Report of the Consensus Meeting on June 29,1999:


COMMITTEE FOR THE SELECTION OF SCHOOL BOARD NOMINEES
OF THE MAMARONECK SCHOOL DISTRICT

The League of Women Voters values the work of the Committee for the Selection of School Board Nominees as an independent, non-partisan committee who seeks out candidates for election to the Board of Education. We recommend the following changes in their procedures:

1. Length of term: We recommend a membership term of three-years (rather than the current two-years) in order to develop greater continuity within the Committee. We suggest having an executive board serving two years term for 2^nd and 3^rd year members of the Committee, with half the board members elected one year and the other half the following year (e.g. Pres. and Sec. on even years; VP and Treas. on odd years). We recommend an orientation meeting in the fall for first year members to acquaint them with the operation of the Committee.
2. Broadening the committee membership: We feel that the current membership of 24 people, with 6 elected from each elementary school, inevitably favors candidates for the Committee who have children currently in the elementary school and unintentionally restricts the number of members serving who are not directly tied to these elementary schools. We encourage the Committee to look for ways to broaden their membership. One suggestion is to reduce the number of members from each elementary district to 5 (for a total of 20) and add 4 "at-large" elected positions. We feel this would broaden the scope of membership.
3. Number of candidates to endorse: We encourage the Committee to maintain its current flexibility (i.e., the ability to nominate more than one candidate for an opening), as stated in their current by-laws, and to re-examine the issue after the Committee has been restructured, as recommended below. (There were strong opinions expressed in opposition to endorsing more candidates than the number of openings on the Board of Education, as well as strong opinions supporting the position that all qualified candidates should be recommended regardless of the number of openings.)
4. Funding of the Committee: Because the Committee can no longer use school vehicles to disseminate information, the cost of informing the public about the committee's activities and soliciting candidates to run for the Committee each year will increase. Therefore the committee will need to have a source of income other than contributions from its membership. We recommend establishing a fundraising plan, either an annual event or a mailing campaign.
5. Ad-hoc Committee: We recommend establishing a small ad-hoc committee to restructure the Selection Committee, consisting of former members (including those who are leaving the committee now), next year's members, and interested individuals with expertise in legal and publicity areas who can help facilitate this process. We recommend that the work be done before the beginning of the school year 1999-2000.