ADVOCACYADVOCACY

Presented by:

Randall Bennett, Lee Harrell and Lindsay Campbell

School Board Academy

The Art of Community Leadership

Presented by:

Announcements

• Please turn off cell phone ringers

• Please offer suggestions on evaluations

• Please don’t talk when someone has the floor

• Stop discussions when time is called

• Board members are required to complete a full day

• Complete a per diem form before leaving

What is Advocacy

The Art of Community Leadership

Building Public

Support for Public Schools

Board’s Role in Advocacy

•Must advocate for the entire community - not just their district

• Advocacy should be a board goal with appropriate policies for board actions

• Board members must capitalize on their potential influence as public officials

Give Your Board an Advocacy

Grade

School Board Effectiveness

School boards “are unique because education is not just a line item in the budget. It is the only item. We are unique in that

we are single-minded and single-focused…we are the voice of public education.”

Pgs. 2-3

The Board’s Community Leadership Role

• Influencing State and Federal Legislatures

• Developing Commission/City Council Support

• Developing Relationships with Other Boards

• Working with the Media to Build Support

• Generating Parental and Public Support

• Turning Employees into Advocates

The Core of Advocacy

1. Define student achievement - involve community

2. Insist that your schools do whatever they do well

3. Plan/work toward success for each student

4. Remind/recognize student success

5. Focus board discussion on student success

6. Celebrate success

7. Strive for continuous improvement

Do Your Job Well

Influencing the State Legislature

and Congress

Influencing the State Legislature

and Congress

The Legislative Process

House of Representatives

- 99 Members

- 64 Republicans

- 34 Democrats

- 1 Independent (CCR)

The Legislative Process

Senate

- 33 Members

- 20 Republicans

- 13 Democrats

The Legislative ProcessHouse

Committees- Agriculture

- Calendar and Rules- Children & Family Affairs

- Commerce - Conservation & Environment- Consumer & Employee Affairs

- Education- Finance, Ways & Means- Government Operations

- Health & Human Resources- Judiciary

- State & Local Government- Transportation

Senate Committees

- Commerce, Labor & Agriculture

- Education

- Environment, Conservation & Tourism

- Finance, Ways and Means

- General Welfare, Health & Human Resources

- Government Operations

- Judiciary

- State & Local Government

- Transportation

The Legislative Process

1. Legislators are contacted regarding an issue.

2. Identical bills must be filed in both the House and Senate.

3. The bill will be referred to the appropriate committee (at the direction of the respective Speaker and Chief Clerk).

4. The bill will be scheduled for discussion on a calendar ofthe committee or subcommittee.

5.The bill passes or fails by a vote of the committee orsubcommittee.

6.Following this vote and depending where it is in the process, it is referred to another committee or it is

referred to the full House or Senate Floor.

The Legislative Process

7. It is placed on a full House or Senate Floor Calendar.

8.It must pass by a “Constitutional Majority” in order to pastthese bodies. - i.e. 50 of 99 and 17 of 33.

9. If a bill passes the Senate first, it will be referred to the House. The House will “Substitute” the Senate Bill for the House Bill and “Conform” to its language.

10. The House will then vote on the measure. If it passes

in the same form as the Senate passed it, the bill will go to the

Governor for approval. If different, the two chambers must

come to an agreement on the differences.

The Legislative Process

Bill Goes to the Governor

3 Options:

a.Sign it – law becomes effective according to the language

b.Let it sit on the desk for 10 days – becomes effective without his/her signature

c.Veto it – in Tennessee, simple majority of each house overrides veto

Influencing the State Legislatures and Congress

How Does Your Board Rate?

How Does Your Board Rate?Pg. 16

Influencing the State Legislators

What I Do

1.Review Committee Calendars

2.Schedule Meetings w/ Committee Members

3.Count Votes

4.Contact Board Members

5.Testify in Committee

Influencing the State Legislators

Why I Need You

1.18 Members on House Education9 Members on Senate Education

2.Multiple bills in multiple committees

3.Legislators want specific info regarding their local boards

4.Other groups, e.g. TCCA & TEA, are extremely vocal and active

Influencing the State Legislators

How to Get Involved

Individually, in addition to your full board, reach out to your legislators and build those relationships.

Advocacy is a year-round job, not merely every now and then. Continue dialogue regularly.

Schedule an annual meeting to simply discuss legislation and legislative priorities.

Day on the Hill

Influencing the State Legislators

Calls to Action

1.TLN Notes

2.Regional/Districts

3.Direct Emails/Phone Calls

4.Twitter

Influencing the State Legislators

• Make sure that you let me know if you contact a legislator.

• If you email him/her, please “cc” me.

• Paper trail is always helpful for everyone.

Federal Relations Network

How does it work?

Strategies - Making Congress Aware of Local School Needs

Does Your Board Interact or Meet w/ Federal

Legislators?

Influencing the Federal Legislators

How to Get Involved

Individually, in addition to your full board, reach out to your legislators and build those relationships.

Advocacy is a year-round job, not merely every now and then. Continue dialogue regularly.

Schedule an annual meeting to simply discuss legislation and legislative priorities.

Influencing the State Legislature and Congress

Capitol Watch at:

TSBA.net

Capitol Watch at:

TSBA.net

Instant Legislative Updates @ TSBA On The

Hill Twitter Account

Instant Legislative Updates @ TSBA On The

Hill Twitter Account

Influencing the State Legislature and Congress

Questions? Questions?

BreakBreak

Developing Commission/City County

Support

Developing Commission/City County

SupportCase Studies pgs. 28 &

29

Ways to Develop Commission/City Council Support

1. Develop a plan to work with the Commissioner/City Council

2. Have attorneys discuss legal responsibilities in joint meeting

3. Involve Commissioner/City Council in developing strategic plan

4. Use money according to budget

5. Assign board member to each Commissioner

6. E-mail Commissioner/City Council after each meeting

7. All board attend budget presentation

Building Commission Support

Pgs. XX

List 5 Best Ideas for Working with the

Commission/City Council

Challenge...Building Commission/City Council Support

List Suggestions for Working Effectively with

the Commission

Pg.31

Developing Relationships with Other School Boards

Current Practices???What are you currently doing?

How are you currently communicating with surrounding school boards?

How often do you reach out to surrounding boards?

Why do you reach out?

Why Reach Out to Other Boards and Board Members?

1.) No sunshine law violations for discussing

relevant issues/concerns.

2.) Insight into Common Practices/Experiences

3.) Legislative Advocacy

Open Meetings Laws

TCA § 8-44-101(a)

“The General Assembly hereby declares it to be the policy of this state that the formation of public

policy and decisions is public business and shall not be

conducted in secret.”

Open Meetings Laws

TCA § 8-44-102(a)

“All meetings of any governing body are declared to be public

meetings open to the public at all times, except as provided by the

Constitution of Tennessee.”

The convening of a governingbody in order to make a

decision or to deliberate towarda decision on any matter.

What is a Meeting?

“To examine and consult inorder to form an opinion …

to weigh arguments forand against a proposed

course of action.”

Deliberation

Adequate Notice gives interestedcitizens a reasonable opportunityto become aware of the meeting

and exercise their right to bepresent at the meeting.

Notice

Chance Meetings

“Chance” Meetings - Nothing in this section shall be construed as to require a chance meeting of two (2) or more members of a public body to be considered a public meeting. No such chance meetings, informal assemblages, or electronic

communication shall be used to decide or deliberate public business in circumvention of

the spirit or requirements of this part.

Applies Only to Your Local Board

• You are free to speak to any other elected official, including other school board members.

• While no two boards are alike, they face many of the same obstacles and consider many of the same policies.

Example – New Board Policy

• Public Chapter 1136 – 106th General Assembly

• Permissive legislation allowing boards to adopt policies to conduct random drug testing of students involved in voluntary, extracurricular activities .

• Why is it needed? How helpful might it be? Positives and negatives with such a policy? How did teachers react? How did parents react?

Other Boards’ Policies

• Learn from the mistakes of other boards.

• Anticipate backlash or consequences of implementing certain policies.

Legislative Advocacy

• Strength in numbers!!

• Reach out to your legislators as a group

• Multiple systems within the county – invite the legislator to tour multiple schools covering multiple districts

• Have a joint meeting of regional school districts with the legislator to discuss education issues

Communication

• Email distribution lists

• Facebook, Twitter

• Phone calls

• Texting

• TSBA

How do you think networking with members of

surrounding school boards could help your advocacy

efforts?

LunchLunch

Working with the Media to Build Public Support

Working with the Media to Build Public Support

Working with the Media

Have you had a bad media experience?

Being Prepared For Anything... NewhartVideo

Is the Media Interested?

Three Questions

2.Should you talk to the media?

1.What is the media’s job?1.What is the media’s job?

3.What relationship do you want with the media?3.What relationship do you want with the media?

How Not To React To Media...

Building a Relationship with the Media

Nothing to See

Managing the Media During a Crisis

Karen Friedman is a former award winning television news reporter, speaker, faciliator and the author of Shut Up and Say Something: Business Communication Strategies to Overcome Challenges and Influence Listeners (Praeger, 2010). She is also the co-author of Speaking of Success: World Class Experts Share Their Secrets (Insight Publishing, 2007).

Karen Friedman Enterprises, Inc

If you won’t talk about your “bad news,”forget about getting

people to pay attention to your “good news,”

How Can the Board Create Good News?

• News Releases

• Letters to the Editor

• Guest Editorials

• Be available for talk shows, etc.

• Create videos for public access

• Create Public Service Announcements

Building a Relationship…before it’s too late!

“Investigation finds Elizabeth school board pressures workers to fill campaign coffers.”

Pgs. 44-45

• Discuss two ways your board should respond to ensure the school system maintains public support following a negative article.

Understanding Your Audience

Who is your audience and what do they want to hear?

Bill and Melinda Gates; Wast, Whitehurst and Dionne, Jr.; March 2011

“Hot Topics” 1. 73% Teacher Performance

2. 71% Student Academics

3. 63% School Crime

4. 68% Curricula

5. 66% School Finances & Reform

Bill and Melinda Gates; Wast, Whitehurst and Dionne, Jr.; March 2011

Common Media Sources1. 75% Family and Friends

2. 60% Newspapers

3. 56% School Publications

4. 37% Internet

5. 14% Facebook or Social Media

Bill and Melinda Gates; Wast, Whitehurst and Dionne, Jr.; March 2011

Improving Communication

1. 82% Printed Newsletters

2. 74% Internet

3. 71% E-mail Communications

Bill and Melinda Gates; Wast, Whitehurst and Dionne, Jr.; March 2011

Is the Media out to get you?

Various Media Outlets Provide Input

Using Media to Build Public Support

Interview TipsInterview Tips

Unprepared Interview...

Interview Tips

Anticipate the toughest questions you may face and prepare your answers

Interview Tips

Plan your message

then deliver your planned message.

Interview TipsFor every interview,

choose 3 MAIN POINTS

and write them down.

Interview Tips

Respond to the questions briefly, then

“BRIDGE” your response to a

related point that’s part or your main message.

How To Ace Your Next Media Interview (Clip)

Using Media to Build Public Support

• Cultivate relationships with reporters, editors, and camera crews.

• Make phone calls for special stories.

• Report success stories via letters to the editor.

• Thank a reporter or editor for fair treatment, even if the story delivers bad news.

• If a story is incorrect, send a note to the reporter to set the record straight.

Strategies

List Strategies for Using Media to Build

Public Support

Pg. 47

BreakBreak

Generating Parental Support

Generating Parental Support

Parental SupportWhat do you think of

when you hear “parental

involvement?”

What are some of the barriers to improving

parental involvement?

Parental Support

Inside the classroom and inside the home.

Do not have a “one size fits all”

mentality.

The Blame Game

Teachers: Parents don’t care

Parents don’t hold their kids accountableParents send their kids here unprepared

Parents:Teachers don’t care

They’ve got tenure and don’t have to tryTeachers think they’re smarter than I am

Disconnect Between Schools and Parents

Center on Families, Communities, Schools and Children’s Learning

70% of parents said they have not been asked to

volunteer

90% of teachers said parents should volunteer

Building Parental Support

Circle the numbers of strategies that you likeCircle the numbers of

strategies that you like

Discuss strategies for building parental support

Pg. 57

Ways to Build Parental Support

1. Utilize a website for the school system.

2. Send an e-mail to parents after each board mtg.

3.Establish a parental Task Force on controversial issues.

4. Sponsor an awards program for academic, artistic and athletic achievements.

5.Speak at PTA and other parent meetings.

6.Sponsor parenting workshops

7.Hold the superintendent accountable to hire parent friendly principals who stress the importance of parental involvement to teachers and parents.

Strategies - Generating Parental Support

Don’t damage relationships.

“I’ll never shop here again!”

Conclusion

Comments?

Questions?

Generating Public Support

Generating Public Support

What would the Community Say

About Your School Board?

What would the Community Say

About Your School Board?

Your board meetings

are the community’s windows to the school

system

What Steps Would Your Board Do To Reinforce a Positive Image...?

Your board members

influence public support for your schools

‘To Do’s’ to Promote School’s Image

1. Help the public understand your role as a board member.

2. Attend school events.

3.Send notes of appreciation to staff and community members.

4. Circulate among the audience before and after board meetings. Introduce yourself to those you don’t know.

5. Write thank-you letters/e-mails to community members who serve on board committees.

6. Report success stories via letters/e-mails to the editor.

Pg. 62

Video Clip: Ethics- Sour Grapes

Public Support is Affected By:

How you deal with complaints.

How you deal with complaints.

Handling Complaints

• Offer an apology if appropriate even if you didn’t cause the problem.

• Have a friendly attitude.

• Remember, no matter how trivial the problem seems to you, it’s a big deal to the complainant.

• List carefully. Take notes.

• Tell the person what he should do and what you will do if anything.

Do you agree with these steps

Strategies - Generating Public Support

List ideas for building public

support.

Pg.70

Turning Employees into Advocates

Turning Employees into Advocates

Do You Believe?

1. An organization’s image is primarily determined by its employees.

2. What school employees say about the schools is believed by the public.

3. School Board action affects employee attitude and morale.

Do individual board members affect

employee morale?

Video Clip: Ethics- Out of Bounds

Can Bus Drivers Help?

What Boards Can Do To Encourage Employee

Advocacy?• How much do the staff in your school know

about schools?

• How good do they feel about themselves, their jobs and the school system?

• What kind of image do they project?

Classified Employees Have Class

See Page 74

What Would the Community Say

See Page 75

What Would Your Community Say

About Your School Board?

Strategies

List 1 strategy for strengthening public

support through

EMPLOYEES

See Page 76

Please Fill Out Your Evaluation Form

Please Fill Out Your Evaluation Form

Wrap-Up

•Remove your name tag from plastic holder

•Thank you for what you do for children

•Thank you for your participation

•Evaluations/Per Diems