Region 10 No stranger to injunctive relief lawsuits
http://www.registercitizen.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18274455&BRD=1652&PAG=461&dept_id=572359&rfi=6
By JENNA CIARAMELLA
Register Citizen Staff
HARWINTON - The Region 10 Board of Education is scheduled to hold a public hearing on Monday after more than 100 residents signed a petition requesting it over the conduct of the schools chief.
An elementary school student was allegedly able to access pornographic material on a school computer in February, but parents say Superintendent of Schools Paula Schwartz refused to inform other parents about it when she was told of the incident.
The public hearing is scheduled to take place at 1:30 p.m. in the Region 10 offices on Lyons Road in Burlington after the board meets in executive session from 1 to 1:30 p.m., school board attorney Christine Chinni said Friday.
When asked whether parents would have an opportunity to speak about the February incident or about Schwartz's handling of the issue, board Chairman Beth Duffy referred to the board's attorney.
"All comments go to our attorney at this point," Duffy said.
By law, the board is required to schedule a public hearing within three weeks of receiving a petition, Chinni said earlier this week, but she declined to comment specifics about the hearing. Neither the board nor Schwartz were making any comments to the public or to parents of school children in Region 10, Chinni said this week.
Schwartz did not return several phone messages left on Tuesday, Wednesday or Friday.
"This is in regard to the suitability of Paula Schwartz as superintendent of Region 10 school district," parent Fred Boland read from the petition. "The reason for such a hearing stems from her actions since parents reported pornography on Region 10 school computers as well as the failure to implement appropriate safeguards and policies to protect the school children of the district."
Boland submitted the petition, which had 113 verified signatures - 54 from electors in Harwinton and 59 from Burlington - to board Treasurer Paul Omichinski while he was chairing a School Building Committee meeting on April 17.
Boland said Friday he is unhappy with the date and time the board set for the hearing because it "does not encourage the greatest degree of public participation."
"Most people are working in the middle of the day and every other board meeting is held at 7 or 7:30 at night," Boland said.
This is being held in the middle of the day when people can't be there," he said.
"Shame on them for conducting this hearing like a back-alley deal," Boland said. "Shame on them for abridging the people's right to be heard on the matter by holding the hearing at a time that discourages public participation."
An ex parte temporary injunction was filed by Boland on Friday asking the court to grant the injunction, which would have had the board change the date or time of the meeting. It was denied because it did not prove "irreparable harm," Boland said.
"Boland was told he was not entitled based on what he submitted and they declined to give him a hearing," Chinni said.
Boland said he is able to refile an amended complaint and that he is considering filing an emergency injunction on Monday.
Ok so what do we have here?
A superintendent who thinks that parents should not be notified of anything ....unless it involves herself being called a name she doesn't like.
A chairperson who thinks an attorney who bills out at 220.00/hr is a board answering service.
A board who thinks that they will win any kind of lawsuit... (But then again it seems that’s the case)
A board who will spend money on legal fees like a normal person would buy a candy bar.
I think it's time to publish the names of those who are running for the region 10 school board.
I have googled it and can find more information on the mating habits of weasels than this board...which is the way they seem to like it and will spend any amount of legal fees to keep it that way
Posted by Anonymous to The Cool Justice Report at 8:39 AM
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