[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
>
> I would really like to hear more about this Carver based model of governance
> that Audrey Johnson referred to in her post. Sounds very interesting.
>
> Jan Del Calzo
> Lynnhurst
To give you a little background, this January, the school board read a
book
by John Carver to the school board
entitled "Boards that Make a Difference." John Carver is a consultant
who has
developed a model for board leadership called the "Policy Governance
Model."
Basically, Carver's theory is this:
Most boards do not exercise Visionary Leadership for their
organizations.
1. For most boards, items of trivial scope or import receive
disproportionate attention compared with matters of greater scope or
importance.
2. For most boards, the "time horizon" is too short and the board seems
to be dealing mainly with the near term.
3. Boards consistently react to staff initiatives rather than acting
proactively. In fact, most boards' work is spent going over what staff
has already done. Reviewing does not constitute leadership.
4. There is a lack of clarity about board members' roles, and how board
should relate to staff and each other as policy decision-makers.
5. No structured method to link with stakeholders.
He suggests that most boards would benefit from moving toward a New
Model of Board Governance
Under a "Policy Governance" model, the board's job is to establish the
board's policymaking process as both preliminary and predominant:
� Ends to be achieved: what should the results of our organization be?
� Means to those ends: holding staff and the superintendent accountable
for results, but leaving them free to use their creativity to choose the
methods as long as they are effective, prudent and ethical.
� Defining the board-CEO relationship; and
� The process of governance; e.g., What is the board's job description?
What are the ground rules? What are legitimate board topics? How does
the board approach issues?
Catherine Shreves
Minneapolis School Board
