Chapter 3
Educational administrative meetings can either be productive or painful. If you want to conduct an efficient meeting, you may want to set ground rules. You have to take charge of the faculty just as they must manage their students in the classroom. There is nothing worse than sitting through a meeting in which colleagues or administrators beat a dead horse. As the facilitator of the meeting, you must be able to rein in conversations about subjects that cannot be solved, don’t affect the whole group, or that are simply off-track from the agenda. Here are some phrases that might be handy to help control large groups of faculty during your meetings:
Before we begin I would like to set some ground rules.
We will be strictly adhering to the agenda today.
Thank you for being prompt to the meeting. May we begin?
Take a moment and read over today’s agenda.
The meeting is set for____________minutes.
Do we have any items that need to be added to the agenda?
Conducting Efficient Meetings
I trust you will support each other and show respect when someone is speaking.
In order to identify new needs for our committee, we will be making a list of future action items to discuss at our upcoming meetings.
Today’s meeting will follow this path: . . .
It only makes sense that today’s meeting focuses on . . . and not . . .
I will need to steer side conversations and unsanctioned items away from today’s meeting.
I will keep alert to any conflicts that may arise during the meeting, but I will not have them debated in the interests of time. We can discuss these conflicts at a later scheduled date.
As time is precious, this meeting will end at____________P.M. Please be respectful of the time if offering a comment.
This meeting will monitor____________accurately against objectives such as . . .
If we could channel our attention to the items at hand . . .
Today we will enforce a strict time limit on questions and answers in order to address the issues listed on our agenda.
Perfect Phrases for Taking Minutes
The point of taking minutes, or detailed notes, is to record a meeting in the most general manner without pointing to anyone in particular or reflecting negatively on any individual participant. Minutes from meetings should be transparent, but usually they are on a restricted distribution list. Minutes are only referred to when someone wants to get at something or someone. Otherwise they are tucked away in a binder never to be looked at that closely.
Although common sense tells you this defeats the purpose of minutes, it is the reality of minutes in most academic institution. They are a motion that people just follow through with to cover themselves in an audit or to document phases of progress.
Minutes must be accurate. When you are assigned to take, write up, and distribute the minutes, there are some things that you should do:
• Take attendance.
• For those invited but not in attendance, instead of writing, “They didn’t show,” be more diplomatic: “Apologies from [list the names].”
• List the date, room, and time period of the meeting and the name of the person conducting the meeting.
• List the agenda items.
• If necessary, add the category “items added to the agenda” for topics that did not make the publications but all agree to discuss.
• List “new items for business” in a separate section of the minutes to distinguish topics from past meetings.
• Bullet-point the topics.
Here are some phrases to use:
It was suggested that Mr. Phil Quirke would lead the next jamboree event for the district.
Dr. Leah Bornstein hopes to begin recruitment soon.
Dr. Steve Allison requested teachers to volunteer for . . .
Teachers will be asked to . . .
If an item is important, you should highlight or boldface it and refer to it as an “action item.” This lets people know that it is of importance and needs to be dealt with quickly.
There are words and phrases to always avoid: for example, “The____________was awful.” Make every effort to make negatives into something neutral. Don’t use names with negative comments: “Jayden Flynn suggested it was the direct fault of the special education department.” Don’t use someone’s name with an accusation. Don’t use the word everyone: “Everyone hated the idea.” Instead, say it was “unanimous” and change the word “hate” to “strongly disagreed with” or “disliked.” Don’t quote people: “Mr. Broder said, ‘The whole school event was just one big mistake.’” You have just made Mr. Broder enemies by using his name with that type of statement. His comments could haunt him and will prevent people from speaking up in the future. It is better to rephrase it to say something like this:
“It was felt that the event should be rethought before future implementation.”
The rule of thumb is “never say never”: “Ms. Cook mentioned that she never intended to help out with an event like that again.” It is better to rephrase it to say something like this:
Next year, new committee members should serve on the committee, as past members will be retiring.
The sentence “Nothing was accomplished on the issue of____________” suggests that the committee couldn’t function. You can phrase this in a better way:
The committee did not come to a resolution on the topic of____________.
The sentence “The committee worried in case someone might get hurt and sue us” is offering suggestions that could give people ideas that are not in the school’s best interests. It would be far better to phrase it like this:
The committee discussed liability issues in regard to the event. The chairperson will confirm details with the school’s business manager/insurer/legal department.
The word problem is a problem because of its negative nature: “The committee discussed all the problems.” Such issues should be called challenges because this suggests that they will be overcome.
Sometimes, depending on the situation, you may want to refer to the minutes before the final distribution as something like the following:
A draft of the minutes
A summary of the unedited minutes
A log of the minutes before finalization
Closed distribution list of the draft of the minutes
When writing minutes for a faculty meeting, department meeting, supervisor meeting, and/or parent meeting, have the minutes vetted by someone neutral who was there. Remove any finger-pointing, negativity, or inappropriate wording. If you choose to use a name, do so with a positive statement, such as the following:
Mike Galliher’s achievement was credited for . . .
Rosie McLaughlin and Elaine Plumb were actively involved in . . .
Peter Gregory and Norm Breault developed a program to attain . . .
Suzanne Harrison and Leullen Fox showed evidence of achievement . . .
Experience and expertise was offered by Dawn Hertzberg.
A positive impact was felt by . . .
John Canning offered the district a positive . . .
Members of the committee [list names] second the impressive involvement of . . .
Planning committees will consist of . . . [list names]
Transferable skills were noted and the following people volunteered their expertise: . . .
Perfect Phrases for Faculty Meetings
Faculty meetings are a necessary contractual item for the betterment of the educational process, but if not led properly they can be a disastrous meeting of the minds in which nothing gets accomplished and complaints flourish. I would like to begin this section with simple advice to administrators: faculty meetings can turn into town hall meetings, if not controlled. As educators, we have watched a simple meeting turn downright nasty at least once in our careers, because the meetings are usually scheduled at the end of the week at the end of the day, when people are tired and just want to get home. This, coupled with the fact that most union representatives want to speak after the meeting because all teachers and/or administrators are gathered, can cause sides of people’s personalities to surface that might not otherwise appear.
When running a faculty meeting, it is essential to take attendance twice, at the beginning of the meeting and again at the end, because teachers sign in and leave. When running a faculty meeting you often have to address issues with teachers, just as you do with students, because in meetings they will grade papers, doodle, read a book, or hold side conversations. You must make sure that teachers take faculty meetings seriously. It is your time as the administrator when you can talk with your staff as a whole. Avoid always choosing the same leaders, and avoid making teachers work on projects for the school that are never used. Otherwise, they will tune you out, tell you what you want to hear, and go about their business with no change or progress taking place.
Running a faculty meeting is an art. You need the meeting to be short, sweet, and to the point. Hand out any information that can be read instead of spoken. Speak on only the things that you can’t put in writing or don’t want traced back in years to come. If you are conducting a faculty meeting, here are some suggestions:
• Send reminders to teachers well in advance and make the meeting date set, such as the third Thursday of the month. This helps to avoid scheduling conflicts and allows your meeting to take priority. Make sure that meetings are scheduled on school grounds and not in restaurants that serve alcohol, as tax payers may frown upon such scenarios during contracted time.
• Distribute important information in writing.
• Stay on topic and walk around the room to help keep the teachers focused on the meeting.
• Use good judgment in selecting proper modes of communication.
• Use visual aids and involve the faculty with issues that are relevant.
• Compliment people and departments with what they have done right, and speak privately to them about what they have done wrong.
• Make each member of the faculty think you are speaking to him or her directly.
If you are addressing faculty, you may want to use the following phrases during your meeting:
I am not sure if you are all aware, but I would like to give you a quick FYI about . . .
A quick note that you might find of interest: . . .
Money might be available for . . . [then watch all the heads perk up in shock].
Give me a minute to give you this information that you are going to need.
Take a moment and jot down these reminders.
Today we must cover____________. If we can do so without side conversations, I think we will end earlier than expected.
Perfect Phrases for Community Meetings
Community meetings are very important, especially because the community pays the tax dollars that fund your school and its programs. You want to put on your best image to the community and make people feel as if the school you run is a very positive place, despite the problems or challenges it may face. Here are some phrases that welcome community members to your school:
I want to express my pleasure for your being with us today.
I want to recognize those of you who came this evening to support . . .
I am so glad you chose to accept our invitation to join us this evening.
We are blessed with our community members in the____________today.
Thank you for the generous time, money, and effort you as a community have offered our school.
It is a pleasure to welcome you to our school.
I am thankful to be able to work in a district with such a supportive community.
You are a great source of strength and support for our children and our school district.
Your goodwill and endless contributions to our school have made quite the difference.
I know I should convey a sense of modesty—but I am so proud that you came out to support us.
The sustained efforts from this community have helped us to . . .
You are a firm foundation of role models for the students who attend our community schools.
Perfect Phrases for Program Meetings
If you are meeting about a program, it is important that you learn how to phrase the standards that have built the program. Here are some phrases to use when conducting program-based meetings:
Can we take a moment to focus on our mission statement?
I would like for us to take a moment and examine the standards used in our____________program(s).
We need to think about our program structure, its administration, and future planning to sustain it.
Let’s assess the curriculum and instructional materials used with the____________program.
I would like to discuss the instruction used with the_____________program in today’s meeting.
Learner recruitment, intake, and orientation are the focus of today’s meeting about our program.
I would like us to look at how we assess and evaluate our current programs.
Take a moment to read our program narratives.
I would like to suggest a program self-review using this instrument.
Can we overview the standards, aims, and objectives of our____________ program?
Today’s meeting will describe the issues to be considered for developing new program standards.
Let’s break down the current components of our program to see what issues need to be addressed.
Let’s look at what practices have been effective in our programs.
Can we outline any case studies that might reflect our program’s outcomes at today’s meeting?
Perfect Phrases for Unplanned Meetings
Only schools depicted in the media have perfectly scheduled meetings; for schools in the real world unplanned meetings seem to be a way of life, since some parents and students drop in on teachers and administrators without warning. An incident may occur that requires you to call an unplanned meeting, and when it does there are phrases you can use to get through these moments. Here are some helpful examples:
A meeting wasn’t scheduled for today, but we could make time right now to discuss the issue of concern.
I wasn’t planning on meeting today about this issue, but since you are here, . . .
Thank you for dropping by. You are lucky I happen to have a few minutes to discuss this with you.
Please sit down, and I will be with you in a couple of moments.
Since we didn’t plan to meet today, I can only give you a few minutes. Is it possible to give me a quick summary of your concerns?
I have a few seconds if you want to meet briefly before my next appointment.
We don’t have an official meeting scheduled, but we could use this time for an unofficial fact-finding moment.
I would love to meet with you right now, but I already have another appointment waiting. Can you send me an e-mail, and I will be sure to schedule an appointment with you?
With my busy schedule, I don’t have time for drop-in meetings. Could we meet next____________instead?
Perfect Phrases for Meetings with Student Groups
Student groups need guidance. When addressing student groups, it is important that you keep some legal concepts in mind in order to protect yourself and the district from a lawsuit or parental complaint to the school board. Here are some legal concepts to keep in mind:
• A CORI-checked adult (checked for criminal record) must supervise any student groups that meet at the school.
• Courts have ruled that a school can deny student groups access when the school prohibits all student clubs or when the club is noncurricular and the school only permits curriculum-related groups.
• The equal access act applies only to secondary schools and not elementary schools.
• Secret societies and undemocratic organizations can be prohibited from meeting in public schools.
• Groups that fail to comply with reasonable regulations can be prohibited.
Knowing the laws can help you to phrase your wording carefully to students who may approach you seeking to have a group that meets at your school. Here are some perfect phrases that you can use to address the leaders of student groups:
Our school follows the Equal Access Act of 1984.
The EAA does not limit the authority of administrators to prohibit extracurricular organizations.
I am happy to speak with you about the issues involving schools and their powers to limit freedom of association.
Courts have ruled that the First Amendment does not allow educators to act as thought police.