Why You Should Attend the Next School Board Meeting
Why You Should Attend the Next School Board Meeting
By Abdullah Khan
Feb. 17, 2022 School Board members doing the pledge of allegiance. Film still courtesy of Channel 85 Productions.
I went to my first school board meeting on Feb. 17, 2022. Before I went, I believed the school board meeting would be older people talking about school-related stuff. While it was part of what they did, it was so much more. For example, the Marshall principal gave a presentation explaining how the school is performing. They give time to parents or students to communicate their problems to the school board.
What was most surprising to me was that I learned stuff I never knew before like, how our school’s funding is being used. Talawanda has one of the highest dollar-to-student amounts in the area. Another thing that surprised me was Marshall’s report. They have approximately 350 students, 21 teachers, 11 intervention specialists, and 14 support staff members. The Marshall principal also showed adorable clips of the students at Marshall celebrating Bengals Spirit Week.
Based on my experience, I recommend other students and parents in the district watch and attend these meetings. The impact of the school board meetings is not currently realized. The fate of those making decisions during the coronavirus pandemic was discussed at these meetings. I genuinely believe that if you were to attend one of these meetings and voice out your concern, your concern would be heard, and you could impact the community. I saw a mother voice her concerns about separation caused by the mask being optional. I myself have seen people being harassed by their decision not to wear a mask.
In 1826, Massachusetts took the final step in evolving a distinct school board by enacting a law requiring each town to elect a separate school committee. This law was the official beginning of the school committee, or school board, operating as the governing body for the public schools, separate from the governing body of a city or town. In time, this form of educational organization became general practice in America.
The basic governance structure has stayed much the same since the turn of the century: a local, nonpartisan school board elected by the community’s citizens. The board serves three functions:
- Creating rules.
- Hearing charges of rule violation.
- Employing a superintendent and administering the day-to-day operations of the schools.
I want to bring awareness to the problem of not having enough students attending school board meetings.
School board meetings are held in the Talawanda High School Performing Arts Center. The recordings can also be viewed on the Talawanda Youtube Channel 85.
Upcoming Meeting Dates
April 21, 2022
May 19, 2022
June 16, 2022
July 7, 2022
August 11, 2022
September 15, 2022
October 20, 2022
November 17, 2022
December 15, 2022
