Superintendent asks for ‘small pocket’ meetings with board members

The St. Landry Parish superintendent of schools is requesting that School Board members meet with him in “small pocket” groups that would be outside of the state’s open meetings law.
The state law requires meetings involving a majority of a public board’s members to be open to the public. However, the law does not apply to meetings that are by chance or at social gatherings where no vote is taken.
Edward Brown, superintendent, said at Thursday’s School Bard meeting, “We are going to start small pocket meetings. I’m hoping we will have one at least once a month.”
The meetings would be scheduled before monthly committee meetings and not include a quorum, which is a majority of board members, he said.
This month’s meetings are planned on Oct. 20 and 21.
“In those meetings we are going to address and every concern that you may have or any idea you want to bring to the table,” he said.
“We can’t have a quorum at any of those meetings,” he said “It is not an open board meeting.”
In an interview, Brown said the meetings are intended to allow him to form a rapport with board members to talk about problems or concerns.
“A lot of times board members get things from their constituents and we like to hear those things,” he said.
“I can think it is going to have a positive affect on the School Board’s transparency. During my tenure I think the board has been transparent,” he said.
The meetings are to keep the board members in the loop “so when when we do have our meetings most of our conversations would have been had,” he said.
“We want to get business taken care of so we can come to board meetings prepared to get in and get out,” he said.
“It is nothing we are trying to hide from the public or anything like that,” he said. "Certainly if something comes out in these meetings that needs to be publicized by all means we are going to do that,” he said.