New Glen Ellyn District 41 board members allowed access to closed session recordings

GLEN ELLYN – The Glen Ellyn School District 41 Board of Education has agreed to allow new members Stephanie Clark and Kurt Buchholz access to recordings of closed session meetings.

After a lengthy discussion Monday, during which the newcomers questioned why they needed permission to listen to the audio while veteran members expressed a desire to protect board confidentiality, a consensus was made.

Four board members – Patrick Escalante, Dean Elger, Erica Nelson and Drew Ellis – agreed to allow the access. Board member Joe Bochenski abstained, citing lack of research on board policy and procedure.

Community members largely supported allowing Clark and Buchholz access to the recordings.

“Any contention that a board may deny trustees specific information that is avaiable to other trustees is entirely incorrect," Glen Ellyn resident Randolph Sailer said. "Those are inherent rights and duties of a trustee. If they believe they need information, they are entitled to it.”

Other community members noted regulations posted on the district website stating board members may listen to "verbatim recordings when that action is germane to their responsibilities."

District resident Sarah Michael said, having spoken to a lawyer, it is "illegal" for the board to keep new members from listening to the audio.

Overall, the audience said the board must be transparent and new members should have access to sought information.

“They have these rights. We as a public expect these rights to be enforced,” district parent Bruce Currie said.

The new members sought audio on Superintendent Paul Gordon's recent raise, which hiked his salary to $216,918 when he was awarded a three percent merit increase and a five percent increase to align with surrounding districts April 27.

The two newcomers, who said they spoke with various attorneys, argued there was no basis for denying them from listening to the recordings.

However, a district policy — cited by Gordon and identified by district attorney Todd Faulkner — stated the board must reach a consensus to give new members access to closed session audio.

Board President Erica Nelson had reservations about opening the recordings.

"When a board meets in executive session, there's an expectation that that is the group that will have access to that information because they themselves are in that very private conversation," she said.

Nelson also said there is no history of members asking for closed session recordings.

Buchholz said the board advised Gordon to seek guidance from Faulkner on the matter without a public meeting.

"I'm not playing a game," Buchholz said. "I'm saying we should have access to this information."

Board member Dean Elger brought up the board members' open meetings training, which he said guaranteed confidentiality in closed sesssion. He also noted three members who participated in closed conversations of interest are no longer on the board.

Clark said it was essential she and Buchholz understand the background and history of prior board decisions, and that listening to closed session would help them do so.

"We are on the board, any decisions moving forward we have to represent, we have to see the reasoning behind that," she said. "How can we do that when we don't know the information behind it?"