The Marblehead School Committee voted 4-1 on Sept. 30 to pursue investigation and self-reporting for a possible Open Meeting Law violation after committee members received a goals document in advance via Dropbox and raised concerns about pre-meeting communications among a quorum.

Several members said the document, which contained suggested goals, was shared with the committee in a way that may have constituted an improper pre-meeting exchange. One member described the sharing as the work product of two members distributed to a quorum and said it appeared to be shared with instruction “not to deliberate about it,” prompting concerns about an open-meeting violation.

Committee members debated next steps. Some argued for immediate self-reporting to the Attorney General’s office, while others recommended first conducting an internal review to determine whether a violation occurred; if the review confirmed a violation, they agreed the committee should self-report. Members discussed remedies, including publicly releasing the shared document, undergoing Open Meeting Law training through the state Attorney General’s office, and designating a committee member to consult with legal counsel.

A motion to self-report (or to investigate and then self-report if warranted) was moved and seconded; the motion passed 4-1. Members discussed assigning a committee member to lead the review and noted that training sessions conducted by the Attorney General’s office or local in-person sessions could be appropriate remedies if a violation is confirmed. No formal sanction or penalty was imposed at the meeting; the committee instructed that the next step would be an investigation and, if indicated, filing a self-report and identifying a remedy such as training or public disclosure.