Board-Savvy Superintendent
Preventing Board Members’ Attempted End Runs
BY KAREN G. RUE/School Administrator, May 2022

A FEW YEARS BACK, board member Martha Math (a pseudonym) stopped by my office to offer her advice to the superintendent on a new math curriculum adoption. A prominent professor at the local university, she was known for often-controversial opinions. That day, she explained the direction my recommendation to the school board should take. A gentle reminder that she is an authority on this subject was not lost on me.

What just happened? Nothing less than a good, old-fashioned end run around the rest of the board. Well meaning? Probably. Harmful? Definitely.

A definition here, courtesy of idioms.online/end-run: “To do an end run is to maneuver around an obstacle or authority in order to accomplish a certain goal.”

Professor Math was trying to influence the recommendation by the staff and superintendent to the board — in effect, hoping the board would hear her choice and be asked to approve it. Ultimately, this could deny the board the opportunity to hear and vote on a recommendation other than her own.

One Hard Lesson

Governance and district leadership intersect in the boardroom. When board members attempt end runs, whether they realize it or not, they negate the contributions of their peer members. It comes at a cost to the superintendent and impacts the governance role of the board. Creating an environment where board members vie to influence your recommendations is a non-starter.

I learned that lesson the hard way. As a new superintendent, I listened to a board member who worked for a health agency with access to free drug tests for parent use with teens. He was a strong proponent of drug testing as a tool for parents and asked me to make that happen through the district health committee.

Thinking that was a good idea, I did. Allowing myself to be influenced by a board member resulted in talented staff feeling pushed by me to endorse an action they would not have taken otherwise. Trust needed to be rebuilt. The other board members gave me a quick lesson in undue influence. Would each of them be able to get their pet project through by coming to me individually? It was not fun learning leadership lessons the hard way.

Information Sharing

The cardinal rule in board relationships is this: What one knows, all should know. It exists for a reason. I would extend that to a second interpretation: What we do for one board member, we do for all. So back to Professor Math. My response to her was simple and finely tuned: “I appreciate your insights. As you know, the math committee is heavily researching this topic. I know you honor the work of these district leaders and are looking forward to our work resulting in a recommendation to the board.”

Board-savvy superintendents want to be on the same team with their boards for a united partnership. We dream of being the poster child of good governance where the ideal exists. Each supporting the other in creating successes for students, where student achievement is what matters, and actions are focused on that goal. That requires courageous leadership and a commitment to supporting the board’s work, not the desires of individual members. Inviting and encouraging board members to step into the work of the district disenfranchises the rest of the board, leading to distrust or feelings of favoritism.

Name the topic — a new athletic director, building renovations, a position on facial masks, controversial books or race. Opportunities to influence what the board hears loom large. Well-intentioned board members step forward with sincere concerns.

Effective superintendents know that we contribute to a positive governance environment when we respect individuals yet work with the entire board in making strategic decisions for the good of all. That can be hard to do at times. Supportive board members are treasured, but not at the cost of stopping the quality work of the district’s educators or allowing one board member to stand in for the entire board.

Avoid the rush and stop the end runs from the start.

KAREN RUE is superintendent-in-residence for Texas Association of School Administrators in Austin, Texas. Twitter: @krue810