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North Kingstown School Committee appoints Barton Gilliam to investigate two certified-employee complaints after public comment on student impacts
Summary
The North Kingstown School Committee met Nov. 24, cited Rhode Island law for an executive session on two certified-employee complaints, voted to seal the executive minutes and appointed the law firm Barton Gilliam to conduct the investigation; public commenters urged supports for roughly 80 students affected by administrative leave.
The North Kingstown School Committee convened a Nov. 24 special meeting to discuss two certified-employee complaints in executive session and later voted in open session to appoint the law firm Barton Gilliam to carry out the investigation.
Committee members cited Rhode Island General Laws authorizing executive sessions for discussions of personnel and investigative proceedings before moving into closed deliberations. After returning to open session the committee voted to seal the executive-session minutes and then took the formal step of appointing Barton Gilliam to conduct the inquiry; the motion passed on a voice vote of members who responded "Aye." The motion’s mover and seconder were not identified on the public record.
The meeting included public comment from parent Harlan Benetti, who said teachers now on administrative leave "hold my daughter accountable" and praised the district's protocol for handling student complaints while urging the district to provide additional academic and social-emotional supports for "about 80 kids or so" affected by the leaves. Student Dante Maglioli said the teacher absences made classes harder to focus in and argued the district should have conducted an investigation before removing teachers from the classroom: "It has been harder to focus on work, and it's been more wild in classes. ... I just believe that there should've been an investigation first." Both speakers asked for timely, thorough handling of the underlying complaints.
Beyond the appointment of the outside law firm, the committee did not discuss details of the alleged conduct or provide a public timeline for the investigation during the meeting. The committee disclosed that no votes were taken during the executive session and then sealed the session minutes by vote. The special meeting adjourned after the actions were completed.
What happens next: The committee’s appointment of Barton Gilliam indicates the inquiry will be carried out by outside counsel; the meeting record on Nov. 24 did not specify the scope, timeline, reporting requirements, or any expected public updates from the firm or the district. The committee took no further publicly recorded actions at this meeting.
