At today’s State Board of Education (Board) meeting, board members accepted the recommendation made by Commissioner of Education Margie Vandeven to begin a gradual transition back to local governance for the Normandy Schools Collaborative (NSC) and the Riverview Gardens School District. This means voters will have the opportunity in the April 2022 election to select two new members to both the NSC Joint Executive Governing Board (JEGB) and the Riverview Gardens Special Administrative Board (SAB).

“There has been a lot of great discussion this year at both the state and local level on how governance can and should take place in Normandy and Riverview Gardens,” said Commissioner Vandeven. “We want to do what is best for the students in Normandy and Riverview Gardens, and we believe a thoughtful transition back to local governance will help ensure the ongoing improvement efforts in these districts continue.”

The NSC JEGB is currently full with seven members; this means the State Board of Education must set a final term of office for two current JEGB members to expire on June 30, 2022. Those members are Sara Foster and Mike Jones. There are currently five members on the Riverview Gardens SAB; two locally elected members will create a full seven-member SAB.

Filing begins today, December 7, 2021, and is open through December 28, 2021, for the election on April 5, 2022. Interested candidates should contact their respective school district for filing information.

Both the NSC and Riverview Gardens are currently provisionally accredited. The SAB and JEGB are charged with providing leadership and governance to set academic achievement expectations and a timeline for reaching full accreditation.