BENTONVILLE -- School Board members agreed Monday to spend time at a future meeting considering a code of conduct for themselves.
Board member Eric White distributed a three-page code of conduct in draft form to fellow board members at their last meeting Aug. 7. They discussed it for about 20 minutes Monday before voting to examine the concept further at their next work session, scheduled for Jan. 18.
Public comment
Three community members — one parent and two students — used time allotted for public comment at Monday’s School Board meeting to thank the board for pledging last month to invest nearly $2 million to construction of a stadium at West High School. Nobody spoke against the move. The board voted 5-2 on July 17 in favor of putting $1.976,000 into the project, leaving district administrators to raise about $2 million more to finish the job.
Source: Staff report
White attended a recent school board leadership conference in Hot Springs where several speakers urged board members to focus on their internal processes and communication protocols. Studies have shown the way board members conduct themselves has an effect on student achievement, he said.
"A school board has an effect on student achievement, and we can choose what that effect is going to be, positive or negative," White said.
The proposed conduct code is a collection of Bentonville School District policies and state requirements put in an order that "seemed to make the most sense," he said.
It outlines expectations regarding board governance; relations with administrators, the community and other board members; conflicts of interest; and board preparation and training. There is space at the bottom of the document for each board member to sign.
Matt Burgess, a board member, questioned the necessity of the document.
"I've taken an oath as required by the law in the state of Arkansas to fulfill my responsibilities to this job," Burgess said. "So if we're going to sign something that expands what our responsibilities are, we need to really know what those additions are. I've read through this two or three times and I really don't see it expanding it at all."
Burgess also challenged the notion a board's behavior affects student performance.
"I tell ya, what leads to greater achievement is great teachers and parents and students and people behaving well in these roles, having great administrators who do their jobs," Burgess said.
White, who was elected to the board last year, said he agreed a school's staff is the most important factor in achievement, but said signing a code of conduct would help board members to hold each other accountable.
"There are multiple examples of times this board caused negative behaviors in the community," White said. "Those unforced errors, we should avoid whenever we can."
Travis Riggs, board president, said most district employees work under a code of conduct, so it doesn't seem like it's asking too much for board members to adopt one for themselves.
"I can see this as raising our bar a little bit," Riggs said.
He added he wants to take a good look at the wording.
"I don't want to have stuff in here that handcuffs us too much," Riggs said.
Board member Joe Quinn suggested having the board's attorney review the draft policy first. Rebecca Powers suggested they ask attorneys from the Arkansas School Boards Association do it, which would save the district money.
Powers said she liked White's proposal. She referred to the district's motto, "Where excellence lives" in stating her support for the idea.
"We don't settle just for what the state gives us. We always go deeper, we always go higher, we always do better. And I think this shows that," she said.
NW News on 08/22/2017