THE CHARTER

C4)

OF

THE CASTLE COMPLEX COMMUNITY COUNCIL (THE

This charter captures agreements regarding the purpose, processes and practices of
the C4. In lieu of by-laws, this document serves as the groups guide re: its
operation and self-evaluation, offering a rationale for these agreements re: practice.
This charter will be re-visited and if appropriate, revised each year, as part of the
annual C4 self-assessment. If need arises mid-year to alter agreements in this
document, the C4 may do so, based upon consensus (as defined in this document).
1. PURPOSE
The Castle Complex Community Council (C4) is a complex-level forum for
community dialogue and decision-shaping on Complex-wide matters re: student
achievement and school improvement.
The purpose of the C4 is to:
Support shared responsibility for education,
Leverage and align resources,
Promote community and family partnerships,
Strengthen collaborative process, and
Build a Castle Complex PreK-20 continuum
2. BACKGROUND
Organizational Placement
The C4 sits alongside the building level School Community Councils (SCC)
and works with the Complex Area Superintendent (CAS) on complex-wide
matters.
Accountability
The C4 is accountable to the Castle Complex CAS
Conceptually and ethically the C4 is accountable to all members of the
school community. The C4 is committed to transparency and is
responsible for broadly sharing information re: C4 priorities,
accomplishments and evidence of impact.
3. SCOPE OF RESPONSIBILITY
Advises the CAS on matters of student achievement and Complex
improvement.
Drives innovation and mobilizes support for positive change.
Advocates for public education.
Strengthens collaborative leadership; develops strong, effective leaders with
facilitative leadership capacity.
Strengthens and supports the SCCs.
4. TEAM COMPOSTION
Membership of the C4 includes: 20 members + CAS = 21 Total Group Size

Two Students (high school)

Two Community members

Four Parents (elementary; middle; secondary; special needs)
Two Staff (1 professional; 1 non-professional)
Three Faculty (elementary; middle; secondary)
Three Administrators (elementary; middle/secondary; DOE Windward Office)
Two Education partners (1 Pre-K; 1 Higher Ed, WCC)
Two Complex-level partners (i.e., Business; Foundation; NPO; Policy Maker)
One Complex Area Superintendent

5. TEAM SELECTION
Nominations and Eligibility
C4 and Castle Complex SCC Members:
An Election Primer is created and sent to all C4 and SCC members, including
the purpose of the C4, needed characteristics of C4 members, role vacancies
available for the following school year and a timeline of election activities.
The CAS prepares a list of potential nominees (C4 and SCC members who
have served within the last three (3) years, inclusive of all schools and role
groups) which is also included in the Election Primer. This list helps SCC
identify potential candidates who have recently served on SCCs, however,
nominations are not limited to the prepared list.
Nominees must be currently eligible to serve on a Castle Complex SCC
(except for DOE Administrator and education and community partners).
o Nominees need not be a current member of or have served on the C4
or a Castle Complex SCC. However, if elected to the C4, he/she must
consistently attend a SCC meetings for a Castle Complex school.
Any SCC member can nominate individuals from across the complex (not just
from their own school) for any role group vacancy to which the individual
belongs (except for student vacancies).
Students:
Official high school student groups are asked to nominate student candidates.
Two high school students will be elected to serve on the C4.
Student nominees who accept the invitation to stand for election participate
in election activities.
Complex-level and P-20 Education Partners: (Appointed by CAS, not elected)
The CAS appoints two Complex-level and two P-20 partners for ratification by the
elected C4 members.
Elections
Nominees prepare a biography and share other relevant information for
Castle Complex SCC members to consider. This information is made available
prior to the elections.
C4 members conduct C4 nomination and election activities annually at the
SCCs regular meetings from January to May. Results are shared before the
end of the school year.

SCC members may vote for all vacant positions. Each SCC tallies the votes of
their members and advances a slate of candidates for vacant positions. A
quorum as determined by each SCCs Bylaws is needed to ratify the slate.
o If an SCC member is unable to attend the SCC Meeting, an absentee ballot
may be provided. Absentee ballots count towards a schools quorum.
Each slate of candidates is then counted. Candidates with the greatest
number of votes are declared the new C4 members.
In the event of a tie, the CAS will recommend one of the two individuals
(based upon Criteria and C4 composition) for ratification by the C4.

Terms of Service
Inaugural members serve either a two or three-year term. Thereafter all C4
members serve two-year terms, allowing no more than one-half of the C4 to
turn-over each election. In the event that a member changes roles or status,
he/she may continue serving for the role group until the end of his/her term.
Removal for Cause
A C4 member may be removed from the C4 for the following two reasons:
Missing three meetings in any single year. Attendance data informs decision
to replace.
A pattern of participation that is damaging to the groups performance.
Meeting evaluation data informs decision.
The following process is used to decide removal for cause.
a. The C4 Stewardship and Accountability Work Group is responsible for
reviewing attendance and meeting evaluation data periodically and enacting
agreements regarding cause for removal, if merited.
b. If data review supports concerns and justifies removal, the C4 Stewardship
and Accountability Work Group recommends to the CAS immediate removal
or a limited period of probation to improve performance (1-3 months).
c. The CAS meets with the member to discuss/ inform performance concerns;
determines whether removal or planned improvements is in order.
Vacancies
The CAS recommends and C4 confirms a replacement to serve the remainder of
the term of any vacant position.
Schools without C4 Member
Schools without a current C4 member are greatly encouraged to designate a SCC
member or another member of the school-community to serve as a liaison to the
C4 and participate in monthly C4 meetings to facilitate communication between
the schools SCC and the C4.
6.

TEAM EFFECTIVENESS AND EMPOWERMENT

Skilled facilitation, training in effective group processes and an annual
orientation for C4 members are provided to optimize the effectiveness of the C4.
Ideally, training and orientation should be the first meeting of the C4, following

each election cycle. As funding is available, a professional facilitator/trainer will

provide facilitation support and ongoing modeling and coaching to strengthen
capacity for collaboration and task accomplishment. If a professional facilitator is
not available, duties may rotate among members.
7. C4 ANNUAL GOALS AND CALENDAR of RESPONSIBILITIES
Annually, the C4 identifies its foci for the year and develops a schedule/calendar
for completing responsibilities for the year, identifying windows or suggested
dates to allow for flexibility. This scheduling should be completed within three
months of the annual election.
8. TEAM OPERATIONS
Decision-Making
The C4 acts as a collaborative body and uses a modified consensus as its default
decision rule. The C4 seeks consensus using a fist to five polling technique
that requires a 2/3 majority in support of a decision (3s-5s), with no strong
opposition (0s-2s). The CAS has the final authority.
In collaborative decision-making the issue is not numbers, but rather the
groups ability to incorporate all points of view. Both the substance and process
of decisions must develop in a way that can win the support needed for
implementation. Even the inability to reach consensus has value in the decisionshaping process, when supporting and dissenting opinions, as well as
reservations, are voiced.
Meeting Routines
Agenda Setting
The CAS and facilitator are responsible for setting the agenda for meetings. C4
and Castle Complex SCC members contact the C4 facilitator to request items be
considered for the agenda.
Recurring Agenda Elements
Good meetings make time for people to connect to one another, as well as to the
context and the content being discussed and deliberated. Additionally meetings
should create a space to learn/grow, to reach agreement and to hold members
accountable for accomplishment of C4 goals. Because C4 meetings happen in
fishbowl to support transparency and school/community engagement, how we
treat those who join us must also be a consideration. Given all that, meetings
have a rhythm and flow that repeats month-to-month, offering a familiar
structure that serves those diverse goals. To achieve this, the following meeting
elements are implemented.
a. Opening (Goals: Connect; Learn/grow; Set context; Agree on the work to
be done)
News We Can Use: A few minute briefing re: whats happening in
education that they should know about (locally or nationally)
Education trends and newsThis will be little more than a headline,
the gist of the story and info on where to get the whole story.
Information on where to learn more is printed on the back of the
agenda.


b.
c.
d.
e.
f.

Welcome First Time Guests (both those invited by C4 and those

attending from community)
Review Agenda and Outcomes
CASs Time (Goals: Connect with CAS; Learn/grow; set context)
Focus Topic(s) - The important work of the meeting (Goals: Focus on
issues/ data/content; discuss; deliberate; if appropriate, reach agreement)
Review of Agreements/ Next Steps (Goals: Clarify and Commit)
Close with appreciation (Goals: Connect; Support engagement)
Complete meeting evaluation (Goals: Learn/grow)

Fishbowl Format
In order to be inclusive and transparent, meetings are held using a fishbowl
format; open to the entire school-community. The C4 supports SCC and
community member attendance at C4 meetings by greeting, informing, and
supporting their constructive engagement. Opportunities for questions and
comments from the public are provided.
Welcoming and Engaging Guests
SCC members and other guests are welcomed and their participation is
supported. Copies of the previous C4 Meeting documentation is available at the
sign-in table for guests to help orient themselves to the evenings meeting
agenda. C4 members include guests in conversations.
Work Groups
Standing Work Groups
On-going responsibilities of the C4 benefit from standing work groups (WG). All
C4 members will be invited to join one of the standing work groups. They are:
Nominations/Elections (Elections WG) to steward the annual process
C4 and SCC Strengthening (Strengthening WG) to steward the annual selfevaluation and recommend training and development needs
C4 Stewardship and Accountability (Stewardship WG) - to steward the
calendar of C4 responsibilities; support ongoing attention to annual goals,
obligations and core responsibilities. (Think: 4 person executive committee of
diverse role representatives.)
Ad Hoc Work Groups
Special WGs advance work between C4 meetings (topic/task specific).
Membership on these committees is determined by the C4 and is not limited to
C4 members.
Time Expectations for C4 Meetings
The C4 meets monthly (with additionally called meetings as needed) on a
recurring schedule (e.g., first Monday of the month). Meetings are held in the
late afternoon/evening to allow greater family/community participation.
Participation in meetings of SCCs and/or special committees may incur additional
time.
Communication with the Community and Role Group Networks

A major goal of the C4 is to strengthen the SCCs and to support PreK-20

dialogue. The strength of the C4 is tied directly to the strength of the
relationship between SCCs and the C4.
The following practices are implemented to accomplish this goal:
C4 members may serve as liaisons attending selected monthly SCC meetings
to facilitate two-way communication.
C4 communications are sent to SCCs and other community groups to forward
to their respective constituencies.
SCCs may identify a liaison to the C4 and encourage their attendance at C4
events.
Online survey tools may be used to poll SCC members for input on C4
deliberations.
C4 Ad-Hoc Work Groups may draw members from SCCs and beyond.
C4 holds Community Forums for community members, parents and SCC
members to:
o Engage in learning
o Dialogue about the ideas and the data
o Provide input/feedback for the efforts of the C4 and unite the
community to advance shared goals
o Catalyze coordinated action to advance shared goal
Support & Resources Available to Assist the C4 Provided by DOE
Partnerships that bring expertise and resources (e.g., PACT Kaneohe
Community Family Center, The Learning Coalition, Harold K.L. Castle
Foundation, Hawaii Community Foundation)
Resources available through the HIDOE Array of Services
Administrative support for communications, logistics, etc.
Orientation, training and facilitation provided to ensure success through
capacity building.
Communications to inform the school community of the C4s role and how to
best engage it to increase student achievement and improve schools.

9. TEAM PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENTS AND ACCOUNTABILITY

The C4 conducts two types of self-assessments: 1) monthly and 2) annually.
Improvement goals are set and adjustments are made to guide subsequent
efforts.
Monthly Self-Assessment after each C4 meeting will address:
o C4s effectiveness in relation to desired meeting outcomes (e.g., Did we
meet our goals? Are we where we need to be in order to complete our
work on time? Do we have all the information we need?)
o C4s effectiveness at working together (e.g., Are we living up to our
shared expectations reflected in the Charter)
Annual Self-Assessment
o C4s fulfillment of its role responsibilities
o C4s use of healthy routines to support success and sustainability
10. COMPLEX AREA SUPERINTENDENT SURVEY

This Complex Area Superintendent (CAS) Survey provides the C4 an opportunity

to give feedback to the CAS regarding his/her performance in the areas of
leadership, communication and climate for collaboration re: his/her work with the
C4.

Adopted November 2011 (Developed by C4 Charter Work Group (Tracy Bean, Gordon
Miyamoto, Susan Young) and C4 consultant, Marina A. Piscolish, PhD, Mapping Change LLC
in collaboration with 2011/12 members of the C4. Revised May 2015.