Is anyone tired of this topic yet? I hope not. It was plain envy that initially compelled me to continue to expound on the Lister fallout.
If you had seen me reading the letters to the editor on Feb. 22, you might have noticed me pounding my head on the table and uttering the Homerian "D'oh!" over and over. I just hate it when the best, most obvious and supremely logical point is made by someone other than me.
In one letter former city business administrator Joe Bove posed a question to the sitting school board: —¦where were you when the school budget was presented for your examination and approval?"
This is the kind of point that is usually non-partisan on the surface, apparently beyond argument, and which engenders a sudden silence in the room. If anyone does bother to speak after such an astute observation, it is usually to say something like "never mind." This is the kind of point that masquerades as trump, reminding you to get back to your homework and stop playing with your food.
Unless, reader, unless you begin trying to chase down facts. Facts are funny things, is-ness is elusive. Fact is Bove's question is not as transparent as it seems.
Fact is Lister's salary in this year's budget does not reflect his sick payout. That line item is somewhere else, lumped into a number along with all the other sick payout for retiring personnel. Although budget makers review the budget in work sessions, this particular line item is not addressed specifically.
Facts is facts. Lister notified board chairman Kent LaPage in October of 2006 of his intent to retire three years hence, referring specifically to sick payout. Job done. Fact is LaPage could have called a non-public session according to New Hampshire state law, which specifically states that discussion around compensation of a public employee is reason to call such a meeting.
The information eventually made its way to the city human resource director in August of 2007, but fact is we don't know exactly how. We do know that most of the school board was left in the dark until Adam Leech put his math skills to good use.
In April 2004, when Kent LaPage was president of the N.H. School Board Association, the leadership advocacy group published rules of thumb for new board members, including:
- Only a majority of the board has the ability to set policy, hire and fire staff, negotiate contracts or make requests of the superintendent.
- Effective boards require TRUST (their caps).
When I opined two weeks ago in this here space, I made an assumption that LaPage was under some sort of obligation to keep the information about Lister's retirement confidential. Well, he was, per the contract, required to keep it confidential within the central office.
Does the school board constitute the central office? Um, I think so. Does the resignation of the superintendent constitute policy, hiring or firing staff? That is trickier but I'm going to say yes. The school board should have been apprised of Lister's intentions by Mr. LaPage and Mr. LaPage alone.
What do we want for our community? What should characterize the relationship between a city board and its city? Should our elected officials be able to read a budget? Or should the budget-makers be charged with demystifying the fine print? Should our boards and the city have a collaborative relationship? A watchdog relationship? What is forgiven for inexperience or oversight?
These are difficult questions. A long time ago in this very town, the leadership of a now-defunct upstart little newspaper brought in their comptroller to aid in a news investigation. The public record in this case consisted of years of tax returns. I remember the walls of the back office pasted with them.
We needed the experience of the comptroller to point out inconsistencies that mere mortals could never have gleaned otherwise. But we were all on the same side, unlike the current uneasy relationship of public versus private, confidential versus right-to-know.
In these past weeks we have seen fingers pointed at administrators, school board members, the fourth estate and even the candlestick maker. But it sure does seem like the one person in possession of the public information regarding Lister's retirement chose not to share it with the rest of the representatives of the community.
Here's a final fact for you. New Hampshire law states nothing about separate duties, roles or obligations of the chairperson of the school board than it does for any other school board member.
You are, truly, a body of one.
Turns out Suzanne was a coal mine canary when it comes to Chantix. Check in next week. suzanne.danforth@gmail.com
