Jim McLaughlin's Blog

Timeless Stories for My Brain and Yours

Blog

  • School taxes in Pennsylvania may soar to pay for pension promises – Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

    As I’ve known, but am now much more sensitive to, budget planning is not always within the control of local school boards. This article describes just one of the many pressures on districts that communities need to be aware of. School taxes in Pennsylvania may soar to pay for pension promises – Pittsburgh Tribune-Review As… Read more

  • How I Stay Informed as a Board Member

    This is the second of my two-part discussion of foundational stuff… I’m sure I’ll update this over time, but here is a short list of ways I stay informed (obviously, in addition to listening to the community, which I will discuss later on). 1. Research (online and good old fashion books)2. Talking to other board… Read more

  • How I Am Becoming an Informed Board Member

    This is the first of a two-part discussion of some foundational material that will allow me to discuss other ideas later on… A few folks were present my first evening as a new Board member.  What was placed in front of me was a stack of books about 10 inches high of materials I needed… Read more

  • FAQ: What’s it like being on the board?

    I’ve already gotten this question enough, so I’ll post a note now and update it as I learn more. Answer: It’s fascinating, fun, scary, exhausting, frustrating, angering, confusing (already!), and I wouldn’t miss a minute. I’m very proud to serve our community in this way. Although I’ve only been in the job for a little… Read more

  • A Good Old Idea

    You could easily argue that our system of schools is old, but here’s one idea that I have been introduced to, more formally, as a new board member.  Boards are policy bodies, not execution bodies, and the policies they produce need the careful consideration and buy-in of the administration to have any hope of being… Read more

  • Boarding is FUN

    Hey, I know this will get harder at times, much harder I’m sure, but I don’t think I could have found a job that, at this time of my life, could have brought together so much of my personal volunteer experiences with my professional development and managerial/leadership experiences.  Being a school director draws on all… Read more