This research deals with the actualization of parental participation in the decision making process as is allowed by the law 180 and experienced within the governing board. Its objectives are to describe the conditions in which parents participate in the decision making process, to identify the fields in which they intervene in this process and finally, to describe the perception of the effects of their participation in decision-making. The results obtained show that in this, its first year of existence, the parents essentially intervened in the administrative domain and gave opinions, particularly on the different operating rules of the governing board and the school, as well as on budgets. They also reveal that the conditions in which parents intervened correspond with the usual conditions inherent in any collective decision making process, despite their obvious lack of information and abilities. Finally, the data suggests that at the end of this first year with the governing board, the perception about the effects of their participation leaves the impression that the parents feel uneasy, which does not promote the full and whole actualization of their decision making roles.