Board of Directors – OMS Montessori

The OMS Montessori Board of Directors is guided by the best interests of students, teachers and staff.

The Element and OMS Board of Directors includes: five Parent members, four External members, one Staff Representative (non-voting member), The Head of School (non-voting member), The Director of The Element High School (non-voting member). The Board of Directors is tasked with ensuring both The Element and OMS achieve long-term, sustained realization of the vision of our schools.

Parent Directors bring their passion and a desire to see their child’s school evolve with the children. External Directors bring specialized skills, knowledge and objectivity to the Board. The Head of Schools, The Element High School Director, and the Staff Participant bring corporate history and their deep understanding of Montessori principles and how they impact OMS and the students.

The positions are staggered such that one third of the Board is elected each year. The Executive Officers of the Board (i.e. President, Vice President and Corporate Secretary) are elected by the Directors every year.

The Board operates under the Carver or Policy governance model. In this model, the Board sets policies for the operation of the school, hires a Head of Schools to implement these policies, and monitors the operation of the school through these policies. The Board also creates strategic plans for the school.

The Board of Directors looks to the parent community for advice, expertise and potential Board Membership. You do not have to be a member of the Board of Directors to participate in projects being developed by a Board Committee. If you have a particular interest, please let any member of the Board or the school administration know

A Board Member’s elected term is three years.

Each year the OMS Board meets for a day (on a weekend) over the summer for Board orientation and to establish priorities for the coming year.The full Board strives to meet once a month for regular Board business – arrangements can be made to participate by conference call.

Board members are expected to participate in, or chair, standing and ad hoc committees as needed. Ongoing Board and Committee work is completed between meetings and requires a varying amount of time commitment and self-direction. Board members are also encouraged to participate at school functions (all-parents meetings, harvest feast, school dance, end-of-year picnic etc.).

If a Board Member resigns his or her position prior to completion of the first term, the Board may decide to proceed with the remaining membership until the next nomination period, or a replacement member can be sought before the end of the year in order to continue and strengthen the work of the Board.

If you would be interested in supporting OMS through Board membership, please contact the Nominating Committee for more information at [email protected]

The Board Nominating Process

The OMS Montessori Board Nominating Committee accepts applications from OMS Montessori and The Element High School community members interested in assisting its Board of Directors to achieve its mandate. Positions begin July 1st of each year, and consist of a one to three-year term. As with the different Montessori community levels, the Board strives to balance membership between 3 members in their first year, 3 in their second year and 3 in their last year.

Every year the Nominating Committee reviews the composition of the current Board, the skills of outgoing Board Members, and identifies areas of need to be met by incoming Board Members. This could be in relation to a nominee’s profession, previous volunteering experience, skill sets and interests. Previous volunteer engagement with the school is considered an asset.