Goals in Closed Session

Released to the Valley Sun, October 7, 2009
Letter to the editor, for immediate release

I am a member of the La Cañada School Board, speaking for myself.

Question asked at the Candidate Forum, Tuesday, October 7:  The [La Cañada] School District has a goal to report out to the community on major Board-Superintendent goals.  Why are Superintendent goals discussed in closed session and is this in keeping with the open meeting laws?

Answers from incumbents:  The superintendent evaluation and personnel issues are discussed in closed session, but not Superintendent goals.  The goals discussed are similar to the public version called District goals, with the implication that closed session then does not matter.

Why is this issue important to voters?  There are no minutes in closed session and critical agreements/disagreements are not reported out.  I can’t say if board members have hidden unpopular votes – that would be a breach of closed session.

Where are we now?  The Board finished the Superintendent annual evaluation this summer.  Since then, the board has met with the Superintendent on his goals, for about ninety minutes, in closed session starting at 5pm, September 29.  We now have about twenty proposed goals, which is too many.  (Joel Peterson was absent, but this follows the pattern of prior years when Joel has participated.)  The Board and Superintendent have another closed session meeting scheduled on Superintendent goals,  4:30pm, Wednesday, October 14.

By my count, only three of the proposed goals are personnel issues.  In my opinion, the community is better served when the remaining goals are discussed, prioritized and voted on in public.

At the open session board meeting, March 3, 2009, (three-quarters through the audio recording, www.lcusd.net), I proposed a District goal to conduct Superintendent goal-setting in public and couldn’t get the two other votes needed.  The compromise was the goal on reporting out.  This pattern of evaluation and goal setting is not an oversight.

I am discussing two other topics on my website that were, in my opinion, mis-represented at the candidate forum.  See the top bar for a summary of election issues, http://cindywilcox.net

I encourage you to become an informed voter,
Cindy Wilcox