Sandra Miller and Karen Sutton, school board members for the Community Schools of Frankfort, have received the exemplary governance award from the Indiana School Boards Association (ISBA). CSF was the only school district in the state to have two board members receive the exemplary award.
ISBA’s Exemplary Governance Awards (EGA) program celebrates school boards and school board members for demonstrating an outstanding commitment to continuous improvement and professional learning through active participation in ISBA or ISBA-recognized trainings, seminars, and conferences.
This year’s 179 school board member honorees were formally recognized at ISBA’s Spring Regional Meetings. The recipients include 82 Commendable board members, 48 Advanced board members, 24 Distinguished board members, and 25 Exemplary board members.
“The Indiana School Boards Association is extremely proud to extend our congratulations to the award winners on this impressive accomplishment,” said ISBA Executive Director Terry Spradlin. “On behalf of ISBA, I commend them for their dedication to the children and school communities they represent and for actively engaging with the Association’s programs and services.”
“As leaders of our local school systems, it is imperative that we avail ourselves of the best professional development we can to better serve our communities.” said ISBA President Tom Simpson. “I commend our EGA winners who have made the commitment to the ongoing improvement of their competence and knowledge. School governance is a diverse and complex job, and these dedicated board members are leading the way as models of school board service. Congratulations to all!”
“It is a pleasure to serve on this board, and I am honored to receive the Exemplary Board Member from the Indiana State School Board Association,” said Miller. The ISBA provides many opportunities for both personal and Board development. We, as a Board, are fortunate to have those resources available to all of us.”
Sutton added, “I am humbled by this honor and so blessed to serve our community supporting our teachers and staff as they are “Ensuring Excellence for Every student Every day.”
CSF Superintendent Joel McKinney spoke very highly of both ladies. “Karen Sutton is our past Board President and Sandy Miller is our current Board President. This special recognition is well deserved for both of these outstanding board members. As superintendent, I am proud to be associated with this Board because of the way they put students first in all of their decision making. The children of this community are fortunate to have such fine leaders overseeing our schools.”
In addition to the individual accolades, school boards qualify for awards based on the collective EGA status of their individual members and the completion of certain additional criteria. There are 88 school boards that earned recognition through the EGA program this year.
ISBA provides a full range of professional development and training opportunities to help board members govern effectively. At dozens of events throughout the year, ISBA informs and educates board members about best practices, legislative issues, policy development, and school law.
For more information about the EGA program requirements and to see the full list of individual and board awards for 2021, please visit https://www.isba-ind.org/ega-awards.html.