BOE Opts to Stay With Current Meeting Schedule

At the meeting of the Howell Public Schools Board of Education meeting on Wednesday night, there was discussion about adjusting the board's schedule to one meeting a month. 

However, after some discussion it was agreed that the schedule would stay as it is. Superintendent Enid Golden said after getting direction to look at a new schedule after a previous meeting, she realized it was possible but not without complications. "We realized that in March when we're really heavy into the budget and we knew what our state aid figures are we couldn't go down to one meeting," she said. 

When asked by Board President Tim O'Brien what she thought of the possible change, Golden said, "I think it's doable." She added, "I know that in the past during the winter when we have weather issues we wind up cancelling meetings. I think we've done it when we've needed meetings we schedule it."

If the changes had been adopted, Golden said the board would need to know that it was possible that an emergency meeting might have to be called with as little as 48 hours notice. 

One idea that O'Brien floated on Wednesday was the possibility of having one regular meeting of the board and then holding a workshop meeting where they could work on other issues. He also added that another benefit to changing the schedule would be that board members would have a better opportunity to review committee reports from other members.

John Van Noy, who is serving his first year on the board said he has benefitted from the two meetings a month as he learns what is involved in his relatively new position. "I get educated by you folks when you make reports and things like this. It helps me have a better perspective as well," he said. 

In addition to using one of the meetings as workshops, another idea that had been suggested was that if there was nothing to work on at the second meeting it would be cancelled. This issue also brought questions from members at the table. 

Al Miller, another new member of the board said he was also in favor of leaving the schedule as it is. Especially if there would still be two meetings each month, Miller said he believed things should stay the same whether it is regular or workshop meetings. "If we're looking to make these workshops I don't see the purpose of cancelling these meetings," he said. "I think we should just leave it the way it is."

The third member of the board to have won a seat in the last election Stephen M. Levine agreed. "I find it easier to cancel a meeting that I have already scheduled in than it is to add a meeting where I have to now move things around," he said. 

Wednesday night's meeting was the only one the board has scheduled this month. By the time all the business of the meeting had concluded, the meeting had lasted for nearly three hours. 

In the end the board agreed to maintain the schedule as it was adopted in the beginning of the year.