Heads and board leaders continue to find themselves in troubled waters on the topic of vaccination and masking protocols. When you include the continuing cultural wars in many schools, these stressors continue to take a personal and professional toll on heads, challenge boards in new and different ways and have economic consequences for schools.

One school Head came under attack just for offering optional, after school vaccine clinics.  For some parents “optional” or “after school” felt confrontational and controversial.

Another school Head has a very few families who insist that their children not wear a mask in the building even when the school leadership requires it.  These parents believe that mask wearing is an individual choice, while others feel that their children are being put at risk.

This raises an interesting dilemma: When is it appropriate (though not always politically safe) not to extend an invitation to re enroll a family whose values are clearly not in sync with that of the school? This is the same question to ask of families who try to breach the board’s ranks to engender board support to undermine the protocols that initially the entire board supported.

When do heads and boards put their foot down and say enough is enough, assuming legal counsel has advised that the annual reenrollment contract includes language broad enough to allow the school not to reenroll a family who is constantly challenging school and leadership decisions and rules? The time may be now, just before enrollment invitations go out.

There is a balance between active and fair listening to parental concerns and pandering to a distinct but vocal minority that is well organized and using highly effective, harsh tactics to attack a school and its leadership.

Active compassionate listening comes first. Next comes firm and consistent enforcement of the rules, because often most parents support the very protocols that the most vocal and highly organized groups of “concerned parents” (signed or unsigned) communicate to the board. And at times there is a backlash from the happy majority about the school having capitulated to the disgruntled few.

The bottom line is stick to mission integrity; adhere to best practices in governance; and be fair but firm in your decision making.