2013-KC COOMBS MIDDLE SCHOOL COUCIL

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r� j (4 ) Subcommittees: Subcommittees provide for a division of la and allow different council members to focus on their area: interest and expertise. 37 . Should a council make decisions by consensus or by majority ru Both methods are used by councils. A major product of the coun will be the school improvement plan, which is designed to coon nate the school' s resources and unite the efforts of those who c about the education of students. Schools with experience school-based planning by teams report that it does not make Be to adopt such a plan through a split vote. They recomm consensus decision making. Consensus decision making, however, can be painstaking and t consuming. Some councils find it useful to adopt a dual-level decision making: consensus can be used on major issues such as development of the school plan or the review of the school budg majority vote can be used on procedural questions and bn other 1 j fundamental issues. 38. Does consensus mean unanimity? No. Consensus is a way of working together that does necessarily mean unanimity of agreement . Members of a consent decision making process may disagree with a final decision but agree to go along with it. At the heart of the consensus prod is the importance of each group member' s viewpoint and the D opportunity to express these views. Under a consensus process, is perfectly acceptable for a member to say, "I disagree with t) decision; I' ve told everyone how I feel and. the group has ,listene However, I 'm willing to support the decision in order to try out . " The hallmarks of. a consensus method are .that : • Council meetings are viewed as problem-solving sessions a not as competitive, win-or-lose events. • All members have a chance to state their views. • Periodic "straw polls" are taken to identify the common grog among divergent viewpoints. • All members are willing to support the majority decision. t: is i '