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09/18/2018 12:00 AMFollowing a dramatic few weeks for the Board of Education (BOE) with a member resignation and a contentious discussion and vote to change board bylaws, board members have expressed an interest in moving forward in a different spirit. At the board’s regular meeting on Sept. 11, a new board member was appointed, committees re-assigned, and some board members made public calls for unity.
At the BOE meeting on Aug. 28, board member Jessica Bowler (R) resigned following a heated debate over proposed changes to the board bylaws (read more at Zip06.com). The bylaw changes were ultimately approved along party lines and Bowler resigned at the conclusion of the meeting with a fiery speech that criticized current practices of the board and the board leadership.
Democratic leaders later criticized the speech for divisive language and this paper for printing excerpts of the speech given in a public meeting.
The board met for a retreat on Sept. 8 and then at the board meeting on Sept. 11, board member Emily Rosenthal read a statement into the record on behalf of herself and fellow Democratic board members Seth Klaskin, Greg DeSantis, and Tom Pellegrino.
“In recent weeks there have been a few who have questioned the direction and focus of the BOE and stated that the board has failed to accomplish anything this year,” she said. “We submit that these statements are unfounded. In the past seven months under the current leadership, the BOE has seen many accomplishments.”
Rosenthal listed the creation of the facilities committee, the expansion of the Effective School Solutions Program, the adoption of the Balance Scorecard, the adoption of the 10-year capital maintenance plan, and the recent adoption of the new bylaws which, “for the first time refocuses a committee on the critical areas of curriculum and student development, and establishes a new committee dedicated to communication, which we believe will further advance the work of this Board in collaboration with our community.
“It’s our hope that by reflecting here on the many recent board accomplishments that those questioning voices will rejoin our many efforts toward collaborative, student-centered progress for our town,” she said. “Regardless of the personal or political feelings of any member of this BOE, the work of the board will steadily continue toward major improvements for the children in this district, the educators of Madison Public Schools, and for the people of our town, just as major improvements have been efficiently, effectively, and most often unanimously realized for the past seven months under Chairwoman [Katie] Stein.”
Following Rosenthal’s statement, Stein made her own statement addressing the events of the prior few weeks.
“This board of elected volunteers and its leadership have consistently and tirelessly worked on one common goal: helping the children and their families of our district,” she said. “We are guided and inspired by the dedication of the teachers and district staff that ensure the safety, education, and wellbeing of Madison students. While at times we may have had sharp disagreements, references to systemic dysfunction or politics ahead of principle fly in the face of our actual accomplishments.”
Stein said the board has a great deal of work ahead of it but believes the members of the board can work together to find a way forward.
“The quality of the people who remain on the board in the face of these challenges should not be questioned,” she said. “I am confident that we are the best group for the task and will form the consensus necessary to be effective.”
In light of Bowler’s resignation, a new member, Republican Kirk Barneby, was appointed by the Board of Selectmen and joined the BOE table. Barneby, who has a background in mathematics and economics, ran for the board in 2017 but was unsuccessful at the polls. His term will expire in November 2021.
Additionally, as Bowler had been vice chair of the BOE, the board unanimously appointed Galen Cawley (R) to serve as the new vice chair. Prior to the conclusion of the meeting, Stein also reviewed board committee assignments as new committees had been formed and membership of the board had changed.
“As chair it is my responsibility to make appointments to the committees and given that we have had a resignation and we have added a new committee, it was necessary to make some new appointments,” she said. “My goal was to balance out the committee designations based on board member requests, workload, and the overall responsibilities of the board. I feel I was able to accomplish that with as little movement as possible so most people are on the same committees that they were.”
Of the now six committees, three are Republican majority and three are Democratic majority. The only change that caused any concern was a slight shift in the Personnel Committee. Board member Violet McNerney said she was concerned about changing committee membership as negotiations with the Teamsters union, which represents some school district employees, wraps up, and, at the same time, negotiations with the teachers’ union starts up.
Stein said she understood the concern, but was assured the change would not be disruptive and the board member who had been moved off of the Personnel Committee, DeSantis, had offered to stick with the negotiations until a conclusion was reached to help maintain consistency.