School Board President Won't Allow Vote To Review Public Comment Policy

A discussion on First Amendment rights and free speech by the Mt. Lebanon school board was brought to an abrupt halt Monday night when board President Mark Hart refused to allow board members to be polled on the matter.

School director Josephine Posti had asked for the board to consider forming a subcommittee to review board meeting procedures, specifically the way in which speakers address the board.

Mrs. Posti said at in recent months speakers have presented inaccurate information, and some have attacked administrators and community volunteers from the podium.

Link: www.post-gazette.com/pg/08227/904083-55.stm

Update: At her personal blog, School Board Director Jo Posti notes:

While the discussion about how to improve public comments has ended, it is, in my opinion, an unresolved issue. Some districts provide information that corrects inaccurate information. Some broadcast public commentors on-camera vs. off. Some provide venues for comments that do not pertain to board business. Some publish public comments or identification of commentors in order to provide the same level of respect to the public as the public is asked to provide the board. While none of these concepts are my recommendation, they may have been points of discussion should a sub-committee have been appointed. My hope is that we can all work harder going forward to provide accurate information to the public and to reinforce the Golden Rule standard during public comments.