In my mind, one of the most comforting things about both boards is knowing that as school management you don't have to maintain 100% knowledge of absolutely everything. Both types of boards, if chosen properly, can provide valuable insight, and oversight to senior management. I know at our school, while we go to as many trade conferences as possible to stay abreast of industry changes and trends we aren't working daily "in the trenches". Utilizing an Advisory Board has been tremendously helpful for us to keep on top of our market to keep our curriculums current, and maintaining their educational effectiveness.
I would present the value of governing and advisory boards to senior management or school owners by describing the contributions each can make to the school. At my school, the important contribution by an advisory board I would underscore is the potential for industry awareness, employment advantages, and technical consulting regarding relevant equipment and tools used by professionals in the industry. The important contribution that would be considered valuable in my school, with respect to a governing board, would be the industry knowledge and experience its members could bring and how that could contribute to the success of the school and its graduates by contributing to the vision of the 5 -10 year institutional improvement plan.
Greg,
Thanks for your posting. I think you were also implying that another value of your advisory board is to providing input to the curriculum review process. By engaging the members in curriculum review, you can their commitment to continue to provide "real world" input and valuable advice for graduate placement.
The real value of the governing board is to provide fiscal oversight and bring balance to management's perspectives; I suggest the industry knowledge is secondary to the fiscal responsibilities.
R. Roehrich
With large established school,people are more willing to serve on both of these bodies, but with start up schools and small school some times it's harder to find quality people who is willing to serve and will give the time required to contribute.
I am fortunate to be part of an organization whose senior management supports the value of advisory boards.
I oversee program directors as well who aid in the planning of sessions and recruiting of members. We have found over the years that we benefit the best from employers and industry members who also work with us with regard to externship and employment opportunities.
Our advisory board membership is predominantly employers and externship supervisors who work with us and have, through the years been very active in providing feedback on our curriculum. By establishing this kind of relationship with them, they have more "buy in" into the process of advisory boards and are very attuned to their roles & contributions to the school.
Our continued challenge is to expand the membership to include more members in the field so that the school can receive a wider range of feedback from the industry.
Anna,
Could you describe what role your advisory boards play in the process of assessing student learning outcomes/goals? It's one thing to provide input to the curriculum structure and content, but there is a valuable role that could be played by advisory boards in assisting an institution assess the results of the teaching process, i.e outcomes.
Dr. Roehrich
As a for-profit accredited vocational school we have Federal, State and Accreditation requirements to form governing and advisory boards. More importantly, we have an obligation to our staff and students to prepare our school curriculum and facilities with the most current, relevant and productive training. The boards make our school structure more:
Efficient with our resources
Profitable for future success
Accountable for our decisions
Effective in our training
Successful with Job Placement for our Graduates
Respected in the local community
Advisory boards play a key role in ensuring that the learning goals are equivalent to expectations set by the industry. It assures that what the program expects to teach the student are aligned with responsibilities that will be expected of graduates.
The advisory boards play a vital role in aligning the program goal with the career/industry goal which is expressed and measured through the identification of learning outcomes. The advisory board assists the institution in molding future graduates on skills and expectations that are required on the field.
Since the Governing Board's job is to monitor the financial health of the organization and all businesses want to be financially healthy, the value of this speaks for itself to stakeholders. With respects to Advisory Boards, having valuable input and feedback from those in the field with respects to curriculum and placement is highly, highly valuable. Board members can serve as a great resource to the Placement Services Team.
Since an advisory board provides general advice which would then be evaluated by staff and senior management, the governing board could take whatever required actions to carry out a plan.
John,
Dr. Robert Roehrich
John,
Happy New Year!
You comment is completely correct! Advisory boards, when properly administered provide a valuable service to an institution; however, it is always up to staff or senior management team to determine what it accepts and implements from the advisory committee. That said, there should always be a feedback loop back to the committee to keep them informed about there results of their input. Managing the committee's meeting agendas and follow-up communications are important steps to guide the committee in the making thoughtful recommendations to management.
Do you have an example of when an advisory committee made a recommendation that management did not support and how that action was communicated back to the committee?
R. Roehrich
Anna, could you share the constituents of your advisory board? Our school offers nursing and healthcare related diplomas and degrees. We are in the process of forming an Advisory Committee in anticipation of starting the accreditation process. To date we have commitments from 2 local high school guidance counselors, 2 human resource professionals at local medical facilities, a nursing supervisor at a local medical facility and an equipment vendor. I would like to add an educator but am uncertain of who would provide the best oversight without risking proprietary information.
Dr. Carolyn Farrell
Would you be willing to share a research article that supports or provides evidence to support the contribution of a board to an institution? Thank you. Dr. Carolyn Farrell
Carolyn,
I've searched my files and the Internet, sorry to report I did not locate the type of article you requested. If you come across one, I'd like very much to see it. I will continue to search a other board sources.
Dr. Robert Roehrich
Carolyn,
I might be able to help. Are you looking specifically for an educator with ABHES or another healthcare related accreditor, or would someone with regional or national accreditation fit the bill?
Dr. Robert Roehrich
What is presented in the first lesson is right on target. In the United States as in other countries businesses in general seek outside assistance in the form of governing Boards and/or advisory boards. And even though they differ in scope, they both provide support in the area of guidance and mentorship. The challenge is in its implementation. Whereas the Governing board has a legal responsibility to act for the good of the organization, the outcome can be less than favorable. The Advisory board goal in program creation can only be successful if the industry in question can become better because of the school’s contribution.
Arthur,
Thank you for your comment. I would add, one of the significant differences between governance and advisory boards is the emphasis placed on fiscal matters. Governing boards have fiduciary responsibility for the financial health of the institution, whereas advisory boards only address financial matters affecting delivery, effectiveness or outcomes. Another key role of advisory board members is to assist career services personnel in networking within the industry and local community.
Dr. Robert Roehrich
I would likely appeal to elements of time and effectiveness.
I would try to sell them on the fact that in some cases they don’t need to navigate unfamiliar waters alone and that putting together a good governance structure and a board of advisers would create a powerful asset that could be useful to them when they need to get objective advice, compare against competitors, gauge trends, seek new strategic positions, have introductions made or build enrollment, etc. not to mention to comply with law as applicable.
Timothy ,
This sounds like a good strategy. I would add to your approach an element of board development and training to establish consistent board practices and create a continuing evolution of training and awareness of board responsibilities.
Dr. Robert Roehrich
With the governing board being a requirement, the value add is not something that one would often have to defend, but if so, would be easy to do. Just as our nations judicial system and government have checks and balances in place to ensure equality and drive governance that is in the best interest of the people, the governing board serves as a check and balance to ensure the CEO and leadership are making decisions that have the best interest of the organization, and it's employees in mind. Advisory boards may be a bit more challenging to defend, but that is not to say they are less value added. The benefits of the advisory board that I would highlight include the ability to introduce external points of view, build on technical knowledge and expertise, and create a forum for healthy debate on best approach to programs.
