Reflections on being a school board member

On May 17, districts across New York held their annual elections and budget vote. For this economic climate, surprisingly, a significant majority of budgets passed due to the hard work and diligence of Boards of Education and administrators. I was also re-elected, and I had write-in competition that turned out to be formidable. Kudos to them because democracy and the power of the voting public is the American way, but motivation, reason and qualifications for a position must all be taken into account.

As was apparent, it takes more than commitment; I agree. And, yes, I also agree that commitment alone cannot keep you there. My public persona has sometimes been judged as demeaning, and, yes, at times, it has been. But my passion sometimes gets in the way of patience, so I will assure everyone I’ll be a better listener and have more patience. Thank you to those who believe in that. A board member’s job is to try to bridge the issues and constituents while making tough decisions that are sometimes unpopular. So this last time around, I will commit to making these concepts work.

Being a board member requires an ability to reason and think logically while trying not to react emotionally — which I will tell you is very hard. It requires an interest and commitment in multiple areas and a vested interest in why you are there, and that is the education of our future. Members should not be there to represent one community, one group of students, have only one viewpoint, one agenda (taxes, etc.) and individual resident agendas, to name a few.

Board members need to administer through law, policies and a series of checks and balances, be open-minded, non-judgmental and not try to manage the district themselves, as that is why we hire administrators. The board must let these people do their jobs, not question everything they do while trusting their judgment to make the right academic and business decisions that are in the best interests of all. I do not think that board members should serve forever, as they have an obligation to recruit and mentor new potential members. All too often it turns out that people see opportunity for their agenda and come out of nowhere to run because no community member is committed, has the right outlook or is prepared.

This is my last time. It’s time for others who are younger and have that vested interest of their children in our schools to take over. My children are done, and 30 years of parenting and involvement in public schools are over. The next generation needs to step up. It is also time for some of my fellow board members to call it a career and start working on replacements, as they are in the same situation as me. We will immediately begin searching for interested people and commit to teaching and mentoring them how to do this the right way. That is, what the law says, the policies and all nuances that go with this.

These are important positions; please give them some thought. This is part of a quote sent to me by a teacher I have tremendous respect for, and it describes what it’s sometimes like to be a board member. A shortened piece from Theodore Roosevelt: “It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena … who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings …”

I invite those who are willing to try it, have success, feel failure and strive valiantly for progress for the right reasons, the children. I look forward to working with you.

Coonan is the Malverne Board of Education president. He was elected on May 17 to serve a third term.