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School board approves clarified agenda-preparation policy after debate over 24-hour additions
Summary
The Caddo Parish School Board voted Feb. 18 to adopt a clarified policy on agenda preparation and dissemination after public comment and extended board debate over how last-minute items may be added to meeting agendas.
The Caddo Parish School Board on Feb. 18 approved a clarified version of its agenda-preparation and dissemination policy after public commenters and several board members raised concerns about how items can be added within 24 hours of a meeting.
Board President Preston Green called the motion to consider the policy revision before public comment from John Glover, who said the public has lost access to detailed meeting minutes and asked how the public can vet agenda additions when items can be added within 24 hours. "Why is it not that we no longer have detailed transcriptions of the minutes?" Glover asked at the podium.
During discussion, board attorney Stephen Abrams and other members explained that the executive committee prepares a proposed agenda and that the policy's 24-hour requirement is intended to meet state notice rules. Abrams described the difference between the general right to suggest items and the specific 24-hour mechanism for adding items after the executive committee has set the proposed agenda. "The law requires the 24 hour notice," Abrams said during the exchange.
Dr. Vincent and other board members pressed for clarity about whether individual board members retain the same ability to add items late in the process. Abrams and multiple board members said the practical mechanism is for a board member to request the superintendent or the president add the item; if there is disagreement, the full board can vote to include an item, and there is a two-thirds safeguard for last-minute additions.
The motion to approve the revision was made by board member Barry Rochelle and seconded by a colleague; the board voted to adopt the clarified policy. The transcript records extended discussion about the policy's effect on public notice and the executive committee's role, but no language in the meeting minutes indicates the policy eliminates a board member's ability to propose items prior to the executive committee setting the agenda.
Board members said the clarified text aims to codify existing practice: executive committee sets a proposed agenda, the superintendent or president may add items (so long as state notice rules are met), and the full board retains mechanisms to add or refer items to committee if necessary.
The board moved next to a separate, related policy on public participation.
