I have mixed feelings about school boards. From what I've seen, school board elections are often the adult equivalent of student council elections, i.e., school popularity contests. But, I do like the idea of people on the school's "front line," so to speak, having a say in how things are done. Tough call.
What bothers me more than the school board issue is what seems a lack of parental and community commitment to our country's public school system. I encounter people every day who seem to assume that private is better just because. I live in a neighborhood where the neighborhood school is literally that; we don't have bus service because our district is mapped in a way that we are all within walking distance of the school. Interestingly, we have a Catholic school also within walking distance of us. I know people who are NOT Catholic who are sending their kids to that school. Why? The public school is excellent, parental involvement is high, and the Catholic school doesn't even have the resources to meet the needs of kids who need things like speech therapy or special education. Susie Buffett, daughter of Warren, started the Sherwood Foundation in Omaha, where she and all the Buffett siblings grew up going to public school. The foundation is committed to public education, human services and social justice. She says, "When I was growing up, my mother worked tirelessly to improve the public schools. My father has always said if there was one new amendment to the Constitution, it should be that every student in the country be required to attend public schools because then they would be good. I grew up with that mentality embedded in my brain." I'm all for having choices and less government involvement in my life in general, but this is food for thought.