January 2012 is the 11th annual School Board Recognition Month in New Jersey, a time to raise public awareness of the roles and responsibilities of local boards of education – and a time for communities to thank their local school board members for their service.

To help communities celebrate School Board Recognition Month, NJSBA has created an online resource page. NJSBA’s School Board Recognition Month resources contains information, links, template resolutions, certificates and news releases that can be used by school boards, county school boards associations, parent organizations, municipalities and county officials. The web page also contains reports and editorials that give insight into the importance of school boards.

The National School Boards Association began School Board Recognition Month in the early 1990s, and various states followed suit by dedicating one month of the year to recognize the contributions of local board members. 

In New Jersey, local boards of education oversee 587 school districts which, in turn, operate 2,500 public schools and provide educational services to nearly 1.4 million children. School boards set the policies for the district, and decide curriculum, financing and staffing. In addition, New Jersey’s 4,800 local school board members devote countless hours to improve public education – with no benefits or compensation.

School Board Recognition Month in New Jersey comes at an important time in the candidacy process for local board membership, as many potential candidates will consider running for school board in the annual election on April 17, 2012.