ASBA prepares for 2007 school board elections
With school board elections coming up next Fall – the date to file nominations is September 17 and election day is October 15 – the ASBA legal department has developed a list of important pre-election dates which will be especially useful to local returning officers. See the complete document here. For more information contact: or .

On a different note, we are looking for a “retiring” trustee from each of the five Zones. As part of our election awareness efforts, we interview trustees who are not running again about what it’s like to be a school trustee. We post a photo and the interview on the ASBA website. If you are interested in participating, please contact before March 15, 2007.

ASBA Board of Directors launches review of governance structures – targets Sept. 2007 for completion
The ASBA Board of Directors launched the review of the ASBA’s governance structures February 15. A Facilitator’s Guide and Participant Workbook were e-mailed to each board chair and superintendent.

The governance review will focus on 1) membership, voting and fees;
2) the role and structure of the ASBA Board of Directors and Zones;
3) how association policy is set at AGMs and 4) recognizing local board discussions about these topics may generate other ideas – the board of directors has invited school boards to identify suggestions for how the ASBA can improve the way it does business.

In support of the review, a member of the board of directors will be contacting each board chair to discuss the review process. Zone Directors will also make presentations about the review as follows:
Zone 1 - March 15, 2007
Zone 23 - March 23, 2007
Zone 4 - March 26, 2007
Zone 5 - March 2, 2007
Zone 6 - March 14, 2007

All support materials for the governance review are posted on the ASBA website including the Governance review: Terms of Reference (PDF–11K), Governance review: Work plan (PDF–86K), ASBA governance structure chart (PDF–86K); Comparison of different governance structures (PDF–86K) and links to the ASBA bylaws, strategic plan, the 2004 Governance Review report and Phase 2 of the Metro School Boards study.

See the ASBA website for the detailed work plan. In very broad strokes the review process will follow three phases:

Phase 1
Each school board will be asked to complete by May 1, 2007 a local focus group exercise exploring four areas: 1) ASBA membership, voting and fees; 2) how the ASBA makes policy; 3) the role and structure of the ASBA Board of Directors and Zones and 4) suggestions for how the ASBA can improve the way it does business. The data collected from this consultation with school boards will form the foundation for recommendations the ASBA Board of Directors will make about how the ASBA is governed.

Phase 2
A meeting of board representatives will be held in June. At this facilitated session, progress on the study will be reviewed; key findings that have emerged to date will be discussed and validated and further input will be sought. The key outputs from this session will be documented and will form part of the database the Board of Directors will use to develop recommendations about the governance of the ASBA.

Phase 3
The ASBA Board of Directors will call a Special General Meeting where school boards will be asked to make changes to the association’s bylaws (if needed). This meeting will be held in September.

Graduation speeches available through the ASBA
With graduation season en route, the ASBA can help you with your speech. We have a selection of 7 different speeches available for use by trustees and superintendents. Contact , ASBA Communications for a selection of speeches.