The New York State School Boards Association creates new services and training to help its members
Three new services and trainings launched since the pandemic showcase how NYSSBA has evolved to meet its members where they are and where they are headed.
January 15, 2025
ATTENDEES AT A RECENT NYSSBA CONFERENCE.
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NEW YORK STATE SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION.
Public education is in a constant state of change. At the New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA)—which represents 678 school districts and 37 Boards of Cooperative Education Services (BOCES)—we are continually evolving to help our members meet the needs of their students and communities.
NYSSBA has launched three new services and trainings since the pandemic—our New Member Onboarding initiative, our Leadership in Education Event, and our Governance Leadership Program. They showcase how our association has evolved to meet our members where they are and where they are headed.
NEW MEMBER ONBOARDING
The New Member Onboarding initiative began in 2023 as half-hour, open-ended, virtual visits with newly elected school board members. Run by our member relations department, the program ensures that newly elected board members feel supported from their first day of service onward.
More importantly, engaging school board members early allows them to access informational products, attend training to keep current with legal and policy-related matters that impact school boards, and receive mandated and elective professional development on board governance matters.
Best of all, the program puts a name to a face for both new board members and NYSSBA staff. During these virtual meetings, both members and staff can ask questions about board service. Sometimes, simple questions such as “How is your board service going?” can help create realistic expectations for members in their first year.
In 2024, NYSSBA began to enhance its new member outreach efforts with the goal of increasing new member engagement. We worked with an external consultant to develop a new onboarding plan for newly elected school board members, then put in place an internal team to guide the plan’s implementation. The team includes representatives from several key departments involved in new member outreach, including member relations, marketing, and information technology.
As part of the plan, NYSSBA’s outreach will provide newly elected board members with a series of seasonal or calendar-based engagements that highlight various aspects of school board service, helping new members quickly acclimate to their role. As this new onboarding plan is implemented, the team will monitor goals, objectives, and key performance indicators for the initiative.
LEADERSHIP IN EDUCATION EVENT
A second key initiative is NYSSBA’s Leadership in Education Event (LEE). Started in 2022, LEE is a day-and-a-half professional development program for school board members and superintendents held during the summer. LEE programming highlights the most pressing K-12 challenges that leadership teams will face in the upcoming year. It focuses on providing attendees with up-to-date information, research, and best practices for managing these issues prior to the start of the school year.
Educational sessions at LEE are led by school board members and school district staff, academic researchers, and other education stakeholders. A multidepartmental content team that includes legal, leadership development, and member relations staff develops curriculum for the event. An opening panel discussion with high-ranking officials from the New York State Education Department leadership typically kicks off the first day.
This year’s lineup included sessions on supporting academic achievement for all students, addressing the challenges of declining enrollment, and cultivating the future-readiness of our students, among other topics.
In addition to timely content, the LLE provides networking opportunities for attendees. Networking allows school board members and superintendents to share information and discuss policies and practices that have been successful in their respective districts. The training is modeled on a legacy professional development program for new and veteran board members. This year’s event, in its third year, welcomed well over 300 attendees.
GOVERNANCE LEADERSHIP PROGRAM
NYSSBA’s newest professional development opportunity began in 2024 as a pilot program. The Governance Leadership Program is unique training for school board presidents and superintendents, held in cooperation with the New York State Council of School Superintendents.
LARS CLEMENSEN, NEW YORK STATE COUNCIL OF SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS, PRESIDENT, AND SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, HAMPTON BAYS UFSD; SANDRA RUFFO, NEW YORK STATE SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION, PRESIDENT; ROBERT SCHNEIDER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NEW YORK STATE SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION; AND CHARLES DEDRICK, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NEW YORK STATE COUNCIL OF SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS.
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NEW YORK STATE SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION.
The program grew out of a strategic planning discussion with the NYSSBA Board of Directors. One of the association’s strategic goals is to support a healthy relationship between the superintendent and the board of education. The board of directors believed that NYSSBA could make a positive difference in this area by bringing superintendents and board presidents together for a daylong session where they would get to know each other’s communication and leadership styles.
The premise behind the training is that effective school board governance depends, in large part, on a positive relationship and strong communication between the superintendent and the board president. The training uses everyday scenarios and discussions to address issues relevant to the working relationship of these two leadership positions.
NYSSBA’s pilot Governance Leadership Program was attended by a few dozen school board presidents and superintendents in upstate New York. The success of this program—as measured by attendance and engagement by participants at the pilot event—has paved the way for an expansion into other regions of the state in 2025, with the program eventually becoming a full statewide initiative in the future.
In addition to these three new initiatives, NYSSBA’s membership newspaper, On Board, includes popular columns on school law, communications, and board governance. The governance column, entitled “Becoming a Better Board,” deals with best practices for effective board governance. It has covered such topics as dealing with “rogue” board members, the board’s role in budget development, and moving from conflict to consensus.
All of us at NYSSBA have a strong member focus and a dedication to our service-driven mission, as we strive to fulfill our goals of building trust and helping to improve school board governance teams across New York state. In the end, the students are the winners.
Robert S. Schneider (bob.schneider@nyssba.org) is the executive director of the New York State School Boards Association.