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Board debates role of liaisons and faculty‑meeting attendance; assignments approved 5–2
Summary
Board members debated whether liaison duties should include attending faculty meetings, with concerns about staff candor and governance lines. The board voted 5–2 to approve liaison assignments while agreeing to revisit the process at a retreat.
A lengthy debate at the July 1 West Irondequoit Central School District reorganizational meeting focused on a proposed board liaison process and whether liaison duties should include attendance at school faculty meetings.
Board members presented competing views. One board member argued that attending faculty meetings could "change the dynamic" of those meetings and make staff less willing to speak openly; that member suggested removing faculty‑meeting attendance from the liaison duties and seeking anonymous feedback from staff instead. Another member said liaison visits can strengthen relationships and that being the only board doing such visits should not be a reason to stop them.
Superintendent Johnson and other trustees urged the board to first clarify the "why" of the liaison role — whether it is primarily to open lines of communication, to serve as an ambassador, or to perform a different function — and then identify the operating mechanisms to achieve that purpose. Several members supported placing the question on the upcoming board retreat agenda and collecting staff feedback before finalizing the process document.
Despite the debate, the board took a vote on the 2026–27 liaison assignments. Two members asked that the minutes note their opposition to a particular school assignment; the motion to approve the liaison assignments passed 5–2.
Board leaders said the approved assignments will be used as a working document and that the process language (including whether faculty meetings are a liaison duty) may be revised after retreat discussions and additional feedback from staff and administrators.
The vote concluded the board’s discussion on liaison roles for the coming year and the board moved on to other reorganizational business.
