Governing Style

The Board will govern with emphasis on End results for students rather than on interpersonal issues of the Board; encourage diversity in viewpoints; focus on strategic leadership rather than administrative detail; observe clear distinction between Board and CEO roles; give collective rather than individual direction; exhibit future orientation rather than past or present; and govern proactively rather than reactively.

Accordingly:

1. The Board will cultivate a sense of group responsibility. The Board, not the CEO or staff, will be responsible for excellence in governing. The Board will use the expertise of individual Board members to enhance the performance of the board as a body, but will not substitute individual judgments and opinions for the Board’s collective values. Accordingly, members will:
   1. Focus on issues rather than personalities
   2. Respect decisions of the full board
   3. Exercise honesty in all written and interpersonal interaction, never withholding information or intentionally misleading or misinforming each other
   4. Criticize privately, praise publicly
   5. Make every reasonable effort to protect the integrity and promote the positive image of the district and one another
   6. Never embarrass each other or the district
   7. Maintain appropriate confidentiality
2. The Board will hold itself accountable for the quality if its governing performance. This self-discipline will apply to attendance, preparation for meetings, adherence to governing by policy, respect of roles, and promoting a tradition of effective governance. To ensure that the board’s business meetings are conducted with maximum effectiveness and efficiency, members will:
   1. Read all information prior to each meeting
   2. Not interrupt each other during meetings
   3. Not engage in side conversations during meetings
   4. Ask questions for clarification
   5. Listen for content and understanding
   6. Support the president's efforts to facilitate an orderly meeting
   7. Communicate in a timely manner to avoid surprises
3. The Board will govern and inspire the district through the careful establishment of written policies reflecting the Board’s values and perspectives. The Board’s major policy focus will be on the intended long-term benefits for students, not on the administrative or programmatic means of attaining those benefits. Accordingly individual members will not:
   1. Assume responsibility for resolving operational problems or complaints
   2. Give personal direction to any part of the operational organization
4. Continuous Board development will include orientation of candidates for the Board and new members of the Board about the Board’s governance process, and scheduled Board discussion and evaluation of its process to assure continued improvement.
5. The Board will allow no officer, individual, or committee of the board to prevent fulfillment of its governance responsibilities or its policy commitments.
6. The Board will monitor its process and performance at each meeting through a debriefing process. Self-monitoring will include comparison of the Board’s performance with policies in the Governance Process and Board-CEO Relationship categories.
7. The Board, by majority vote, may revise or amend its policies at any time. Following public notice, a proposed policy revision will be discussed at one session of the Board prior to being approved at a subsequent Board meeting.

Adopted:
07/07/2003

Revised:
06/06/2005
05/04/2009
05/21/2012

Monitoring Method: Board self-assessment
Monitoring Frequency: Annually

Lake Washington School District Board of Directors