In the July Noblesville School Board meeting, there were several policies presented for a second reading and a vote. Notably absent from the list is a policy that had been presented in the June meeting. That is the case with policy H225, Public Comments and Concerns.
Before I get into more detail regarding policy H225, let me briefly note some of the other agenda discussed and voted on during the July meeting.
First was a report on Miller Explorers and Little Miller Preschool programs. Both of these programs are very popular and are 100 percent capacity. Miller Explorers is a self-funded before and after-school care program for students in grades K-6. The Little Miller Preschool is a Kindergarten-ready, self-funded program for ages 3 to 5 and has a waiting list.
The agenda moved to vote on the approval of CSO as the architect for the design of the high school academic expansion project. This motion carried. Also voted and carried was a resolution establishing supplemental payment for teachers for class coverage.
Now back to the absent policy.
One of the goals of my candidacy for the school board was to increase transparency and communication between the board and the community. To that end, I was pleased to see that the board was considering updating its public comment policy to include a more open discussion on items that were not on its monthly agenda.
There were three policy options presented:
- The first option was the current policy that only allows one to speak on an agenda item.
- The second option was the most restrictive for three reasons. The first reason is that if a person wants to comment on an item, not on the agenda, they must register their intent with the Superintendent at least seven days prior to the meeting. There is no such requirement in the current public comment policy. The second reason is that policy option two states that a written statement or outline that contains the purpose and major points of the presentation must be provided. Again, there is no such requirement for the current public comment policy. The third reason is that option two stated that such public comment requests shall be approved by the Superintendent and the Board President. Why would we be required to get approval to express our thoughts and concerns? That is our right.
- The last option for a new public comment policy is the one that I supported and that lives up to the goal of better communication and transparency between the school board and the community. That policy would provide for public comment at the end of the regular meeting on items that are not on the meeting agenda.
It is my understanding that policy H225 was not brought up for a second reading and vote because there was disagreement on the wording. The public comment policy may be brought up again for the August School Board public meeting. I would encourage people to submit their input to the members of the board before the August meeting to ensure that your opinions and concerns are noted. Better yet, come to the next meeting and let your voices be heard.
The next meeting of the school board is 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 15 in the ESC Board Room. You can find the contact information for the board members by going to noblesvilleschools.org/Page/8015.