December 20, 2011
By JESSICAMASULLI REYES
SPARTA -- After receiving criticism last month, the Board of Education has decided to no longer print on the agenda names of people who made document requests through the Open Public Records Act (OPRA).
In November, the time spent and cost of each OPRA request were listed next to each name. Some of the people on the list and an OPRA activist, Jesse Wolosky ,criticized the board and Superintendent Thomas Morton for trying to intimidate people from making these requests.
"There was quite a reaction to the board's request to see the OPRA listings," Morton said at Monday's meeting. "It is important to note there was no intent to intimidate or embarrass anyone."
Morton recommended to the board that it modify the list to remove individual names. The board agreed, and Morton announced that since Sept. 29 there have been 16 OPRA requests, totaling 12 hours and five minutes of staff time, and associated legal bills for October and November of $1,791.25.
Morton said the list of names is public information and is accessible to anyone who requests it. He that he found it "curious" that the people who were upset about the list were the people who have previously made an OPRA request of that very list.
Board member Frank Favichia clarified that the entire board did not ask for the list to be printed on the agenda, but instead board President Keith Smith did so.
Also, at Monday's meeting, the board discussed how to handle three recent opinion pieces in local newspapers that they said were inaccurate. The board criticized the New Jersey Herald for calling the pursuit of new athletic facilities an "end-around play" in an editorial in Monday's
newspaper.
"We have contacted the state several times, and we continue to work with the state on this project," Smith said. "The accuracy of the statement is not correct."
Morton criticized the New Jersey Herald editor and questioned the state's decision to not allow Sparta to build a new multi-purpose turf field and synthetic track with unspent referendum funds from the high school project prior to actually seeing an application from Sparta.
The board decided not to respond to the editorial since according to board member Kevin Pollison, "The power of the pen is that they can write an editorial."
The board voted 6 to 3 to draft its own letter to the editor to respond to a letter to the editor from Assemblywoman Alison Littell McHose, Assemblyman Gary Chiusano and Senator Steve Oroho that was in the Sparta Independent and New Jersey Herald. The letter stated that the district used "loopholes in the law" to circumvent a cap on salaries of school administrators.
"It is inaccurate," Smith said. "The timing is inaccurate.
The dollar amounts are inaccurate." Board Vice President Dorothy LaBeau said that there is a
difference between a letter to the editor from a citizen and one from politicians, and thus the letter needed to be addressed. But, Favichia asked the board to build relations with the public rather than rehashing problems.
The board also questioned whether or not to respond to an inaccuracy they believe was in a letter to the editor by Wolosky in the New Jersey Herald, but it decided not to respond to citizen opinions.
By JESSICAMASULLI REYES
SPARTA -- After receiving criticism last month, the Board of Education has decided to no longer print on the agenda names of people who made document requests through the Open Public Records Act (OPRA).
In November, the time spent and cost of each OPRA request were listed next to each name. Some of the people on the list and an OPRA activist, Jesse Wolosky ,criticized the board and Superintendent Thomas Morton for trying to intimidate people from making these requests.
"There was quite a reaction to the board's request to see the OPRA listings," Morton said at Monday's meeting. "It is important to note there was no intent to intimidate or embarrass anyone."
Morton recommended to the board that it modify the list to remove individual names. The board agreed, and Morton announced that since Sept. 29 there have been 16 OPRA requests, totaling 12 hours and five minutes of staff time, and associated legal bills for October and November of $1,791.25.
Morton said the list of names is public information and is accessible to anyone who requests it. He that he found it "curious" that the people who were upset about the list were the people who have previously made an OPRA request of that very list.
Board member Frank Favichia clarified that the entire board did not ask for the list to be printed on the agenda, but instead board President Keith Smith did so.
Also, at Monday's meeting, the board discussed how to handle three recent opinion pieces in local newspapers that they said were inaccurate. The board criticized the New Jersey Herald for calling the pursuit of new athletic facilities an "end-around play" in an editorial in Monday's
newspaper.
"We have contacted the state several times, and we continue to work with the state on this project," Smith said. "The accuracy of the statement is not correct."
Morton criticized the New Jersey Herald editor and questioned the state's decision to not allow Sparta to build a new multi-purpose turf field and synthetic track with unspent referendum funds from the high school project prior to actually seeing an application from Sparta.
The board decided not to respond to the editorial since according to board member Kevin Pollison, "The power of the pen is that they can write an editorial."
The board voted 6 to 3 to draft its own letter to the editor to respond to a letter to the editor from Assemblywoman Alison Littell McHose, Assemblyman Gary Chiusano and Senator Steve Oroho that was in the Sparta Independent and New Jersey Herald. The letter stated that the district used "loopholes in the law" to circumvent a cap on salaries of school administrators.
"It is inaccurate," Smith said. "The timing is inaccurate.
The dollar amounts are inaccurate." Board Vice President Dorothy LaBeau said that there is a
difference between a letter to the editor from a citizen and one from politicians, and thus the letter needed to be addressed. But, Favichia asked the board to build relations with the public rather than rehashing problems.
The board also questioned whether or not to respond to an inaccuracy they believe was in a letter to the editor by Wolosky in the New Jersey Herald, but it decided not to respond to citizen opinions.
