EOCS 7450                                                                                                        Pamela
Barnett

Practicum in
Leadership                                                                               Standard
Activity #3

School Council Meetings

I attended
3 meetings of the GMS School Council.
The GMS School Council consists of 2 teachers, 2 parents, 2 business
partners and the principal.  The
school council is a shared governance council that addresses various school
related topics.

Members are encouraged to share their
concerns and questions during the meetings.  The principal plans and provides the
necessary information and brings in guest speakers to explain various programs
and changes within the system.  For
example, several members were concerned over the attendance letters parents
were receiving from the school.  The
principal arranged for a speaker from the county office to attend a meeting to
explain the attendance protocol for our county.  Council members were able to ask
questions about the purposes of the new attendance protocol.  It was evident that this process and
information relieved the concerns of the parent and community members on the
council.  They voiced their
intentions of sharing this information with others in the community to help
them understand the requirements and need for an attendance protocol.

Other topics and items discussed included
the school’s AYP report, formation of professional learning communities,
student handbook, school schedule changes, fall FTE totals, school improvement
plan process, after school program, highly qualified teacher requirements and
grant writing.  The parents and
business partners often misunderstood the changes and new policies that were
being established within the system.
After the presentations and information sharing, they realized that a
majority of the decisions made within the school and system are based on state
and federal mandates.  One council
member stated that they took it for granted that the decisions made at the
school level were based on the whims of the principals or faculty.  Support increased as their understanding
related to school operations increased.