting he has spent his first term on that board learning the ropes.

“I put in so much work to learn what I was doing, even the language, and how it all interacts,” said Eichmann, who plans to seek re-election to a second five year term on the Fayetteville board this year. He has two children in Fayetteville schools.

“My son was a motivation but not the entire reason for running the first time,” Eichmann said. “I come from a family of educators and I am a graduate of Fayetteville High School. I wanted to be involved in service. That’s important.”

“My decisions are not based on my children. I make a conscious effort not to. On the board, I represent the entire district,” Eichmann continued.

Travis Riggs, president of the Bentonville School Board, was first elected to the board 12 years ago when he had three children in Bentonville schools. That number has changed to zero since the third of his three children graduated in May.

Riggs said board service take a lot of time, estimating he spends 400 hours a year on board business, attending meetings, listening to constituents and researching issues.

“It’s a thankless job,” he said, for which there is not compensation.

STRUGGLE TO BE OBJECTIVE
A candidate for the Fayetteville School Board has a different view after serving a single term on the Benton School Board several years ago. Phil Jones is seeking the Zone 2 seat held by Bryn Bagwell, who is not running for re-election.

“I know from experience when a board member has a child in a district school, even the most disciplined board member has a very difficult time remaining objective and dispassionate when their child or a friend is involved in a school issue,” Jones said, who has two grown daughters.

In some cases, a child may consider himself to have a “get out of jail free” card if he has a parent on the school board or conversely, teachers and administrators may be hesitant to punish the child as needed, because they fear a vindictive board member, Jones said.

Riggs said five fellow board members in Bentonville do have children in Rogers schools. In Rogers, four of seven board members have children and In Springdale, five of the seven board members have school-age children, spokesmen in those districts said. Fayetteville also has five board members out of the seven with children in the schools. The other two Fayetteville board members were elected when their children were in school.