The meeting was held at the Central Office building in the southern part of the county. In attendance were Board Member Josie Barnhart, who’s the chair of the legislative committee — and Board Members Stephanie Walker, Stephanie Kraybill, Pat Bradford, Superintendent Dr. Charles Foust, Administrative Assistant Crystal Buie, and education activist Leslie Posey.
Foust started the discussion off by saying that he didn’t like his ethics being questioned — although he didn’t say who — for making the decision not to livestream the meeting. He said he was upset that he had to pull one of his communications staff to audio and video record the legislative committee, as they were in the process of doing another task at the Board of Education building (nine miles north).
He said later to the committee that this was just a planning meeting for the networking event — and not a discussion of legislative bills or requests, and asked why there was a need to livestream it on the district’s YouTube channel.
He also added it’s not in the district’s official policies to always livestream, saying that it was a holdover expectation from the pandemic.
Barnhart and Bradford agreed with Foust, saying that they should be able to decide when it’s in the public’s interest to livestream.
Bradford said she didn’t understand why the community didn’t trust the board. She also said it was “ridiculous” to assume that they were doing something unethical.
Barnhart agreed, saying this committee “wasn’t hiding anything.”
Bradford also said it was more “fiscally responsible” to hold meetings closer to Central Office so that staff didn’t have to travel to the BOE building located off 13th Street.
Walker countered Bradford and Barnhart by saying this is one of the board’s standing committees, and that there’s an expectation on behalf of the public to view these meetings online. Walker said she, too, is mindful of the staff’s time and travel expenses, but they are a public body, and they should be doing what’s in that interest.
Upcoming event to collaborate with tri-county school districts
Tentatively, on December 13, the legislative committee is planning to host a networking event for New Hanover, Pender, and Brunswick County Schools. It’s to discuss amongst the districts how to work collaboratively on issues facing public education, focusing mainly on how to improve “academic excellence.”
They’re looking to invite representatives like superintendents, school board members, chief financial officers (CFO), county commissioners, and county managers.
A general outline of the event is to first host a ‘meet and greet,’ followed by superintendents sharing the successes of their school districts, and then having an overview of the state budget given by the CFOs. The event would then move into a discussion on challenges, followed by a guided discussion of said challenges, and then a sharing of what was learned throughout the event.
For the challenges discussion, both Barnhart and Bradford said it wouldn’t be a “gotcha moment” or a “complaining session” but a way to brainstorm how to best support public education.
Another goal the committee agreed upon is to come up with shared ideas on how to best make financial asks of both local and state government representatives. Barnhart said this isn’t a “decision-making event,” but that there will be the potential to inform the board members’ future actions.
