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Katie Klanderud
Paula O’Loughlin
Pivoting and Unexpected Opportunities — How Will MSBA Adapt Its Learning Opportunities? By Katie Klanderud, MSBA Director of Board Development, and Paula O’Loughlin, MSBA Associate Director of Board Development
Change is inevitable, but these past few months are nothing like we have seen before. Like you, we needed to pivot quickly and found ourselves unexpectedly working from home. We saw the immediate need to start adapting all services to be offered online, making sure that the MSBA membership received constant communication with as much clarity and transparency as possible. Even quicker pivoting is needed when the information we receive some days changes by the hour. Your MSBA staff has used this pivot opportunity to learn and visualize how we can get members what they need from our make-shift home office spaces. Some of it has been daunting and at the same time exciting. We could not have fathomed in March that superintendent searches could be offered remotely and that we would be hosting virtual, statewide Q & A sessions for our membership that welcomed more than 400 attendees per topic! The process has not been perfect, but we learn from the hiccups and ask for your grace as we discover how to best serve and support all of our members now and well into the future.
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JULY–AUGUST 2020
Question: How will MSBA be offering workshops and in-services in the future? We are adapting MSBA’s Board Development offerings to online formats. As we get closer to the scheduled events, MSBA will determine if we are able to offer an in-person option as well. In September, we will virtually hold the “Building a High-Performance Team: Phase III” and “Representing Your Community Through Policy and Engagement: Phase IV” workshops. Watch your email and the MSBA website for dates, times, and registration. Your Board Development Team has developed an online format for school board team in-services that has already been delivered and implemented successfully in several districts. The feedback has been great. If you are interested in an MSBA staff member meeting with your board for an in-service, to explore mutual expectations as a team, or to take part in the board team self-evaluation, please give us a call at 800-324-4459 to discuss the format and options that will work best for your board team.
MINNESOTA SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION | JOURNAL
