Teachers meetings

Usually, the board sends one or two representatives to the teachers meeting. The purpose is to be the bridge between the board and the teachers.

General good advice for board-member representatives

• Be there early. The meetings usually starts on the dot – and we never get through the agenda. Help move the agenda forwards.
• Be there in person. It shows energy and commitment and motivates the teachers.
• Send ‘info points’ and ‘discussion points’ in advance. Have a list of things that is for their information beforehands. So you can read through it and take questions/comments, if there are any. And have a short ‘discussion point’ as well, in case you need input from the teachers. Keep this brief. There are a lot of voices at the teachers meetings.
• Bring at most one pain point. There are many teachers – and it’s hard for them to grasp everything that is going on in SwingShoes. So what feels like a small thing for a board member, can feel like a sledgehammer for a teacher. This is also to protect the board-member(s): Since several pain points can swing the emotional pendulum far and wide (written with experience).
• Listen more that you speak. Remember, that it is a teacher meeting. So the board-member(s) should listen more than we should speak.
• Brace yourself! There are many teachers. It can be quite overwhelming for the board member(s).
• Don’t be the one writing summary. As the board member, you are already on overcharge, just by being there. Take care of yourself and ease your attendance as much as possible. The teachers also want you to walk out of the meeting with a smile on your face.
• Prioritize it. These teachers meeting are incredibly important. A good teachers meeting can send the teachers back to classes motivated and inspired. A bad teachers meeting can send them back frustrated and annoyed.
• Praise the teachers. The teachers work really hard. Remember to praise them for their work.
• Prepare to absorb critique. At every teachers meeting, there always comes some critique. If you can, try not to argue it on the meeting. Both because there are too many voices to solve it – and also because the board member is outnumbered, so it can feel very rough. Just say: ‘That’s noted. We’ll find a solution for you after this meeting’ or something.

Learnings/ideas (2026-05-09)

• It would be good to have a way to ‘keep our teachers informed’ about stuff. So they don’t need to find things out via our own social media. Slack won’t be ideal for this. TBD.
• Maybe have a Sunday night virtual meeting, to stay informed and hear what is going on in SwingShoes. Also where members can ask the board a question. Maybe also to make it possible for the board to ask members about minor things.