SAIS provides several resources for board guidance, training, self assessment, and head evaluation.
Guidance
SAIS schools should bear in mind that good governance is a part of accreditation. The relevant standards and indicators can be found here and the governance questions asked during the pre-accreditation visit are here.
Training
Effective Board Governance Videos SAIS
SAIS Webinar Recordings:
Additional Information:
Board Self-Assessment
The SAIS Governance Health Check is a survey tool for measuring how well the board executes on its commitment to best practices in independent school governance in its day-to-day work within the five domains of board governance:
Head Evaluation
In an independent school, one of the primary responsibilities of the board of trustees is the hiring, nurturing, and evaluation of the head of school. The evaluation, when done correctly, enhances communication between the head and board around the school’s strategic goals. It establishes common goals for the year and utilizes appropriate assessments for measuring progress on those goals. The SAIS white paper, “The Head of School Evaluation Process” offers guiding principles for effective head of school evaluations, how to develop the evaluation process, a sample timeline, and sample evaluation survey.
In this recording, we joined SAIS President Debra Wilson for the new Trustee Education Series focused on best practices in independent school governance, including boundaries, confidentiality, committee structure, and more. The curriculum is designed for heads of school, board chairs, and trustees.