Legal Clips, [May 2008]At the request of the state Board of Education, a coalition of business and education groups are putting together a task force that will take a broad look at how local school boards in Georgia operate. While the immediate backdrop for the panel is the accreditation crisis in suburban Clayton County, leaders of the new effort say it was under way before Clayton's problems emerged and that the incident isn't the only reason the task force is being assembled. “But the situation in Clayton has certainly drawn attention to the need for greater oversight and better governance of school boards across Georgia, many of which are also struggling to maintain accreditation," Ed Heyes, deputy managing partner of Deloitte & Touche LLP and chairman of the state chamber's education committee, said in an e-mail. The last major overhaul to school board governance in Georgia came in 1983, when the method for selecting members changed from appointments by grand juries to elections. Planning for the task force is in its early stages. Panel members aren't expected to be formally announced until the task force's first meeting, likely in early June. The state board asked the panel to finish its work, including any recommendations for legislation, within 90 days of being formed. But some areas of focus are already emerging, including ethical standards, qualifications for school board membership, and training. Those involved in the effort stressed that they believe an overwhelming majority of Georgia school boards are performing well. Jeannie M. "Sis" Henry, executive director of the Georgia School Boards Association, said almost all of the school boards in the state operate well and that the Clayton controversy has skewed the public perception of boards. But she said her group welcomes the new initiative. "If this task force can provide us with any suggestions on how to improve school boards, then we welcome that," she said.
Source: Jacksonville Times-Union, 5/8/08, By Brandon Larrabee