By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

ALABASTER – Having served on multiple school boards in his lifetime, Alabaster Board of Education member John Myrick said he thought his personal education was complete.

“I thought I had already gone through school,” Myrick said with a laugh during the board’s Sept. 14 meeting. “But I learn something new every time I go to one of these classes. They are good for us.”

Myrick and his four colleagues on the Alabaster School Board have spent plenty of time attending classes, completing online courses and attending webinars through the Alabama Association of School Board’s academy program.

“AASB’s ‘school’ for school board members provides ongoing training on important education, legal and governance issues,” read a description of the program on the AASB website. “To earn the various awards, school board members attend academy conferences worth a specified number of instructional “hours” and participate in core curriculum courses.”

The academy program contains four levels of certification for school board members across the state. To reach level one, school board members must complete 25 hours of training, level two requires 50 hours of training, level three requires 75 hours of training and level four requires 100 hours of training, and requires board members to complete all eight academy core classes.

AASB academy courses cover topics such as ethics, establishing good working relationships, school finance, developing effective school district staff, community engagement and more.

The Alabaster School Board’s work toward obtaining the highest level of certification drew praise from Alabaster School Superintendent Dr. Wayne Vickers during the Sept. 14 meeting.

As of Sept. 14, Myrick, school board member Derek Henderson and Board President Adam Moseley had reached level three, board member Linda Church had obtained level two and board member Ty Quarles had reached level one certification.

“I’m really proud of the board and the work they’ve done,” Vickers said. “The goal is to get to level four. By the end of this year, I think most of them will be close.”