NVUSD Trustees’ Role as School Board Members

According to the California School Boards Association, “School board members are locally elected public officials entrusted with governing a community’s public schools. The role of the school board is to ensure that school districts are responsive to the values, beliefs, and priorities of their communities. Boards fulfill this role by performing five major responsibilities: setting direction, establishing an effective and efficient structure, providing support, ensuring accountability, and providing community leadership as advocates for children, the school district, and public schools.” Many already know that NVUSD school board members hold board meetings twice per month or approximately 26 times a year. Board members also spend considerable time refining governance practices, carrying out the Superintendent evaluation process, and attending subcommittee meetings on finance, policy, and curriculum, to name a few. However, this is just the beginning of their work and commitment. Read more about the role our NVUSD’s Board takes in leading the Napa Valley Unified School District by scrolling down.

On September 27, Dr. Rosanna Mucetti and Trustees David T. Gracia, Julianna Hart, Robin Jankiewicz, Lisa Chu, and Cindy Watter attended the CSBA Roadshow at American Canyon High School. This is one of many town-hall style meetings CSBA holds as a way to interact with their members in their local community as they tackle topics related to advocacy, member services, and strategic initiatives. 

As many are aware, Trustee David T. Gracia serves on the CSBA Board of Directors, Region 3, and Trustee Robin Jankiewicz and Principal Troy Know serve as Delegates for Region 3. The Delegate Assembly provides policy direction for the association and our NVUSD delegates regularly check in with Napa Valley organizations to learn about issues impacting K-12 education so they bring that information to CSBA.

Board Trustees joined Dr. Mucetti for the Coffee with the Superintendent series. The two fall events at Donaldson Way Elementary and Napa High School provide our community the opportunity to interface with our Board of Education and Superintendent. These events are an excellent way to learn about the major initiatives and their progress at NVUSD. It is also a nice time for NVUSD leadership to continue getting to know our parents and to answer questions or concerns. 

There is no better way to see learning in action than visiting school sites during the school day. Our Board of Trustees visit schools throughout the year. These visits allow them to witness the learning happening during the school day, give them a glimpse of school operations, allow them to check in with principles, and most importantly, provide them with an opportunity to interface with our talented students and staff.

On November 16, Trustee Watter, Trustee Gracia, and Dr. Mucetti attended the Economic Outlook Conference at the Silverado Country Club hosted by the Napa Chamber of Commerce. This meeting provided useful insights about the interconnectivity between our workforce and critical local issues, provided information about the value of business-led sector partnerships and initiatives, included a discussion of trends and emerging opportunities for the region, and more.

Trustees have fully supported NVUSD's year-long Strategic Visioning and Planning work by attending board mini-sessions, the Student Summit, Guiding Coalition meetings, Community-wide Open House events and so much more.

As volunteers for NOSH's 3rd Annual Thanksgiving Feast, Trustees served a special meal of locally roasted turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, whole grain rolls, homemade cranberry sauce, and a cookie to all school students! Although they helped with a variety of tasks beyond serving food, such as re-stocking food/milk and tallying the number of meals taken, they did not have to wash the dishes. 

Beyond these specific examples, Trustees regularly attend events related to athletics, the arts, and academics including BIG Game, Napa Valley Band Reserve Competition, Fall Festivals, and City and Country events where students are participating or showcasing their talents.