Research suggests that there is a relationship between school board governance and educational quality, including student achievement. In short, competent and thoughtful school boards are associated with higher levels of student achievement. School boards are not a mere sideshow to K-12 education; rather, they are integral to student success. 

School board members are akin to a board of directors for a large corporation. Why is it that successful corporations understand the need to adequately compensate board members to attract a broad range of talent, but we in Nevada think we can run our multi-billion or multi-million dollar school districts essentially with volunteers?  

The question of governance is one of increasing interest these days. There is even a Nevada ballot question on the issue of higher education governance at the same time that the public is bearing witness to the drama and dysfunction that has enveloped our large urban school boards in recent years.

Given its good governance research program, the Guinn Center has regularly weighed in on school board governance in Nevada. Beginning in 2016, we have held candidate forums for individuals running for education boards. And for the past two years, we have been monitoring school board meetings around the state, assessing how boards spend their meeting time. Governance experts suggest that boards should allocate approximately 50 percent of their meeting time to student outcomes. Yet, we have observed that, with the exception of the Nevada State Board of Education, school board members in Nevada generally spend significantly less than 50 percent of their meeting time discussing student outcomes. Instead, meetings are filled with discussions of school naming opportunities, budgets, curriculum policies (e.g., sex education), safety, and even seatbelts, among others.

We know from at least one study that school boards that engage in “strategic planning, view their superintendent as a collaborator, and mitigate conflict” perform better in academic outcome indicators. Another meta-analysis of research reported that school districts with higher levels of student achievement show “clear alignment of board, district and school efforts in support of non-negotiable goals.” These boards “ensure these goals remain the primary focus of the district’s efforts and that no other initiatives detract attention or resources from accomplishing these goals.”

A familiar refrain in many circles in Nevada is that we don’t value education. We have all heard some variation of the quote: “Don’t tell me what you value. Show me your budget, and I’ll tell you what you value.” It turns out that the individuals who serve on Nevada’s education boards, including the State Board of Education, are among the lowest paid elected officials in the state.

School board trustees in the Clark County School District (CCSD) and Washoe County School District (WCSD) are compensated $750 a month or $9,000 a year for their service, while trustees from smaller school districts earn either $4,800 or $3,000 annually. The Legislature increased school board trustee compensation schedules in 2007 from about $5,760 a year to their current levels. If school compensation amounts were adjusted to account for inflation, CCSD and WCSD trustees would still only receive about $11,000 a year.

Several trustees report that they spend an average of 20 hours a week on trustee-related business. To do their jobs properly, they probably need to spend much more time than that. Either way, they are essentially getting compensated for their service at minimum wage or below. As a point of comparison, City Council members in Reno and Las Vegas earn $75,000 to $82,000 annually while overseeing budgets totaling $500-600 million. The CCSD Board of Trustees oversees a two-billion-dollar operating budget, and the WCSD Board oversees a budget totaling about half a billion dollars (give or take a few million). 

Not every state compensates school board trustees for their service. Of the top 10 largest school districts in the country, seven compensate their school board members. Some pay less than Nevada. Others – such as Alabama, California, Florida, New York, North Carolina and Virginia – pay school board trustees salaries. For instance, several school districts in Florida, including Orange County where CCSD Superintendent Jesus Jara worked previously, pay school board trustees more than $40,000 annually. The Los Angeles Unified School District pays its board trustees $125,000 (and gives them paid staff).

Don’t worry. I am not suggesting this level of compensation for our school board trustees, but Nevada is not even close to paying a fair wage for the required investment of time.

Beyond the value proposition, establishing professional level compensation for school board members has a few other advantages. First, and perhaps foremost, professional level compensation would likely attract a greater number and a more diverse selection of professionals with the varied skills necessary for overseeing a large public organization. 

Arguably, we have underestimated the knowledge, experience and professional competence necessary to effectively manage a school district. School board members must navigate public meeting laws, human resource laws, collective bargaining arrangements, financial reports with various accounting methods, education policy reports based upon statistical modelling, public administration matters and community interactions. There are few jobs requiring such a vast array of skills — and which play such a crucial role in the lives of so many. It is unreasonable to expect to find more than a handful of individuals who are both able and willing to take on such a position and the stress it brings.  

This is not to say that we have not had, or do not have, school board members with applicable skills or who have not contributed significantly. Nor is to say that through dedication and diligence, one cannot acquire the skills and knowledge to be an effective board member. It is to say, however, that for all of these individuals, whether they come to the position with all desirable skills or whether they develop some of those skills once in the position, professional dedication should be acknowledged and appropriately rewarded.

Additionally, providing professional level compensation would allow the public to hold school boards to professional level accountability standards. Effective school boards are accountability driven, focused on a vision of a culture of improvement and spending less time on operational issues. Our school boards are desperately in need of a clearer set of performance standards. Clear expectations and requirements would benefit both the public and board members.

Notwithstanding proposed efforts to revisit our current systems of school board governance in the next legislative session, lawmakers should explore increasing compensation schedules for school board trustees. Amid dysfunction and significant budget deficits, it may seem like a counterintuitive time to suggest additional compensation. But if we are sincere about our commitment to education and to improving educational outcomes and student achievement, and if we want to attract and retain real professionals, we must consider adequately compensating them for their service. 

Collectively, we pay Nevada school board trustees about half a million dollars. Doubling the current compensation schedules of Nevada’s 107 school board trustees would cost roughly $1 million dollars — a small price to pay for the potentially significant returns on improved board governance. It would be an important step in ensuring that our state budget reflects our priorities and our collective commitment to education. 

Research shows that a well-functioning school board is linked to higher student achievement. While we have made tremendous strides investing in educational programs and professional development and incentive programs for educators, we have fallen short in our investment in the individuals responsible for setting a vision, working with the superintendents, establishing goals and ensuring accountability. As lawmakers consider different governance models next year, revisiting school board trustee compensation should be front and center of these deliberations. Our school boards, board members, students and community deserve better.  

Nancy Brune, Ph.D. is the founding executive director of the Guinn Center, a statewide, independent, nonpartisan policy research center. She is a senior fellow at the Boyd School of Law and serves on the Law and Leadership Program Advisory Council. Dr. Brune received her Ph.D. from Yale University and her Master of Public Policy and B.A. degrees from Harvard University. Prior to joining the Guinn Center, she was a senior policy analyst at Sandia National Laboratories, where she worked on issues of national security. You can follow her on Twitter @NancyBrune or email her at [email protected].