There is no question that improving student achievement in our nation's cities should be the fundamental priority of urban school boards. There is no question that the crisis in urban public schools is urgent, well-documented as it is by teacher shortages, incidents of violence, crumbling facilities, declining test scores, and the widespread erosion of public confidence in American education.

The question is whether urban school boards can become part of the solution to these problems by rethinking their role in the educational enterprise as that of team leaders who focus first and foremost on student achievement.

"People doing what they already do, but more intensively, will not work." —Steve Palko, President and Vice Chairman, Cross Timbers Oil Company, former Board Member, Fort Worth Independent School District.

Admittedly, the experience of school board tenure, according to one person involved in this project, can be like leaping onto a moving train, doing what you can, and leaping off when your term expires. Nevertheless urban school boards must be willing to address the gaps between their perceptions and those of the urban public. They must acknowledge the urgency of the situation facing most urban schools—and respond by reconceptualizing their role—if they are to be effective in their primary task of raising academic achievement for all students.

In that effort, school boards must constantly seek ways to support and enhance the teacher- student learning connection, must focus their attention and actions on educational issues, and must delegate as much authority as possible for administrative and procedural decisions. Ultimately, of course, urban school boards cannot by themselves improve academic achievement for all students. Therefore, school boards must reconceive their work as the work of team leaders, enlisting and engaging all the stakeholders in this important task.

While a wide range of potential strategies and tactics will be needed to raise academic achievement, shaped by the specific conditions in particular schools, most will fall within four key areas.

• First, high expectations for academic achievement by all students must be clearly articulated and must be backed by the resources, system-wide authority, and accountability needed to meet those expectations.
• Second, parents and other members of the public must be actively involved as partners and allies in the process of public education.
• Third, quality education depends on quality teachers—and urban school boards must focus on attracting and keeping teachers who know their subject and how to teach it.
• Finally, because learning takes place best in a setting that is physically and emotionally secure, school boards must ensure that all students attend schools that are safe and where diversity is respected and valued.

The National School Boards Foundation is dedicated to continuing its work on these issues. Convening conversations about this report and sharing the survey instrument for use with school board members in communities across the country are first steps toward this goal.

Most importantly, the Foundation is working with experts, potential partners, and funding organizations to develop solutions that will work locally—and that can be adapted for use across the country. Programs to facilitate changes in urban school board practice could include interventions with selected urban districts, tools, training programs and technical assistance, online strategies, and other approaches.

Improving our nation's urban schools necessarily will be a collaborative campaign—and it is an urgently needed one. School board members can and must play an essential function in leading this nationwide effort. The bottom line is that urban school boards must refocus their efforts if they are to accomplish their vital task of educating productive citizens.