Poudre School District board debates limiting public comment, will vote at next meeting

Board President Kristen Draper presided over a heated discussion on Tuesday about proposed changes to board policy GP 3.13 that would limit public comment during the board’s regular meetings and expand separate community engagement sessions.

The proposal would keep a public comment period at one regular business meeting each month while encouraging two‑way dialogue in school‑based community sessions held separately. Supporters said the change would make meeting time more efficient and allow for more substantive, back‑and‑forth conversation; opponents said it would reduce transparency and shrink the public forum.

Why it matters: Public comment is an official way for the community to address the full board and district leadership on the record. Several long‑time speakers and stakeholder groups told the board that narrowing that access would undermine trust and reduce oversight.

Speakers during public comment repeatedly urged the board not to reduce opportunities for the public to speak. “Please consider not making changes to public comment at this time,” said Anna Lobeta during the community comment period. Sabrina Herrick framed the proposal as an erosion of accountability and said district leaders have “forgotten that step 1 of looking good is doing good.”

Parents and advocates described prior incidents that they said demonstrated the need for an open public forum. Jeff Arftehite raised an outstanding complaint he said stemmed from a February meeting and urged the board to investigate under existing board policy before restricting public comment, arguing that “when decisions are made out of sight and then rolled out before a public vote … it becomes symbolic and not substantive.”

Board discussion: Directors offered a range of views. Director Connor Duffy said he preferred keeping both formats—regular public comment and separate engagement sessions—because they serve different purposes and populations. Director Kevin Havelda proposed setting a fixed limit for public comment (he suggested 30 minutes, with discretion to extend if many people sign up) and adding clear time stamps to agendas so the public can plan attendance.

Director Jim Brokish emphasized process and civility, reminding the room the board would not vote on the policy change that evening. “We’re not voting on this tonight, we’re voting on this next [meeting],” he said, and asked both commenters and board members to consider tone when engaging.

Board President Draper summarized the point of view driving the proposal: limiting comment at the second monthly work session would free the board to hold two‑hour, school‑based sessions that allow two‑way dialogue with community members who cannot or prefer not to speak in public meetings. She said the administration is working on time stamps and other efficiency measures and that the changes would be considered alongside other meeting‑process adjustments.

Next steps: The board did not vote on GP 3.13 at the Aug. 12 meeting and agreed to return the item for formal action at a future meeting after further leadership discussion and possible adjustments. Several directors asked staff to prepare clarifying language about how community engagement sessions will be recorded, publicized and preserved in the public record.

Voices quoted in this report are drawn from the Aug. 12, 2025 board meeting transcript.