Governance Alignment Check

Within this competency, reflect on which areas you may want to observe more closely within your board’s work or seek clarity on by approaching the board chair or another trustee.

Identify one question that stands out for this competency and be prepared to discuss why it matters for your board.

1. Can we walk through our governance–management boundary examples? Specifically:

• What decisions are board-level?

• What decisions are head-level?

• What are common gray areas new trustees should recognize?

2. What meeting structures or governance tools (such as consent agendas or executive sessions, if used) does our board rely on, and how do we determine:

• When they are appropriate?

• What types of items belong in each format?

• What expectations trustees should follow when these formats are used?

3. What communication norms do we expect trustees to follow?

• Between meetings

• When approached by parents

• When trustees have concerns

• Protocol for contacting the board chair vs. the head