About Us
The National School Boards Association (NSBA) is a federation of state associations and the U.S. territory of the Virgin Islands that represent locally elected school board officials serving approximately 51 million public school students regardless of their disability, ethnicity, socio-economic status or citizenship. Working with and through our state association members, NSBA advocates for equity and excellence in public education through school board leadership.
We believe that public education is a civil right necessary to the dignity and freedom of the American people and that each child deserves equitable access to an education that maximizes their individual potential.
In pursuit of these beliefs, NSBA and our members will continue to lead the national conversation about public education, advocate for public policies that ensure each student everywhere has access to an excellent public education where they live, create a better understanding of the importance of school boards and the benefits of local governance, and enhance the effectiveness of school boards.
NSBA and our members utilize our resources including the Center for Public Education (CPE), the Conference of State Association Legislative Staff (CSALS), Council of School Attorneys (COSA), Council of Urban Boards of Education (CUBE), Federal Relations Network (FRN), Friends of Public Education Network (FPE), National American Indian and Alaska Native Council of School Board Members (AIAN), National Black Council of School Board Members (NBC), National Hispanic Council of School Board Members (NHC), and the National School Boards Action Center (NSBAC) to fulfill our mission.
NSBA is a not-for-profit organization. The public policy agenda is determined by a Delegate Assembly made up of local school board members who represent their state associations of school boards. The Board of Directors translates this policy into action. Programs and services are administered by NSBA’s Executive Director & CEO, and by professional staff. NSBA is headquartered within the metropolitan Washington, D.C., area in Alexandria, Virginia.