PVSchools board debates transparency, access to meeting agendas

By Stacy Mantle
Mail

Proposed changes to Paradise Valley Unified School District's governing board policies sparked a discussion Thursday over how individual board members can place items on meeting agendas and whether current procedures provide sufficient transparency.

During the Oct. 22 meeting, board member Sandra Christensen questioned the district's process for considering agenda requests, saying she has struggled throughout her four-year term to get proposed topics included in regular meetings.

"One of the struggles that I've had on my four years here on the board is I have repeatedly asked for things to be added to the agenda, and for some reason or another, it's always either put on a study session or not put on," Christensen said.

The discussion arose during the first reading of revisions to Policy BEDB, which governs preparation and distribution of board meeting agendas.

Christensen proposed language allowing individual board members to place items on regular meeting agendas when requests are submitted within the required deadline.

She said the current process, which generally involves the superintendent and board president, can prevent other members from bringing issues forward.

"I don't feel we have a solid process and procedure for doing that here in PV," she said.

Board member Dr. Stephanie Lim also questioned a proposed change extending the deadline for requesting agenda items from eight to 10 working days.

"Those extra two days seems like it's a lot of time for us as a board to then have to be 10 days in advance of an agenda to even propose something," Lim said.

Superintendent Dan Courson explained that the additional time would allow administrators to prepare presentations, research and background information before an item reaches the board.

Lim suggested retaining the eight-day deadline, while other members discussed whether more complex requests could be directed to study sessions.

Not all board members supported giving individuals unrestricted authority to add agenda items.

Board President Tony Pantera cautioned that such a policy could allow one member to dominate meetings with excessive requests.

"There has to be some kind of limit or filter," Pantera said.

Board member Kerry Wani suggested another approach: ensuring all board members are informed when a colleague requests an agenda item, even if the request is not ultimately included.

Courson said administrators could incorporate language addressing study sessions and notification of agenda requests into the next revision.

The board also discussed public meeting notices, including whether meeting times and dates should appear on both notices and agendas.

Lim argued that removing information from notices could reduce transparency.

"I think it's more transparent to have it on both the agenda and the notice, while it is trying to pin us down in time to make sure that notice is correct," Lin said.

Courson said the district would review the Arizona School Boards Association's rationale for the proposed change before returning to the board.

The revisions were presented for discussion rather than final approval.

Editor’s note:   A grant from the Arizona Local News Foundation made this story possible. The foundation awarded 15 newsrooms to pay for solutions-focused education reporters for two years. Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines.

Stacy Mantle
Education Solutions Reporter

smantle@iniusa.org

Meet Stacy
Stacy Mantle is joining the team at Independent Newsmedia, Inc. as an Education Solutions journalist, thanks to a grant from the Arizona Community Collaborative. She has a long history in education that ranges from teaching junior high and middle school to developing curriculum and standards-based assessments.

Community: A longtime advocate for animal welfare, Stacy is deeply involved in rescue efforts and volunteers with several nonprofit organizations.

Random Fact: Once upon a time, she shared her home with a pet coyote and two wolf hybrids. The experiences were wild enough to become the subject of her first book!

Education: She holds a BA in English with a minor in Political Science, a Post-baccalaureate in Secondary Education, and an MBA with a emphasis on Marketing.

Hobbies: In her spare time, Stacy writes fast-paced urban fantasy novels, crafts small-batch artisan soap, and is always up for hiking or off-roading through the Arizona wilderness with her husband of 23 years.