[Vision2020] Board of Trustee Minutes--reply to Phil

[Michael Curley]

Phil:
Unfortuately for some reason unknown to me, I cannot retain the 
string of your conversation with Keely about the March 10 school 
board meeting minutes being posted on the website. (see 
www.sd281.k12.id.us/Board_of_Trustees/minutes/05-03-10Spec.pdf, if 
you're interested).  You suggested that it was the "content" of the 
meeting minutes that caused it to be posted in a less timely manner 
than other minutes, but Keely said "no" and you asked "why then."

Not to answer for Keely, but let me review a couple of things before 
she does so that you have some information from which to evaluate her 
answer--and future postings.  

Minutes of meetings are pesky things.  They aren't really minutes 
until they are approved at the NEXT meeting of the group.  They are 
prepared and circulated for review and CORRECTION prior to the 
meeting, and they MAY be approved in exactly the form in which they 
are circulated, but they also may contain absolutely incorrect 
information.  I'm sure you'd be very upset if you were a board, 
commission or committee member and minutes were posted BEFORE you had 
a chance at the next meeting to amend them that said:  "Phil Roderick 
said he favored proposition x" if indeed you said you did NOT favor 
proposition x and the secretary/minute-taker had erred.  

Perhaps the point is, thus, that "official" meeting minutes should 
not be used as an informational tool when the public needs or wants 
answers immediately.  Of course, concomitantly, the public should not 
look for the answers there either.  Additionally, minutes are not 
really supposed to contain DETAILS of discussion at a meeting.  They 
should NOT for example say:  "Mr. Roderick said that he thought xyz 
about resolution 05-123."  We may all THINK that's what minutes are 
about, but they aren't (you want the cite to Roberts Rules of Order, 
post me offline).  They SHOULD give the details of a motion or 
resolution that is presented, that "discussion ensued," and then the 
vote was taken--and the results.  

It is laudable the District posts its Board minutes on its website.  
I doubt they intended the particular minutes to be the "information 
sheet" on the bond or any other issue, and it isn't the place where 
any of us should look for TIMELY information about them.  

And, then, there is the question about who has the technical 
knowledge to post the minutes (yes, some students are quite capable, 
but they require supervision, so in the past it has been an employee 
who has needed to do it--who is also responsible for keeping the 
computer system running for the entire district--and there are at 
least EIGHT separate buildings in which the system operates.  Ah, 
minutes, they seem sooo simple at first glance.

Hope this helps a bit, whatever the underlying issue might be.

Mike




On 29 Apr 2005 at 11:37, Shelly wrote:

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