Orleans Parish School Board removes action item tied to litigation after executive session

The Orleans Parish School Board on March 16 removed action item 3.2 from its public agenda after a closed executive session in which board counsel said the board received a status update on the district's pending lawsuit against the City of New Orleans.

Board counsel Ashley Halperin reported out of executive session that "the board held a discussion of an attorney client privilege matter pursuant to Louisiana Revised Statute 42 17, 8, 10" and that the board "received a status update related to Orleans Parish School Board versus the City of New Orleans, et al., Civil District court case number 2019 05174, injunctive relief," she said on the public record.

Halperin then asked the board to amend the agenda to remove item 3.2, saying the entry had been listed as an action item but was, in fact, a decision reached in executive session and should be removed "so that the record is clear." Ms. Griffin moved to amend the agenda to remove item 3.2; Mr. Zervigon seconded the motion. The board approved the amendment by voice vote; there was no recorded roll-call tally on the public record.

Ms. Griffin spoke afterward to clarify her position, saying she wanted it publicly noted that she "was not in agreement with either" at the prior meeting, a remark she made while explaining the context for removing the agenda item.

The board took no further public action on the litigation during the meeting. The session reconvened at about 6:04 p.m.; the board adjourned at 6:06 p.m. Interpreters Viet Quin Pham (Vietnamese) and Lina Martinez (Spanish) were present for the meeting, and Dr. Fatima Fulmore was noted as present as superintendent.

No substantive votes on policy or expenditures appeared on the public record during the open session; the only recorded procedural action was the amendment removing item 3.2 from the agenda.