The District of San Francisco New Orleans’ 2015-16 school corporation board trustee trainings concluded this month and earned high satisfaction ratings from its participants in all evaluation categories, this according to the District’s Office of Education.
Begun in the late 1990s by the Office of Education, board trustee trainings focus on two areas. Lasallian formation introduces trustees to Saint John Baptist de La Salle, the De La Salle Christian Brothers, and the educational heritage of Lasallian schools. Governance training assists trustees in understanding the board’s relationship to its school and to the District’s education corporations – the Lasallian Education Corporation (LEC) and Louisiana Lasallian Education Corporation (LLEC) – and provides training in the use of Policy Governance® as their board’s operational system. All trustees are required to complete board training before they may serve on a school corporation board.
This year, over 40 administrators, trustee candidates, recording secretaries, and guests attended one of four board trainings that were held between August, 2015 and May, 2016 at Mont La Salle, CA and also in New Orleans, LA. Trainings were a day-and-a-half long, beginning on Sunday evenings and running through mid-day on Tuesdays.
Each training was led by the District’s Director of Board Formation, Janet Ruggiero, who guided the participants through the functions, responsibilities, and protocols of boards and of their trustees. She was joined by several District Leadership Team members who assisted as presenters/facilitators, including CFO Pamela Gleeson; Office of Education-Covington Director Charles Legendre; and Director of Formation for Mission Greg Kopra. Ms. Gleeson presented on the finance review policy and process, Mr. Legendre on canon law application, and Mr. Kopra on Lasallian education and spirituality.
Participants were asked to rate the helpfulness of the trainings in regard to their understanding of the Lasallian Mission and their role in it, and in the design and practice of Policy Governance®. The trainings consistently received the uppermost available scores, with comments indicating that participants considered the sessions to be both valuable and effective. They highlighted as especially beneficial the practical approach taken by the presenters, the importance of stewardship of the mission, and the organization and extensiveness of resources.
The Boards of Trustees of the District’s numerous school corporations are charged with providing “the highest level of institutional leadership intended to advance the Lasallian educational mission” on behalf of the De La Salle Christian Brothers. Brother Donald Johanson, District Visitor, observed, “The excellent work done by Janet and her fellow Leadership Team members is essential to the effectiveness of our Boards of Trustees, and it plays an invaluable part in their success in serving the ministries entrusted to their care.”
