Business leaders from across the state will spend the next 90 days drafting a plan to prevent school districts from ending up like Clayton County, which faces losing its accreditation.

On Tuesday, the Commission for School Board Excellence began outlining recommendations to improve school board governance. The recommendations will be unveiled in 90 days —- around the same time the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools decides whether to revoke Clayton's accreditation.

In February, SACS called the Clayton school board dysfunctional and gave the district until Sept. 1 to overhaul the school system or be the first in the nation to lose accreditation in the past 40 years. Establishing a governing board that follows roles and responsibilities is Clayton's first mandate.

That was a wake-up call for many business leaders.

"There are more federal and state laws that require corporations to disclose conflicts of interest than school board members," said Sam Williams, president of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. "We always thought the public had more access to these elected boards. And now what we're beginning to see is that is not so."

Overhauling state law

In April, the state department of education asked leaders from the state and metro chambers of commerce and SACS to look at best practices of boards. The 21-member task force also will look at changing the state laws regarding training for school board members, adding qualifications to run for school board and ways to govern board accountability.

"I know how we elect boards has merit, but who we elect to boards is much more important," SACS President and Chief Executive Officer Mark A. Elgart told the business leaders. "Georgia law provides more criteria for ineligibility than for eligibility. ... That statement reflects the gaps that exist in our current legislation."

Bad boards ultimately hurt children, the SACS president said.

"There is mounting evidence and research that there is a tie between board governance and student achievement," Elgart said.

Georgia is below the national average in graduation rates and SAT scores, along with reading and math proficiency, according to the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education.

Elgart insists Clayton isn't the only board that has had problems governing itself.

One-fifth of the state's 181 school systems have struggled with board governance over the past 10 years, he said.

"The problem comes from a shift in who chooses to run for the board and who serves on boards," Elgart said. "It used to be about public service. Today, many board members are there as a stepping-stone to a political career. Others are there for a job."

The task force will also look at the motivation of school board members. Less than a quarter of the school boards in the nation pay board members. However, the majority of the school board members in metro Atlanta receive more than $20,000 a year and full benefits, Elgart said.

Influence on economy

Business leaders said they have seen a direct link between the economy and the state's struggling public education system. If Georgia could increase graduation rates to the national average of 88 percent, the state could bring in an additional $4.2 billion a year, said Susan Walker of the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education. In 2007, 72 percent of Georgia students graduated.

John Rice, vice chairman of GE, said every time he travels abroad he is reminded that Georgia needs to increase its standards. "I see the need for us to compete in the U.S.," said Rice, the metro Atlanta chamber's former chairman. "The only way we can compete with success is if we have world-class public education systems."

The task force will meet again next month in Macon and in August to finalize its recommendations.