Also called: Board of Education Trustee
An elected local official who sets policy, budgets, and hires the superintendent for a school district.
School board members meet a couple of evenings a month to vote on budgets, curriculum, and school calendars, while hearing from parents and teachers. Most are unpaid or get a small stipend, but they shape what happens in every classroom. Some boards even have student members.
Most are unpaid or receive small stipends; a few big-city boards pay salaries.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
High school diploma, about 0 years after high school. No required degree; you must win an election. Most have a bachelor's and many are lawyers or business owners.
Ways in: On-the-job training. Training cost: Under $15k.
Majors to look at: Education, Political Science, Public Administration.
Growing slowly.
Low risk for 10 years. AI may summarize budgets and public comments; voting on schools and listening to parents stay a human elected job.
Classes: AP U.S. Government, Speech and debate, Economics, Civics.
Official data: O*NET occupation 11-1031.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.