Who serves on the Board of Trustees?

The Walden School Board of Trustees includes parents, former parents, alumni, and community volunteers. The Trustees bring functional expertise in advancement, marketing, finance, architecture, construction, legal, and operations. The Board is composed of 15-19 representatives of the Walden community. They are elected to three-year terms, and members may serve two consecutive terms. Each trustee serves on at least one committee.

What does the Board do?

• The Board is a forward looking body focused on setting the mission, vision and strategic plan and for providing a roadmap for financial stability and enrollment growth.

• The Board follows the NAIS Principles of Good Practice for Boards of Trustees to define our roles and responsibilities.

• The Board is not involved in day-to-day operation of the school; this is the responsibility of the Head of School and Administrators.

What is Walden’s mission?

In partnership with families, Walden School provides an educational environment - both academic and social - that fosters a lifelong enthusiasm for learning and challenges individual students to reach their full potential so they may flourish in a diverse and changing world.

What Are Walden's Core Values?

Where can we see Walden's Financials?

A summary of Walden's financials is available in the Annual Report. A copy of the annual audit is available for review in the business office.

NAIS Principles of Good Practice

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

• The board adopts a clear statement of the school’s mission, vision, and strategic goals and establishes policies and plans consistent with this statement.
  

• The board reviews and maintains appropriate bylaws that conform to legal requirements, including duties of loyalty, obedience, and care.
  

• The board assures that the school and the board operate in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, minimizing exposure to legal action.
  

• The board creates a conflict of interest policy that is reviewed with, and signed by, individual trustees annually.
  

• The board accepts accountability for both the financial stability and the financial future of the institution, engaging in strategic financial planning, assuming primary responsibility for the preservation of capital assets and endowments, overseeing operating budgets, and participating actively in fundraising.
  

• The board selects, supports, nurtures, evaluates, and sets appropriate compensation for the head of school.
  

• The board recognizes that its primary work and focus are long range and strategic.
  

• The board undertakes formal strategic planning on a periodic basis, sets annual goals related to the plan, and conducts annual written evaluations for the school, head of school, and the board itself.
  

• The board keeps full and accurate records of its meetings, committees, and policies and communicates its decisions widely, while keeping its deliberations confidential.|
  

• Board composition reflects the strategic expertise, resources, and perspectives (past, present, and future) needed to achieve the mission and strategic objectives of the school.
  

• The board works to ensure all its members are actively involved in the work of the board and its committees.
  

• As leader of the school community, the board engages proactively with the head of school in cultivating and maintaining good relations with school constituents as well as the broader community and exhibits best practices relevant to equity and justice.
  

• The board is committed to a program of professional development that includes annual new trustee orientation, ongoing trustee education and evaluation, and board leadership succession planning.

INDEPENDENT SCHOOL TRUSTEES

• A trustee actively supports and promotes the school’s mission, vision, strategic goals and policy positions.
  

• Each trustee, not just the Treasurer and Finance Committee, has fiduciary responsibility to the school for sound financial management.
  

• A trustee contributes to the development program, of the school, including strategic planning for development, financial support, and active involvement in annual and capital giving.
  

• Authority is vested in the Board as a whole. A trustee who learns of an issue of importance to the school has the obligation to bring it to the Head of School, or the Board Chair, and must refrain from responding to the situation individually.
  

• A trustee has the responsibility to support the school and it’s Head, and to demonstrate that support within the community.
  

• A trustee guards against conflict of interest, whether personal or business related.
  

• A trustee keeps all Board deliberations confidential.
  

• A trustee accepts and supports Board decisions. Once a decision has been made, the Board speaks with one voice.
  

• A trustee takes care to separate the interest of the school from the particular needs of a specific child or constituency.
  

• The Board sets policy and focuses on long-range and strategic issues. An individual trustee does not become involved directly in specific management, personnel or curricular issues.
  

• A trustee stays fully informed about current operations and issues by attending meetings regularly, coming to meetings well prepared, and participating fully in all matters.
  

• A trustee is knowledgeable about the school’s mission and goals, including its commitment to equity and justice, and represents them appropriately and accurately within the community.