|
|
BOARD OF EDUCATION
A board of education is the title of the board of directors of a local school district. This board of education helps determine educational policy in a small regional area, such as a city, state, or province. The board of education usually shares power with a larger institution, such as the government's department of education. The name of the board of education is also often used to refer to the school system under the board's control.
In 1951 there was a case, the Brown vs Board of Education case. A suit was filed against the Board of Education of the City of Topeka in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas. The Brown vs Board of Education case is undoubtedly the most famous of a group of U.S. Supreme Court cases which principally deal with the struggle of black Americans to recover the rights of citizenship expressly given to them by the Constitution of the United States.
The board of education is usually elected by residents of the school district but may also be appointed by mayors or other executives of jurisdictions such as cities or counties whose jurisdictions may be coextensive with that of the school district. There may also be circumstances where nonresident property owners whose property taxes can be affected by a levy enacted by the school board may have a right to vote in school board elections as well. The state board of education is generally appointed by the governor but is elected by popular vote in a few states.
The size and authority of the board of education varies widely. In some districts, the board of education has the authority to set and levy tax rates; in others the board of education may have only the authority to recommend such to a legislative body or executive. A board of education mostly has between five and fifteen members. In some districts, especially small rural ones, a board of education may approve the hiring and dismissal of every teacher; more typically they are responsible only for overall policies and procedures and leave the day-to-day operation of the district to a professional educator, who is generally referred to by the title of superintendent of schools or director of schools. In rural and suburban districts in particular, there are often discussions about the abilities and powers of individual board members and what rights that they have (if any) to observe and comment on individual schools or classes. A consensus has been reached in many districts in recent years that board members have only "collective" authority when meeting and acting as a board and should generally not be involved as individuals in attempting to run schools directly.
Particularly in rural areas, the board of education of a county-wide school district may be the area's largest employer and thus the board of education may be subject to political considerations that may be lessened or lacking in other circumstances. Compensation for board of education members varies from none at all in districts where members serve on a volunteer basis to jurisdictions where the position is considered to be a major part-time job and may pay thousands of dollars per annum. State Board of Education members in most states are reimbursed for their travel expenses in conjunction with meetings, although this also varies on a state-by-state basis.
State Board of Education
State Board of Education is the governing and policy.
www.state.tn.us
New York City Board of Education
Information on schools, projects, and budget.
www.nycenet.edu
 Students.net Homepage  Back to Student Education
|
|
