Memo #23

Subject:  LA Board Election

Dear Lincoln Academy School Community,

The Lincoln Academy Board of Directors has two voting Board positions coming up for the annual election in April.  The Board is requesting all persons interested (and qualified) in being part of the board to apply.  Each candidate will also be given an opportunity to speak at the board meeting on April 12th.

If you are interested in applying for this position, please read the following information to learn more about what it means to be a member of the Board.

What does the board do?

•  The Boards job is to govern the school by setting appropriate policy.  This is to further our vision statement “… to prepare all students for their future endeavors by providing a comprehensive Core Knowledge® Education” and mission statement  “… to help students attain their highest social and academic potential through an academically rigorous, content-rich educational program in a safe, orderly, and caring environment”.
• The Board governs using the John Carver governance policy.  This means that the board speaks only as a unit to guide our principal by establishing policy as stated in our Ends and Executive Limitations policy.
• The Board’s sole employee is the principal.  It is the Board’s responsibility to hire and evaluate the principal.
• The Board also has the following committees: 
  • Finance (responsible to help with budgeting decisions), Governance (help the board establish policies),
  • Facilities (work with the facilities manager to create long term plans for facility usage),
  • Academic Excellence (helps review CSAP scores and work with staff to make recommendations for ways to improve scores), and
  • Development (work on attaining grants and publicizing the school in the community).
    

What does it take to be a board member?

•  A minimum of one school year in one of the following capacities, with an attendance rate of 50% or better: SAC, PTO, adjunct member of the Board, or prior Board member (if you are a prior Board member, you must not have resigned your position within the last two years).
• Read E.D. Hirsch's book Cultural Literacy or The Schools We Need and agree with the principle that our society has a foundation of knowledge upon which subsequent learning is built.
• To be an effective Board member, you need to be able to commit to attending monthly Board meetings (on the second Monday of the month) as well as other committee meetings and training sessions as necessary.  The time commitment will easily put you over the 20 hours requested of each school family.
• These are full voting positions for the Board.  The term(s) for the position(s) will be three years, with the term(s) beginning in June 2010, and ending in May of 2013.  

How do I apply for this position?

• Fill out an application; applications can be found at www.lincolnacademy.net at the Board of Directors link.  Send your completed application to Rob Cox, the Board President, via email to robcox65@msn.com.  All applications must be received by Friday, April 9th.
•  Attend the Regular Board meeting on Monday, April 12th, 2010 at 6:30 P.M.  At this meeting, each candidate will be given an opportunity to share why they would like to be a member of the board.  This meeting is mandatory, if the applicant wishes to be included in the election process.
•  Write a brief letter about yourself that can be shared with the Lincoln Academy community.  This will be posted on the LA website.