When I was first presented with the ask to serve in leadership on a board of trustees, my initial reaction was confused. My confusion came from the fact that those who I envisioned served on boards did not look like me. Wealthy, white men, these are the individuals who come to mind when I think of the term board of trustees. This is because, often more than not, these are the individuals who make up board seats.

This lack of representation is extremely problematic.  

When a group of individuals is not representative of the diverse world we live in, idea and solution generation is limited to those of a single lived experience. Even more problematic is when these individuals are not representative of the audience which their organization aims to serve. 

Those most affected by decisions must be central to the decision-making process. 

If a board aims to positively impact youth through their work, how will they know the priorities, needs, and hopes of this given community without its members actively engaged in conversation. The same goes for boards who are aiming to impact the socioeconomically disadvantaged, LGBTQ+ individuals, black and brown communities, those who struggle with mental health, and more. Without the voices and perspectives of those in the community, the solutions generated are often those that do not tackle the issues of the community, but instead, perceived problems noted from the outside in. 

When those with lived experiences are given a seat at the table, this is when true solution generation can begin.  

However, when a board of trustees aims to engage the communities they serve, they must do so with intention. Marginalized communities are tired of tokenization. The sole intent of having diverse perspectives fill a board seat should never be to check off a box. But instead, to ensure that these perspectives and the insight that comes through lived experience might meaningfully add to the conversation and guide those without these experiences to do what is best for the communities they serve. 

When these individuals are given a seat at the table, they should be given a plate too. 

In other words, members of diverse communities should not just have a seat on the board, but also on the committees which are impacting the most change. There is no better way to spend funds than to have a member of the community an organization serves tell them exactly what to do with those funds. Thus, these perspectives may be most helpful on the finance committee, as opposed to the programs committee these voices often serve on. In engaging diverse individuals, it should be an invitation to be unapologetically generative in ideas in order to bring about the most positive change. 

Bold, transformational systems change is sparked from bold, transformational action.