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Trustee resigns, alleges chair pressured trustees; Select Board says state will determine open-meeting violation
Summary
Ruby, a library trustee and Ramsdale Building Committee chair, read her resignation and alleged the library chair influenced other trustees and may have skirted open‑meeting rules. The Select Board discussed training and referred any legal finding to the state.
Ruby, who the board introduced at the start of the meeting, said she submitted a resignation letter dated May 18, 2026, after more than four years on the Board of Library Trustees and 1½ years as chair of the Ramsdale Building Committee.
“This originated from my resignation letter on 05/18/2026 after serving as a member of the board of library trustees for more than 4 years and the chair of the Ramsel Building Committee for the past 1.5 years,” Ruby told the Select Board. She told the board she had received what she called a consequential email and described a pattern of actions she said amounted to persuasion by the chair of the trustees.
Ruby said a May 14 message to three trustees—sent one day after a board meeting—raised questions about whether four members had effectively communicated outside a public meeting and whether that process complied with the town charter and the state’s open‑meeting law.
Sharon Shalo, a speaker who identified herself during the session, said she regretted losing her temper at a prior meeting and denied intending to violate the law. “I apologize to anyone who heard it in the meeting,” she said, and defended that nominations and the timing had precedent in prior years.
Select Board members acknowledged mistakes and emphasized intent did not resolve legal questions. The chair said the legal determination rested with state authorities: “It would not be something you'd never get from me…I think it likely is, but that's the state's determination, not mine.”
The board discussed options including reaffirming expectations for trustees, offering training for chairpersons and volunteers, and requesting additional information. The board did not make a legal finding during the meeting and left enforcement questions to the state agency that adjudicates open‑meeting complaints. Staff were asked to prepare guidance and training materials to reduce similar disputes going forward.
