Board suspends five‑minute public comment limit for June 10 meeting amid high turnout

The Washington Township Board of Education voted on June 10 to suspend the usual five‑minute public‑comment time limit for that meeting, allowing speakers unlimited time that evening.

The motion: A board member moved to temporarily eliminate the five‑minute clock and allow speakers to address agenda and non‑agenda items with no time cap for the June 10 public session. The maker said the change was for this meeting only and that board policy would remain unchanged going forward.

Why the board acted: Board members said they wanted to hear concerns fully because many staff, parents and students were in attendance. The meeting included lengthy public comment on staffing, library services and budget decisions, and several board members said the exception was intended to avoid cutting off speakers who were sharing urgent or personal testimony.

Roll call vote: The motion passed by roll call, 7–1. The recorded votes were: Mrs. Baker — yes; Mrs. Bloom — yes; Mrs. Clancy — no; Mrs. Chilla — yes; Mrs. Hartung — yes; Mr. Serrano — yes; Mr. Ross — yes; Ms. Kazempo — yes.

Scope and limits: The board chair stated the relaxation applied only to June 10; the board’s public‑participation policy was not changed permanently that night. At least one board member asked administrators to consider whether policy changes should be handled through committee work rather than ad‑hoc suspensions.

Ending: The temporary suspension preceded several hours of public testimony; board members later moved into executive session and then returned to act on personnel items.