Flush school boards of political activists, educators plead

Days after the resumption of face-to-face classes, stakeholders in the education sector are calling for changes to the culture of political interference in the appointment of school boards.

That concern - linked to the disruption of effective school management - lingers even with the passage, last year, of the Public Bodies Management and Accountability (PBMA) (Nomination, Selection and Appointment to Boards) Regulations, 2021, which heralds sweeping changes to the selection process for oversight bodies.

The latest call has come from Jamaica Teachers' Association (JTA) President Winston Smith and Linvern Wright, president of the Jamaica Association of Principals of Secondary Schools, against the backdrop of mounting worries over the learning loss caused by displacement during the coronavirus pandemic.

At the same time, Education Minister Fayval Williams conceded that a clean-up of school boards is needed to facilitate greater efficiency of schools' management, noting that the National Council on Education (NCE), which has responsibility for board selection, has ceded control to members of parliament.

According to Wright, who is the principal of William Knibb Memorial High School, boards of management are often “far less” qualified than principals.

“I think that is something we have to look at if it is that we really want to ensure that we're getting to where we want,” said Wright, who was speaking at a Gleaner Editors' Forum on Wednesday.

“When you have a qualified person, having somebody who really the best thing about them is that they are affiliated to either of the two parties, that's not something to move things in a time of crisis,” he added.

Smith, too, said that there have been challenges with school boards, the process of selections, and the quality of leadership.

He said school boards comprising members who understand education regulations often fare better in their performance.

“There are some institutions where boards are just obstructionists,” the JTA president said.

Smith said boards exist to provide guidance to school leadership and act as intermediaries between the ministry and school administration, but some have resorted to “micromanaging” schools rather than providing administrative support.

“The board seems, in some instances, [as if] they want to run the institutions. We're saying lack of understanding of the processes is what gives rise to those kinds of things.

“So it's a matter of getting persons not aligned to any particular party but get people who are truly interested and understanding of the process,” said Smith, who is principal of Golden Spring Primary School in St Andrew.

Additionally, he said more education officers are needed to foster greater involvement and better supervision of school boards.

Williams said the current structure is a relic of decades-old practices.

“In order to get a different result, we're going to have to change that,” she said, referencing Minister of Finance Dr Nigel Clarke's push to revisit how boards of public bodies are selected.

“We need similar thinking; a similar work in the education sector. It is going to be up to us to take it on to make these changes.”

Williams said new thinking is needed as well as a new framework with updated regulations.

“The time has come in much the same way that the time came for other boards across government. The time has come for us to raise the calibre of persons who sit on boards to require a certain skill set. The time has come for how we choose members on school boards,” the minister said.

Williams added that there has been some degree of difficulty in dismissing non-performing principals who, as well, contribute to the challenges schools face.

She said in many instances, proper procedures are not followed by school boards, resulting in the botched handling of cases.

“Our boards at our schools - the experience levels need to be improved. Our boards need to know how to hold principals and school leaders to account – how to work with them and not manage them, per se, but to ensure that the objectives of the school are met,” she said.