Onboarding 101: How To Educate and Engage New Trustees 

Every trustee can relate to stepping into their board service, realizing there is so much to learn and so much they don’t know or understand. Knowing where to begin can seem just as challenging. 

“When I first started at TASB I was told that for new trustees, it’s like drinking from a firehose,” Susan Elliott, director of curriculum and instructional design for TASB Board Development Services, said of trustees acclimating to their board and service. “In the course of my research, I interviewed a number of people and one of them said, ‘I wouldn’t really say a firehose, I’d say it’s more like a municipal water pipe.’” 

Elliott was concerned that new trustees face so many challenges as they begin their service. She believed that successfully onboarding new trustees could go a long way to making the board transition smoother and the board’s work more effective.  

She was so intrigued, she researched best practices for onboarding trustees as part of her doctoral thesis, sharing her findings during sessions at Summer Leadership Institute in June and at txEDCON in September.  

Her research showed that the more formal onboarding opportunities offered – which may seem like corporate onboarding – to new trustees over time, the better the outcome for the trustee and the board.  

For a new trustee there is a lot to learn and many challenges to overcome, including: 

• Understanding the role of a trustee 
• Knowing where to go for answers  
• Identifying what success looks like for a trustee 
• Navigating the culture of a bonded board 

Waiting until a new trustee is sworn in and takes their seat to begin the onboarding process may put a board at a disadvantage, Elliott said. Providing the right support at the right time is critical and Elliott highlighted four key phases of the journey, pre-election, “the window,” post-swearing in, and ongoing. 

Each phase offers the new trustee a chance to increase their awareness of the board’s work and board governance knowledge. They can build on their knowledge and keep growing over time. This can be done in a variety of ways at each stage. 

The Four Stages of Onboarding 

1. Pre-Election 

During the campaign or earlier the board may: 

• Connect with candidates, sharing information about how the board works 
• Build a candidate's awareness of the role, the district, and the board’s culture 
• Encourage potential trustees to participate in district committees to gain an understanding of the district and the board’s work 

2. The Window 

The critical period for a trustee between being elected and being sworn in. During this time: 

• Sitting trustees make welcome calls to new trustees 
•  Meetings are scheduled between the new trustee and the superintendent 
•  An operational orientation is held with the board secretary or other district official  

Some of the items that might be shared during this window might include, but are not limited to: 

• Offering a high-level explanation of the Open Meetings Act 
• Providing an overview of the board operating procedures 
• Discussing the logistics for training 
• Explaining the need for public record maintenance 
• Sharing helpful resources, such as a district organizational chart, a glossary of terms, “Robert’s Rules of Order,” and the book “The Governance Core” 

3. Post-Swearing In 

Now that the trustee is officially a board member with full legal authority, they can participate in the local orientation where they might meet with the superintendent, board president, and high-level cabinet members. This is the time to share a high-level overview of who does what in the district. 

Holding a team building session and discussing, affirming, and/or updating the board operating procedures is also beneficial during this time, early in their tenure. This is the best time to assign a mentor from the board who will provide support. 

4. Ongoing 

Even after the trustee has gone through the first three phases, the process to build their content knowledge and situational awareness should continue, Elliott said. During this time, there should be more organizational knowledge building. It’s also a time when the trustee may want to dive deeper into different aspects of the district in meetings with cabinet members, the chief financial officer, or even trustees who are specialists in areas like finance or law. 

Elliott said her research has shown that the more opportunities a trustee has to learn about their role over time through a formal process, the better the outcome for the board. Boards that are unsure where to begin the process have BDS to lean on for support.  

BDS consultants are experts in designing supportive in-district training that provides boards with the tools they need whether that is related to a board transition, a superintendent review, or whole board coaching. In addition, Elliott’s team creates continuing education courses for trustees, which can be found on the Online Learning Center. 

Learn more about how Board Development Services can provide your board with customized training.