Our view is that chairs of independent and international boards should serve a lot longer than they do now.  If the head and chair have great chemistry and if the chair and the board continue to work together collaboratively, then a longer serving chair is a way to keep a strong head in place. It is generally the third or fourth chair of an independent school board in the United States who will clash with the head, often leading to the head’s resignation or dismissal. 

There is no specific term length for a board chair. It depends on the players, overall board health, and the effectiveness of the governance/committee on trustees. However, we do believe that no one should agree to serve as chair unless they can give at least 3 to 5 years in that role. 

Most heads cannot rebuild a “marriage” with a new chair every two years. That takes a lot of political maneuvering and masterful management skills and even some of the best heads have been fired prematurely.

It takes time for a head and chair to trust each other, be open with and rely on each other, to stand together in the face of a challenge or crisis. Both need to know that they ultimately care about one another personally and professionally. I have often said that the chair /head relationship is like a “marriage” and how many of us have had four successful marriages? Not many!

Our research and experience show that most major governance issues occur because the chair and head are not getting along, but some occur because the chair and head get along so well that the rest of the board feels excluded. However, this latter situation need not occur if the chair has a good relationship with every board member and the head does as well.

Two three-year board terms and one two-year chair term are extremely risky if your goal is to have a healthy board and a healthy school. These terms are so short that there is insufficient institutional memory of any length. As a result, boards address but do not solve the same problems every 5 to 8 years because they have little or no memory of how the previous board dealt with the same or similar issues. There is no historical record.

It is wise for heads to keep in mind the wellbeing of the chair. Chairs can become stressed and worn out just like heads. Chairs who feel too pressed for time may decide to cut their tenure short. Others feel they are shortchanging their own families by continuing to serve as chair. What does the “care and feeding of the chair” entail and what can the head do?

1. Make the chair feel valued. 
2. Consult the chair often.
3. Assess the impact of the role on the chair’s children if they are enrolled in this school.
4. Be sure to strengthen the governance committee (COT) and to help ensure the right chair of that committee is in place. The chair and COT chair must be a team.

Ultimately, institutional memory is so crucial to the health of a school that we urge schools to think of no tenure limits IF the governance committee is truly engaged in monitoring all 8 roles of this committee. These are listed on our website. 

However, for those worried about no limits on board terms, then at least for board stability consider the following: 

The vice chair serves two years then becomes chair for two years and then becomes past chair for two years, all the while serving on the executive committee.

Chair tenure has such an impact on the head’s own survival and happiness that this relationship deserves constant assessment. Ultimately the chair and head of school rely on their trust in one another.