Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Comment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Resident criticizes survey access and meeting conduct at board meeting
Summary
Local resident Joyce Gooden told the board she had trouble accessing an online survey about school unification, called the survey skewed, and urged better design and clearer meeting procedures; she also criticized perceived interruptions and the handling of superintendent comments.
Joyce Gooden addressed the Buckingham County School Board during public comment, identifying herself and her address and raising two concerns: difficulties accessing and navigating an online survey about unifying the elementary and primary divisions, and what she described as disrespectful meeting conduct toward female speakers.
"The survey itself seemed very skewed," Gooden said, adding that when she selected that she did not favor unification the survey continued to ask about values important to unification. She told the board she had trouble locating the survey on the district website and urged staff to make surveys easier to access and to design them so responses cannot be misrepresented. "Bottom line is please design your surveys better and make them more easily accessible on your website," she said.
Gooden also told the board she felt a male board member interrupted a superintendent's statement and then attempted to "explain" it for the audience, which she described as unnecessary and dismissive. She urged the board to practice active listening and be more considerate of meeting attendees' time.
The chair thanked Gooden for her comments and closed public comment for this meeting.
Next steps: Gooden said she had a written copy of her reactions available; the board did not record a formal response or action on the survey accessibility concerns at the meeting.
