How to write a letter to a school board director

One of the single greatest perks of being on the Board of Education is meeting and talking to a great number of people. It's an extroverts dream. Whether people agree or disagree with something I’ve said or a policy that is being proposed is immaterial. It only matters that people feel free to engage their democracy, and that their democracy has a responsive.

Though I love talking to people I have to admit that some people are more fun than others. Some people know how to write to their elected School Board, and others clearly are not proficient.

For those that want help, I might offer a few suggestions about writing to your school board (especially if writing to me).

First, here are a few things to do:

1.       Identify yourself early in the letter as a parent, community member, teacher, etc. It helps for context.

2.       Next, get to the point, be concise, and resist rewriting War & Peace to ensure every last detail is included. Remember, I am reading and answering email as late as 3:00 AM.

3.       I personally love attachments of articles, data, studies, basically things that help me be more informed. Community members have gifted me with a  war chest of information that has expanded my understanding of critical issues. Thank you.

4.       Finally, close your letter in a courteous manner. Some people end with “regards,” or “sincerely,” which are cool enough. Personally, I prefer “love, [insert name].” Just kidding. Just tell me that you truly support public education so that I know an ally has written me.

Now, here are some things to avoid doing if you care to be taken seriously:

1.       Don’t threaten to send your kids to private school. Personally, I see it as culturally juvenille, and it isn’t exactly the nuclear option you think it is – at least not with me.

2.       Don’t posit weird conspiracy theories that you think explain my decisions. At the end of the day I’m sincere about creating a fairer, better performing version of public education.

3.       Don’t threaten not to vote for me in the next election. I’m not asking for your vote and I’m not campaigning. I’m spending many hours considering the complex details of public school reform because I’ve already been elected.

4.       Don’t be rude or insinuate things you cannot substantiate. It wastes your time and mine. On any given day I am accused of being “overly favorable to black kids” and being in bed with the “white upper middle-class status quo.”  Can both be true?

5.       Be careful when you assume that we haven’t considered some brilliant factoid or data item that you are the sole owner of. Yes, you're pretty smart, but our staff is more thorough than you’ll ever give them credit for.

None of this is to say that you should not be free to write in any style you want. Knock yourself out. However, there should be some concern about what effect you want the letter to have. Do you want to influence, inspire, or insult?

Again, for the record, I love receiving mail. I’ve loved it since I was very young. It’s a great job benefit for someone that loves communication as much as I do. But there is a gaping difference between the communication that clarifies issues in order to improve decision making and the communication that made purely of negative political and social sport.

Good luck with your writing campaign.