Board Certification (BC)

Through Board Certification (BC), the BMA recognizes mastery of the unique aspects of group process. How board members work together and with their superintendent determines the success of their deliberations.

Board Certification recognizes the full board’s commitment to effective governance and continuous improvement through training. Areas of focus include ethics, goal setting, board roles & responsibilities in the areas of policy development, finance, communications, community engagement, student achievement and other areas of need as identified by your district’s board.

Board Certification requirements:

  • Earn sixteen (16) credits of group training within a four-year period. *
  • Participate in at least one full-day retreat (or an equivalent of board workshops)
  • Complete an NJSBA Policy Wellness Check (policy audit) to ensure that the board’s policy manual is current.
  • Submission of the most recently ratified teacher’s contract and completion of the Teacher Contract Settlement Survey for the corresponding year(s) of the agreement.  The information collected is to provide all districts with the most up-to-date information for negotiations purposes and is available through NJSBA’s members only Negotiations Data Portal.
  • Demonstrate commitment to continuous improvement through annual completion of the board self-evaluation.
  • Comply with current mandatory training requirements for each board member.
  • Satisfy the governance portion of the New Jersey Department of Education monitoring process (If the board has not received a satisfactory rating from the NJDOE and the state has intervened in board operations, the board may demonstrate effective governance by pursuing the alternate route of annually adopting and implementing a “Code of Governance” developed with NJSBA staff.)
  • Meet all the governance indicators in the Annual Performance Framework (Charters only)

*If credits are not earned within four years, those from the first year will be dropped and credits from year five will be added. To earn credits, attendance at training must include seven members of a nine-member board; five members of a seven-member board, or four members of a five-member board. The superintendent must also participate in training.

Certification will be maintained for four (4) years.

The Carole E. Larsen Master Board Certification (MBC) is awarded in recognition of high performing boards. The board must provide evidence to demonstrate an emphasis on student achievement in their board actions. To earn the Carole E. Larsen Master Board Certification, a currently Certified board within the first two years of earning its certification, must also complete at least ten (10) additional hours of training for a total of twenty-six) 26 board credits.