Health & Fitness
Let the Sunshine In (Smithtown Central School Distrct)
Sometimes 'openness' is great, and sometimes, well, does the public really need to know?
At last night’s Board of Education meeting, board members Neil Carlin and Scott Martella had a short, intense interaction regarding giving information to the public. Since it followed a heartfelt explanation by Martella of the new Citizens’ Advisory Committee (CAC), which was formed to involve the community more directly in school district issues, it created an odd moment.
Carlin raised the idea, endorsed by Suffolk County’s District Attorney, Tom Spota, of informing Smithtown residents of contract agreements with our unions once a Memo of Agreement (MOA) has been signed by all parties. An MOA is like a binder on a house — before the actual sale – it indicates that there is a basic agreement between parties, in this case between the SCSD and the particular union.
Martella insisted that the democratic process was in place, and took exception to the idea. Carlin said he felt as though he was being given a civics lecture. When Martella asked what possible purpose exposing details of the pre-agreement would serve, members of the audience called out, “openness,” “transparency,” and "sunlight!”
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Carlin asked that if union members had the information, why couldn’t the public?
Eugene Barnosky, attorney for the district, agreed that it was legal for citizens to be made aware of the district’s negotiation with a union at the point of an MOA.
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During the audience portion of the meeting, Rick Schlomann said that since the union’s rank and file get to know the particulars about a proposed contract, “it is only fair, balanced, and open,” to have the Memo of Agreement made available to the public, who can then comment to their elected board.
Stan Meyer, a retired teacher, asked if board members were afraid to hear what the taxpayer had to say about union agreements and the implications to Smithtown for years into the future, saying, “I resent not having the right to know!”
Indeed, following the discourse on the CAC, this disinclination to provide data to the public seems mystifying.
