One of the most common refrains heard when people in rural communities talk about their public schools is, “We want local control.”
That’s certainly an understandable and legitimate point of view. Most would agree the people who make up a particular community have a better sense of what the needs are in its local schools. Taxpayers want influence on how their money gets spent.
Seats on the local school boards are important jobs, as well. Public schools, we are often told, are the heart and soul of small towns. From a practical standpoint, school districts usually operate with larger overall budgets than small towns or even rural counties. It’s vital to have dedicated, engaged people making the decisions.
But what happens when local folks don’t want the responsibility of local control? The election filing period for public school board positions in Arkansas recently closed, leaving at least three local districts with no candidates for some seats.
The school districts for Gentry, Decatur and Greenland will have no candidates running to fill school board seats in the annual September election.
So much for local control? Well, maybe not. But as much as we hear about local control and the resistance some folks have to state or federal government involvement in public schools, it seems there would be plenty of candidates to go around.
“We want more people interested in running for school board, getting involved and helping their schools,” Greenland Superintendent Larry Ben told the Northwest Arkansas-Democrat Gazette. “It just seems there are a lack of people willing to do that.”
If something controversial is going on in a school district at any given time, there’s usually no shortage of people seeking a seat on a school board. But in those situations, some candidates may only be concerned about one thing when the job of setting policy for the school district is much bigger than that. That’s why it’s important for voters to choose candidates based on the big picture, rather than just one point of contention.
To be clear, those open seats won’t stay that way. If no one files for election, then the person currently in that seat can choose to keep it for another term. If that doesn’t work, then the school board or the county quorum court will appoint someone to fill it.
But that’s not the cleanest solution. As Ben points out, that process ends up with someone who wasn’t chosen by the voters serving on the board. The whole point of making these elected positions is so that the voters get to call the shots.
Some might argue that people don’t seek such positions if they believe the school board is doing a good job and the district is performing well. But we’re not talking about uncontested races; we’re talking about races with no candidates.
It’s true that serving on a school board can be a difficult, thankless job. The time commitment is considerable, with monthly meetings and six to nine hours of training each year. That doesn’t include preparation time, special meetings, school events and, yes, those often less-than-pleasant interactions with patrons with a complaint or concern.
It is a job that requires great listening skills, unlimited patience, thick skin and a heart for service. And if you want unconditional love, buy a dog, as long as it’s not a taxpayer or a frustrated high school football coach.
And did we mention, no pay?
There may be lots of reasons not to run for a school board position. But the president of the Gentry school board, Coye Cripps, says there is a return on investment for people who care about their community and their local schools. “It can be challenging,” Cripps told the newspaper. “But it can be rewarding in the end.”
At the very least, it improves a community’s chance to have local control of what happens in their schools.
WHAT’S THE POINT?
It’s too bad more people aren’t interested in running for local school boards, because their work is vital to the health of
their communities.