A study of how school board members acquire their knowledge of educational issues

The purpose of this study was to determine how School Board Members acquire their knowledge of educational issues. A questionnaire was used to examine the socio-economic background of Board of Education members, along with their acquisition of knowledge. The questionnaire was distributed to Elementary and High School Boards of Education in the Southern New Jersey area. The data collected from the questionnaires, research on Boards of Education and conclusions drawn from the summary of the data are presented. The study of the data indicates Boards of Education consist predominantly of white males, age 40 - 49, who have attended college, and have had a child in the district. Most School Board Members indicated they were satisfied with their Boards of Education, and rely on school board discussions and superintendent recommendations to acquire their knowledge of educational issues. All of the members questioned were unpaid, the majority did not belong to any outside educational agencies, and a large majority did not rely on personal research or discussion with school personnel to gain educational knowledge. The major finding of this study indicates School Board Members rely heavily on superintendent recommendations to gain educational knowledge