Last Tuesday was the latest Gilford School Board Meeting. While it wasn’t quite as contentious as what has been happening elsewhere in NH lately, I’d like to think that I’m trying to point out that School Board members aren’t doing their due diligence from a Legal / Policy standpoint.
When a Superintendent puts Policy recommendations in front of them from outside organizations like the NH School Board Association (or Superintendents or Principals or any other group representing almost every single “community” within the academic realm), it seems that they are blithely reading and accepting them without actually READING them with an eye for “what are the Unintended Consequences and how can they get us into a Legal Jungle?”
For instance, Policy JBAB (Transgender and Non-Conforming Students) versus the required Discrimination and Harassment Policies? How many SB members know that most are at odds with each other and any Parent with means can exploit those inconsistencies.
But then again, how many of them are going to pay attention to me?
While a majority of people said that it was time to remove masks and kids from each other, it was almost like stepping back to the days when Kurt Webber was in charge and the Board’s behavior; like Ken Eyring, points out here, reverting back into a mostly “stonewall” state.
Here are the two Public Comment sections (first and last on the Agenda, with the “business” stuff removed, mostly because it was boring):
It’s long and would have taken a lot more time to cut out each speaker by themselves so use the “quick notes” below to go to the parts you might think interesting.
2:36 – Dr David Strang (correctly) takes on the Board to task for leaving the American flag in the dark during the Pledge. Talks about masks and how they are ineffective.
5:10 – Jade Wood – Talks about having masks voluntary for children in the District
10:15 – Matt Wood – Same thing
12:51 – Me –
- I don’t have masks on my mind at all.
- I do bring up that that Superintendent Beitler decided to change my name given that he sent me what he had sent to Mr. Shea’s -non-responsive responses in answering questions I did not ask in my Right To Know.
- Also, as HE had decided not to tell the Board his answer to me when Superintendent Beitler defended his then Curriculum Director (now Laconia District Superintendent Steve Tucker) in not being able to answer simple questions about how to tell if a new math program would be better than the current one (Answer: would get higher graduation rates if the 5th-grade math program adopted – seven years down the road)
- Seeking redress of my elected Representatives (the School Board) is impossible, Chair Gretchen Gandini protests that the RTK was answered and I shut her down showing that my questions weren’t answered; the Board refuses to answer.
- Gretchen lies in that this was the only time that “non-responsive” has come up. She obviously doesn’t remember my last year on the BudComm when I was trying to get answers from the School Board as well.
- Member Kyle Sanborn asks if people can’t ask questions of the Board now, then when? Nin goes on the “single member can’t answer for all” schtick.
22:30 – Michelle Tyler backs me up, masks
27:25 – Joe Haus – a longish series of complaints
37:50 – Jade Wood – Hypocrisy Time: why were both the Chair and the Superintendent NOT wearing masks at the latest BudComm meeting but NOW wearing masks at the SB meeting (embarrasement results). Points out that the Board is using the Gilfor Education Memorandum Of Agreement as a crutch to keep masks on kids. Asking for a vote on mask removal.
52:33 – Skip – Is it the sense of the School Board, that a child comes to school is involved in an act of Civil Disobedience by not wearing a mask, would he be left alone? This question remained unanswered as well.
52:48 – Danielle Walker – masks
54:00 – Gretchen asks for motions on masks, go onward to second Public Comment session
1:00:55 – Syd Marshall – Zoom meeting comments? Are you acknowledging that there are none?
1:01:50 – Skip –
- Bad joke, Policy JBAB. Privacy, what does “should” – voluntary, imperative / Shall? And put it into the policy to clarify the use of the word.
- Lying to Parents, giving a new Right to a minor child. Resubmitted it May 11 – now outside of the Law.
- When am I going to get a response as the Board hasn’t responded.
- Raked them over the coals legally. Asked to get rid of “assigned at birth“. Lying commission or omission to Parents as they won’t be told if their child has gone Transgender.
- Asked that my RSA be reinstated over this – minor child, in loco parentis, School Board assumes that Parents are guilty and will abuse a child that comes out.
- Having heard Chair Gretchen that my Right to Know on the email log had gone over 250,000 records – told the Board “you’re doing it wrong“; there should be, at max, 3% of that number.. Whose is at fault for not contacting me about email log going out of hand? I had offered to work with Brenda, the Technical Director.
- Again, took the Board to task for not reviewing every Policy and asking “what could go wrong” instead of defaulting “it’s someone else’s job”? This is Basic Civics and responsibility, guys!
1:15:15 <unintelligible name> – asked about quarantines and the academic ramifications if one sibling gets COVID but another one isn’t sick but both have to stay home.
1:18:40 Jade Wood – Was the MOA with the GEA was ever made public to parents? No answer from the Board
Jade did get my award for line of the night:
Privacy is for Citizens, transparency is for Government
This ain’t over folks.
