Board advocacy

BOARD ADVOCACY

One very effective way to be heard by your school district is to speak at school board meetings.  While you can feel free to speak at any board meeting, there are two particular board meetings you should target: (1) the board meeting where school staff first introduce the LCAP to the board between April and June and (2) the board meeting where the board votes to approve the LCAP, usually in June.

You have a right to speak at any board meeting.  School board meetings are governed by a law called the Brown Act, which makes sure that the public has full access to the way local governments make decisions.  Under the Brown Act school districts must: 

• Take all formal actions or decisions at a public meeting
• Provide prior notice of public meeting and an agenda:
  • Generally, the agenda must be posted at least 72 hours before meeting
  • Materials considered during the meeting must be publicly available (including the LCAP)
  • The board cannot consider items not listed on the agenda
• Members of the public must be allowed to provide comment on any item
• Communication about any formal action that involves a majority of members of the body cannot occur outside of a public meeting

Practical tips:

• While all districts must follow the rules above, they may also create their own additional rules, check your district’s website to understand the procedures
• Usually you need to show up early and put your name down on the speaker list or grab a speaker card to make sure you can speak
• Comments are usually restricted to 2-5 minutes, so make sure your statement is short, clear, and strong
• There is strength in numbers – gather friends, family, and other partners to share the same message
• Sometimes board meetings are recorded and sometimes they are not.  If they are not, you may want to record audio or video or take notes to keep a record.

Resources

• Public meeting requirements (English)
• Public meeting requirements (Spanish)
• Sample board comments

For more information about board advocacy, including meetings with school board members, holding a rally, and using media and social media strategies, please check out our full LCAP campaign toolkit.