Representation matters: descriptive representation, school board election systems, and the California Voting Rights Act of 2001

2019-05-07School boards serve as the policy-making body within our education system. Yet, there is a disparity between the diversity of school board members and the demographic makeup of their student populations. Prior research has suggested that election structures play a role in the descriptive representation of elected officials. The purpose of this study was to explore the descriptive representation and decision-making practices of elected school board members in relation to the California Voting Rights Act of 2001 (CVRA). Through a natural experiment, this study examined if the change from at-large to by-trustee area elections played a role in the number of Latinos elected to school boards across California. The study utilized data on statewide school board election systems along with a database on the number of Latinos elected to California school boards. Qualitative interviews were conducted to understand perspectives of school board members in Los Angeles County regarding their perceptions of CVRA in their districts. The positive and statistically significant results of this study indicate that school board election structures do play a role in increasing the number of Latinos elected to California school boards. Furthermore, the key themes that emerged from qualitative findings suggest that the perception of CVRA varies across districts, with board member identity and background playing a critical role in its adoption and implementation in a community