The impact of the Masters in governance training for effective California school boards

School board members have a complex list of roles and responsibilities to fulfill individually and as a governance team. The purpose of this study was to determine what factors impacted the decision of school board members to participate in the Masters in Governance (MIG) training offered by the California School Boards Association (CSBA), whether the MIG training encouraged and equipped school board members to exhibit the behaviors of effective governance, and how the MIG could impact school board governance if mandated. Eighty-six of 226 trustees and 61 of 100 superintendents from six southern California counties responded to surveys. The next phase was conducting interviews with two board members and their respective superintendents. Findings suggested that even though training was a cultural expectation and board members encouraged one another to participate, ultimately self-motivation led board members to take the MIG training. Second, those who participated in training were more likely to exhibit the characteristics of an effective leader because the training clarified their roles and responsibilities. Third, whereas those who participated valued the MIG training, they did not believe that training for board members should be mandated; rather, it should be highly recommended, especially for newly elected board members. The implications of the study were categorized into four groups of constituents (i.e., school board members, superintendents, CSBA, and citizens) to promote discussion regarding training for board members that is concise and valuable to their practice, which, in turn, will encourage effective governance practices in every school district in California.