Dear Editor,

I write in response to a letter published in the Jamaica Observer on July 21, 2014, titled ‘Fix school boards: Our education system deserves better’.

The National Council on Education (NCE) acknowledges the writer’s concerns and commends him for his interest in the Jamaican education system. While we recognise that there have been some challenges in the appointment of school board members, much has been done to transform the process. A comprehensive set of revised procedures was introduced in 2009 to increase community participation in the governance of public educational institutions. This was supported by a call for volunteers, published in the national newspapers, soliciting persons to offer themselves to serve. Accordingly, a comprehensive pool of volunteers was established in keeping with specific criteria which increased the probability of selecting the best talent available to govern our schools in Jamaica.

An effective school board is highly dependent on the knowledge and expertise of its members. Consequently, significant investment has been made to train school board members. Since 2012, the NCE has trained approximately 2,789 school board members representing 847 or 83 per cent of the total public educational institutions in Jamaica. Training sessions for newly appointed board members in Regions three (Trelawny and St Ann) and six (St Catherine and Clarendon) are scheduled for September to October 2014. Additionally, a comprehensive handbook was published in April 2013, as a useful guide for school board members.

The NCE invites Mr Campbell to visit our website at www.nce.org.jm where he can access a copy of this handbook. Should he have any other query, we encourage him to contact our offices for further information.

Merris Murray

Executive Director

National Council on Education

merris.murray@nce.org.jm