Individual Certifications
NJSBA offers a variety of certification programs for board members who wish to take their training to a higher level. They include:
Certificated Board Member
Master Board Member
Certified Board Leader
The Certificated Board Member is the first tier of the NJSBA Board Member Academy certification program. Areas of study are designed to give members a firm foundation in the essential governance skills needed to carry out their responsibilities. To receive this certification, board members must earn at least 20 credits and attain some credits in all of the following CBM core topic areas:
- Relationships: board/superintendent, board/community, board/board
- Policy
- Curriculum
- School Finance
- School Law
- Labor Relations
- Board Operations
Once all core areas have been addressed, the balance of credit hours may be earned in any of NJSBAs training programs. Credits must be earned at a rate of at least two per year.
Although NJSBA believes that training is essential, it should supplement, not replace, actual board experience. Therefore, a CBM will not be conferred prior to the members completion of at least one three-year term.
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The second level of certification, Master Board Member, builds on the CBM. Programs are designed to enhance interpersonal skills, strategic planning, negotiations and leadership skills, enabling members to better govern the course of education in their schools. To receive the MBM, members must have earned a CBM and 20 additional credits. The following core areas must be addressed:
- Leadership
- School/Community Relations
- Effective Meetings
- Strategic Planning
- Group Dynamics
- Board Member Ethics
- School Finance
- Labor Relations
- School Law
To further qualify for this high standard of achievement, candidates need to demonstrate mastery of the core areas by passing an NJSBA administered exam.
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The highest level of individual certification in the Board Member Academy is Certified Board Leader. This certificate will be phased in over a three year period (2005-2008).
To be awarded the CBL, you must: complete the Leadership Conference; earn 15 credits beyond MBM from the leadership curriculum; and serve for a minimum one-year as a board officer. In addition, you must submit a portfolio; participate in a simulation; or complete a practical examination.
The elective courses for this certification are:
- Leadership Conference
- Focusing the Board on Student Achievement
- Planning for Change Coming Soon
- Planning and Executing Productive Meetings Coming Soon
- Presentation Skills
- Parliamentary Procedure
- Communicating Effectively
- Problem Solving/Decision Making Coming Soon
- Engaging the Public
Realizing that board members do not want to wait until they are eligible to earn the CBL to take these courses, NJSBA will bank the credits for you until they can be applied to that designation.
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In addition to individual certifications, NJSBA offers certifications for boards. They include:
Board Certification
Board Recertification
Master Board Certification
The most important tenet of boardsmanship is that individual board members have no legal status other than that of any ordinary citizen, except when sitting with the rest of the board in a legally constituted meeting. Through Board Certification (BC), the Academy recognizes mastery of the unique aspects of group process. How board members work together and with their chief school administrator determines how successful their deliberations are.
Boards will earn their certification by having NJSBA staff conduct programs designed specifically for them. A separate time must be set aside for these workshops.
Board Certification requires that a board earn 18 credits, participate in at least one full day or longer retreat and conduct a board self-evaluation. It is awarded for a minimum of three years and stays in effect as long as there isnt a turnover of more than one-third of the board who were seated at the time certification was granted.
Due to the special nature of direct service training, each credit earned will equal one hour of training. To earn credits, attendance must include at least seven out of nine board members, five out of seven, or four of five.
Core areas and suggested topics that need to be addressed include:
Group Process
- Teamwork
- Interpersonal relations
- Conflict resolution
- Board/superintendent relations
- Decision making
Planning
- Strategic planning
- Goal setting
- Self-evaluation
Effective Meetings
- Role of the president
- Agenda development
- Parliamentary procedure
Additional topics developed on an as needed basis will also earn board credits. Credit for local board training is not transferable to individual member accreditation programs.
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Board Recertification (BR) requires that a board earn an additional 12 credits, and participate in a full-day retreat, and conduct a board self-evaluation. The same attendance requirements for certification are in effect for recertification. Upon completion of these requirements, a recertification emblem will be affixed to the board’s certification plaque.
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To earn Master Board Certification, a currently certified or recertified board must attend the Board-Superintendent Institute along with its chief school administrator. Attendance at the Board-Superintendent Institute must include at least seven out of nine board members, five out of seven, or four of five. A separate plaque is awarded for MBC. A board whose certification has lapsed must earn recertification and attend the Board-Superintendent Institute along with its chief school administrator.
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