WVSBA posts the majority of its online documents in PDF format, which require the free Adobe Reader.
Superintendent Searches: This initiative is among the premiere services available from WVSBA.
Policy Services: Developed with Bowles Rice McDavid Graff & Love, PLLC, this service is continually evolving.
Board and Board/Superintendent Evaluation Programs: These programs can be customized to meet individual board needs.
Contracted Research Services: Services are customized to meet individual board needs.
Specialized County Board Research: WVSBA prides itself on being a research-driven organization. The organization leads the nation in several areas, especially in regard to county board development. The Association’s quinquennial study of school board “outputs” is the only study of its kind in the nation, documenting school board decisional work for the past 15 years. Other research relates to county board governance, decision making and association-related matters.
The Effective County Board
Building off the latest research, but filled with common-sense practical advice, this workshop explores how your board can reach its potential in terms of governance effectiveness, Class-A boardsmanship and in terms of effective planning, policy oversight and monitoring. “This workshop really provided us a good road map of where we need to head as a board. It’s a good analysis of why school boards need to strategize...”–county board president.
Cost: $250 plus mileage and photocopying.
Approved for 2.5 school board member training hours credit.
The Dynamics of Board/Superintendent Relations
By participating in this 4.0 hour workshop–developed by the West Virginia School Boards Association based on several years’ research–county boards and superintendents will discover what constitutes an effective board/superintendent relationship. There are no “magic formulas.” Rather, the notion concerns an “escalated span of executive expectations; elevated degrees of decisionmaking latitude by the superintendent; an increased commitment to accountability by the board and superintendent; and a heightened emphasis on positional performance by the board and superintendent.” “I first heard about this notion at a Regional Service Agency V meeting, and I was really struck by the novel approach...”–county superintendent.
Cost: $400 plus mileage and photocopying costs.
Approved for 4.0 school board member training hours credit.
Superintendent Evaluation: A Primer
In this 2.5-hour workshop, county boards and superintendents meet, working to develop the components they will include in a superintendent evaluation instrument. A WVSBA facilitator will lead the workshop and, based on board/superintendent input, prepare the evaluation instrument for later use by the board. The workshop outlines how to conduct an effective superintendent evaluation on a scheduled basis. “Thank you for this workshop. We really came up with
a good instrument...”–county board president.
Cost: $250 plus mileage and photocopying costs.
Approved for 2.5 school board member training hours credit.
Board Evaluation: A Primer
This is a two-part workshop. In the first segment, county board members work to devise the actual instrument they will use for board evaluation, choosing from among five (5) models developed by WVSBA. Once the instrument is chosen, county board members then complete the document. In a subsequent workshop (called a feedback session), the board receives the results of its evaluation and develops an “action” or “improvement” plan in relation to five or so objectives the board wishes to address in regard to its evaluation. The total workshop time is 5.0 hours. “WVSBA really helped us out here. We’d neglected this most important area of governance.”–county board president.
Cost: $500 plus mileage and photocopying costs.
Approved for 5.0 school board member training hours credit.
Goal Setting
In this 4.0-hour workshop, the first part of which is devoted to a discussion of the “hows” and “whys” of goal-setting, county boards will develop annual performance goals, along with evaluation measures and timelines for completion and goal review. The goals thus developed then will be prepared for the board’s adoption by WVSBA. If a county board desires, the board’s progress toward goal achievement can be assessed as well. “The WVSBA staff really did a super job. We now have our own goals to work toward–and ways to measure them...”–Marion County Board Member.
Cost: $400 plus mileage and photocopying costs.
Approved for 4.0 school board member training hours credit.
Infrastructure
This is a 4.0-hour workshop. It focuses on county board infrastructure: vision statement, mission statement, county goals, board goals and development of a customized annual calendar. An additional component will allow a county board to participate in the WVSBA/Bowles Rice McDavid Graff & Love Policy Review Project.
“Our board realy got a lot out of this, especially the annual calendar. It mapped out our plans for an entire year...”–county board president.
Cost: $400 plus mileage and photocopying costs.
Approved for 4.0 school board member training hours credit.
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