November 30, 2023 at 5:30 PM - Board of Education Meeting

Discussion:  (See above)

Discussion:  - Boston led the board members in a Moment of Silence and the Pledge of Allegiance. 

Discussion:   (See Above)

Discussion:   (See Exhibit #1) Boston advised, next on the agenda is the approval of the agenda and I have been asked by a lady in the audience. If all board members would speak closely into their microphone. Sometimes they have a hard time hearing us. So if you would be so kind as to make sure that you can be heard. Hamby advised, I make a motion we approve the agenda. Hale advised, second. Boston replied, so we have a first and a second. Any discussion? No one responded. A Voice Vote was taken. 

Discussion:   - Boston stated there are 1 community members that have signed up to speak before the board.

Name: Mary Ziggler 32 Bluff View Terrace, Crossville, TN
Subject: Work Sessions

Discussion:   - Boston advised, next on that agenda is Committees and I had this put on there in order; I am going to go ahead and make a motion and then we will proceed to discussion. The motion I am going to make is to dissolve the current committee members as voted on in September 23 and to adopt the original proposed members of approved committees at the same meeting. Hamby replied, I will second that. Boston replied, so we have a first and a second. The motion is to dissolve the committee members as voted on September 23 and to adopt the original proposed members of the approved committees proposed at that same meeting. We are open now. Any discussion? King replied, I would just ask why? Boston replied, because it became painfully obvious that having four on a committee is not going to work and we have no other choice but to move forward in conducting business and we tried one committee meeting and it was not successful at all and we conducted no business and we have got some policies that have got to. We have got to approve, disapprove, change. We've got to review, because the laws have already changed and in order to; it may four on a committee may work for other boards. It's not going to work for this and we've got to be able to conduct business and that is my main reason. Stout replied, a couple of concerns. The committees are advisory only. Boston replied, that is correct. Stout continued, so we should't need to have to pass anything by vote onto the board. We can still advise with the board, what the committee has discussed or determined and the  second piece to that is we had four on a committee last year already. So we have operated with four on a committee. Boston replied, we did and it worked last year, but we have got to move forward in conducting business and this is my proposal. This is the only solution that I have been able to come up with and a committee can vote and then bring what they recommend or they advised to the board. This board has voted by a majority to operate under committees presently and if that what the majority of the board has voted to do our Code of Conduct says we are to accept that and to support that and that's what I intend to do. Stout replied, I don't believe its the number of the people on the committee that's causing the issue. I think it's that we've got some unresolved conflict regarding how we should move forward with committees that's causing the issue. Not specifically that we've got four or three people on a committee. Boston replied, well when you have a vote for two to two nothing passes. You can do that all night. If you have three, it can either be unanimous. It can be two to one. It can be one to two, but at least you get something done and I am very concerned about this board being able to move forward and conduct business. Our employees, our students are suffering because we can't conduct business. Stout replied, I agree. I think that's everybody's concern. That we move forward with a good operational practice and that we remove barriers instead of adding barriers for the administartion and staff. Safdie replied, I think that we've had great operational practices. I think that there's room for improvement, however you can't obstruct the operation of the Board of Education in order to push and highlight one issue and there's only one issue that I see that is the concern of the Board of Education and that is to conduct its business and support the children and the staff and the Director of Schools. Now you're talking about an operational procedure and I thought about this a lot.  There are many, many criticisms that you've had and I think that I agree with some of them, but those can be handled systematically and not by pushing. Okay, not by pushing. Now at the last meeting; at the last policy meeting, we had Nick who refused to accept the will of the Board of Education that we operate on as a committee. Just stood out and said no, I don't want to do this. We don't need to have these committees. Now the exact quote I'm paraphrasing and I'm probably paraphrasing not exactly, but if you look at the minutes you can see where he just didn't want to move forward and as a result of that the chairman of last year's Policy Committee just threw in the towel and said we can't conduct business this way. Now there is a way to systematically affect changes. I have been involved in creating a policy that took one full year to make and to correct. No one said on the board at that time, oh you know you have to do it immediately or no this is not going to happen. It's just a thorough involvement and an opportunity to bring in differing opinions, but you can do that through the committee structure and I think that's what I'm concerned about right now. Is that you can't; it reminds me of the hippie movement back in the 70s and the 60s where people said I want this change now and people kept on saying work through the system and I believe we can work through the system and I like your ideas. Okay, I'm not disparaging you. Stout replied, well I think there's been a lot of good ideas put forth by different folks on the board and I think the issue that came up in the Policy Committee meeting last time was that we were putting the cart before the horse again and we're moving forward with committees before going back and addressing the policy. To make sure they were operating within policy. To make sure that the policy, the committee policy reflects how we've chosen as a board. To move forward or how the five out of four board members have chosen to move forward. Safdie replied, the five out of four board members by law dictate what takes place. Hamby replied, and we are not supposed to question. We are to support. Safdie continued, and if we go back 20 or 30 years from now in the past we'll find out that committee's existed and they did the same thing and the Tennessee School Board Association really hasn't changed its policy. Stout replied, and if you look at all of the other boards around us they do something different. So everybody's got their way of doing things. The bottom line is we want to make sure that our policy is in order and we're setting the right example to follow those polices. Safdie replied, we can do that. Stout replied, for me that's what I took out of what Nick was saying. Safdie replied, but you can't stop the process. You can't stop the board from functioning to wait to do those things. Stout replied, oh there shouldn't be any stopping of it. These things can be handled in board meetings. Safdie replied, okay that's good. Point of order then. Boston asked, any further discussions? McCartney replied, correction it was the October meeting. Boston replied, it was the October. I'm sorry. I apoligize. It was the October meeting. So that correction is duly noted. Thank you. Any further discussion. Patton replied, in order and I am just bringing this up because your policy under Roberts Rules of Order does allow for the suspension of Roberts Rules of Order newly revised. I don't immediately know if the form of your motion is consistent with those rules and the only thing that I might suggest is that if the board is going to vote to do what is proposed to do it's doing you might also consider suspending Roberts Rules for the purpose of that motion. Hamby replied, I make a motion that we suspend the Roberts Rules of Order for the purpose of this motion. Safdie replied, I will second it. Patton replied, and again I don't know that what you're and I'll say that is purely I guess a suggestion on my part that if there are any irregularities to it that should. Boston replied, it clears it up. Patton continued, it should. Boston replied, okay so. Mr. Stout asked, is the board open to public comments? Boston replied, no sir. Mr. Stout continued, I thought you should be in a work session. I thought. Hamby replied, this is not a work session. Mr. Stout continued, I am a constituent and this is a Special Called Meeting. Boston replied, no sir. Mr. Stout continued, when I read the words it says any. Hamby replied, point of order. Mr. Stout continued, should be able to comment. Boston replied, I understand. Mr. Stout asked, so you are refusing to allow me to comment? Boston replied, yes sir I am. Hamby replied, point of order. Mr. Stout replied, it is a bully puppet. It's a bully puppet and Mr. Safdie bullied the rest of the board. Hamby replied, point of order. Boston replied, Mr. Stout. Hamby replied, point of order. Boston replied, please. Mr. Stout replied, I will stop right there. Boston continued, let us please move on. Let the record show that was Mr. David Stout, Mrs. Stout's husband. Mr. Stout replied, whether I am her husband or not is irrelevant. Point of order. I am a constituent. I am a tax payer and I am a voter. Hamby replied, and you could have signed up for community comments. Nichols replied, stop, stop, stop. All of you stop. Boston replied, I've got this Sheri. Hamby replied, and I have called point of order. Boston replied, I've got this. Hamby replied, it needs to stop. I agree. Boston continued, so no more Mr. Stout please. Let us conduct business please. So I will withdraw my motion, if you will withdraw your second. Until we vote on the Roberts Rules of Order.  Hamby replied, I remove my second. Boston continued, the motion on the table is that we suspend Robert's Rules of Order in order to proceed with this motion and I have a first and a second. A Roll Call Vote was taken. Boston replied, motion carries. Okay, now I will again state the motion that to dissolve the committee members as voted on in the October 2023 meeting and to adopt the original proposed members of approved committees in the same meeting. Hamby replied, second. Boston replied, we have first and a second. We have had discussion. Hale replied, I'd just like to ask and say again did we not have the opportunity, did you not give us an opportunity by email to choose committees that we wanted to be on? Boston replied, yes I did. Hale continued, and those that responded. Boston replied, yes. Thank you for bringing that up. Yes I did. Stout replied, and that was also prior to the meeting where it was on the agenda to discuss the committees. So some of us were waiting until the meeting til we discussed which committees we were going to put in place. So we could voice our opinion on which ones we wanted to be on. Boston replied, thank you. Any further discussion? Stout asked, if we dissolve the ones that we put on the committees in that meeting. Boston replied, yes. Stout continued, I actually make a move for us to just start from scratch and allow everybody to have the opportunity to say which committee they would like to be on. Since some of us did not sign up for this ahead of that meeting and it was at that meeting that we took the opportunity to explain the ones we'd like to be on. Boston asked, Mr. Patton would you care to elaborate on. Patton replied, well one thing I'll say this. Your policy under Duties of Officers. One duty of your chairman, this is Policy 1.201 is to appoint committees authorized by the board. Plain meaning of point is to assign members and that is taken directly from Tennessee Code 49-2-205. So from my standpoint, I don't even know frankly that the board, I think the chairman that you voted into place has the authority to make these appointments regardless of a vote of the Board of Education. That's the policy. That's what state law says, but the fact that the board did vote on it, in relation to its approval of the committees this is probably the direction that you need to go. That is probably if it is the intention of a majority of this board to do so. Stout asked, so how does that tie in then with Policy 1.3 where it says appointed by the chairman at the direction of the board. Patton replied, well I think where that comes in my interpretation of that is that if the board votes to approve committees then it is the chairman's job to appoint those committees.  Hamby replied, and Jennifer White and Ben Torres also confirmed that same statement that you just said. Stout replied, well my move still stands for us to have the opportunity to select the committee members for the committees. To allow for proper. Stull replied, I feel that everybody has been given a chance ahead of time and people chose not to go ahead and respond and some people chose to respond. If you chose not to respond then you were choosing to go ahead and be put on whatever committee that you were assigned to by not responding. Just because you were waiting to see what happened in a meeting you were sent an email prior to the meeting to prepare you for that meeting and you didn't respond to that. So you gave up your chance at that point. Stout replied, well no board business is to be conducted in board meetings and that's via email. Also it was official at the board meeting. Stull replied, so the question was asked whether or not you wanted to be on a specific committee. That was a courtesy that was being given to you and you chose not to go ahead and take that. Hamby replied, because Roberts Rules of Order says that our board chair can appoint committees and committee members and also appoint the chairman of each committee. King replied, you just suspended those. Hamby replied, yes we did, but I am reiterating that she had every right to send the email giving a courtesy to us to say what committees we would like to be considered for. Stout replied, and we do need to make sure there's proper representation on all of these committees. Proper representation by different districts on these committees. Boston replied, thank you. So she moved that we; I don't even know what you do. Stout replied, I made a move that we go ahead and restructure the committees. Not just wipe them out and put them back to the initial, but we restructure them so folks have the opportunity, everybody has the opportunity to make sure that they are able to serve on a committee that they'd like to serve on. Boston asked Becky, do we vote on the move? Hamby replied, yes if there is a second on the move. Nichols replied, I will second. Boston replied, so we are voting to completely restructure not go back to the proposed and committee members. A Roll Call Vote was taken. Boston replied, so we will go back to the original motion. Any further discussion? A Roll Call Vote was taken. Boston replied, so we will go back to the original committee members as proposed and I'll get those out to you guys tomorrow so that it refreshes your memory. 

 

Discussion: 
 - Boston advised, next on the agenda is the Collaborative Conferencing. Julia, thank you for being here. Tennessee Code 49-5-605, we have had a letter of submission to enter in Collaborative Conferencing. 15% was submitted and from that the board has to appoint an Election Committee. To send out a survey to all employees or all members. Correct me if I am wrong, somebody. Stepp replied, it's a Special Question Committee. Boston continued, right. It's a special question. In the code it actually calls it the Election Commission or Election Committee and the board appoints that committee. There's really two questions you ask, but you send it out to all employees. Timson replied, teachers only. Boston continued, teachers only. Timson replied, no administration. Boston replied, okay. To teachers only and if a certain percentage comes back, then you enter into Collaborative Conferencing. You then elect, the board appoints the negotiating team. Timson replied, yes. Boston continued, I knew that we were under a January 1st deadline. In order, both committee have to be appointed and we only have one meeting, that's December the 7th and I knew we had to move forward with the Special Question Committee. When I phoned Mr. Stepp to kind of get this underway and discovered that committee had already been appointed and it actually already met. The survey had already been sent out and they were opening the results of that survey Monday afternoon. Monday afternoon I think is when I called. Stepp replied. so the previous meeting we had talked about the Collaborative Conferencing and my instructions from that meeting was go ahead and get it started. So that's what we did. Boston replied, well there was no vote and so Mr. Stepp and I discussed this and we took the liberty of doing an Executive Committee approval. So that this committee and these results would stand and then we could move on just to the election of the Negotiating Committee. We can do that. I've also spoken to Mrs. Timson and I think she's got her members list ready to go that could be submitted to Diane tonight and we can get it on the December 7th board agenda and that way we have fallen within our deadline and we have met our obligations as a board. So I would like to make a motion that we approve the Special Question Committee as approved by the Executive Committee and the results there of. Hamby replied, I will second. Boston asked, do we have any discussion? Hamby asked, do we get a list of those members that are on that committee? Stepp replied, yes you will approve the board's committee. Boston replied, if you don't mind my asking. Just for the board's information. Who is on that committee? Stepp replied, I don't remember at the top of my head, but I will get that to you guys before next week. To make sure we can vote on it. Boston asked, do we know what the results were? Stepp replied, the results were overwhelming for CCEA to be the negotiating team and the board tonight is voting to do the Collaborative Conferencing with that group. Boston replied, okay so the results came in over the percentage required. Timson replied, you only have to have 15% had CCEA had 60.8%. Bray replied, 60.8%. Boston replied, the results, go us. A constituent from the audience asked, madam chairman may I make a quick question? Boston replied, no ma'am. the constituent replied, to clarify something. Boston replied, I am not taking any comments. You're welcome to meet with any board member after the meeting and they will answer your questions or try to. Mr. Stepp is available after the meeting, but I don't want to disrupt the meeting, because we have another committee meeting right after this meeting. The constituent replied, I don't understand that. I just wanted to make sure that as elected officials. Hamby replied, point of order. Boston replied, I am sorry. The constituent continued, I just wanted to make sure that we have a voice. Hamby replied, okay lets move on with business please. Boston replied, so the motion on the floor and a second is that we approve the Special Question Committee as it was appointed, as it met and as it was approved by the Executive Committee. I can't direct Mrs. Timson, but if you have your. Timson replied, I am sending her an email right now. Boston continued, okay and then Mr. Stepp you can submit yours to Mrs. Diane and then we can put it on the agenda. Stepp replied, you will see them all, yes. Boston replied, okay perfect. We have a first and a second. Any further discussion. No one responded. A Roll Call Vote was taken. Boston replied, so that is underway and we will meet our January deadline. 

Discussion:   - Boston asked, any old business? No one responded. 

Discussion:   - Boston asked if there were any questions from the media. No questions were asked.

Discussion:   - Hamby advised, I'll make a motion that we adjourn. Boston replied, second. The meeting adjourned at 5:59 p.m.