RSU 82/MSAD 12 board approves hire for special education and grants extended unpaid leave after executive session

The RSU 82/MSAD 12 Board of Directors approved the superintendent's recommendation to hire Josh Allen as a Special Education teacher at its Sept. 30, 2024 meeting.

According to the minutes, Jean Turner moved to approve the hire and Bailey Brown seconded; the motion was recorded as passing, Y 5 N 0 A 0. The minutes list the action under New Business as the superintendent's recommendation, with no additional hiring conditions recorded.

Later in the meeting the board entered an executive session at 6:30 p.m. to discuss a personnel matter related to a leave request, citing 1 MRSA §405(6)(D). The minutes record the executive session ended at 6:55 p.m.

After the executive session the minutes record two sequential post-session actions regarding the same leave request for Sarah Lopez. First, a motion "to oppose extended leave" (Motion: Jean Turner; Second: Jasmine Bradford) is shown as passing with a recorded vote of Y 5 N 0 A 0. The minutes then record a subsequent motion "to grant an extended unpaid leave of absence through the end of the school year" (Motion: Jean Turner; Second: Linda Griffin), which is also recorded as passing, Y 5 N 0 A 0. The minutes do not provide additional detail explaining the sequence or how the two motions related to one another; the final recorded action in the minutes is that an extended unpaid leave was granted through the end of the school year.

No dollar amounts, effective hire date for Josh Allen, or personnel files were included in the minutes. The board scheduled follow-up items and noted the next regular meeting for Oct. 16, 2024.

The minutes cite the statutory authority for executive session discussions as 1 MRSA §405(6)(D) (personnel matters).