by Chuck Hoven

     (Plain Press, November 2023) Many observers of the Cleveland Municipal School District Board of Education are wondering why, with all the important issues the Board needs to address, new School Board Chairperson Sara Elaqad has chosen to initiate a pilot program that increases the restrictions on Public Comment. Elaqad, recently appointed as Board Chair by Mayor Justin Bibb on June 27^th of this year, has announced that beginning with the Board of Education’s November 21^st Meeting the Board of Education will no longer accept paper Request to Speak Forms at the beginning of the Board’s Business meeting.

     Instead, she says that members of the public wishing to speak at the Board of Education meeting “must complete a Request to Speak form, available on the district’s website and submit the completed form no later than 12:00 noon on the day of the Board Business Meeting.” She further stated that only the first 13 people to sign up will be allowed to speak at the Board of Education meeting.

     The directive from the new Chair of the Board of Education includes instructions on how to access Request to Speak forms. “The Request to Speak form is accessible on the CMSD website at this link https://www.clevelandmetroschools.org/board-of-education. For individuals who do not have adequate digital connectivity or have other barriers to the online form submission process, please call (216-838-0030) for assistance submitting your Request to Speak,” according to a handout at the Board meeting.

     Since this announcement was made several members of the public have addressed the proposed change through their public comments at the Board of Education meeting.

     At the Board of Education’s August meeting, Citizen Advocate Elizabeth Coles told the Board of Education the new policy that Board Chair Sara Elaqad had announced wasn’t a policy at all. Coles said that to implement a new policy the Board must place a resolution on the agenda, give opportunity for public comment on that resolution, and vote to pass the resolution. She urged the Board to follow the proper procedure for implementing any policy. Coles also noted that in the past citizens had the opportunity to interact with Board of Education Committees which have now been eliminated. She said, if the goal is to improve communication, she urged that there be “more, not less.”

     At the September meeting of the Board of Education, Susan Meaker, a first-grade teacher at Campus International, followed up on Elizabeth Coles comments, and urged the Board of Education to write a public comment policy, put it on the agenda, allow time for public comment and vote on it. She urged the Board of Education to not set a bad precedent by implementing a new policy without a vote.

     Also at the September meeting, a parent of a student attending Paul Dunbar spoke about the proposed public speaking policy Board President Sara Elaqad had announced. The parent expressed concern about creating a barrier to members of the public that do not have digital access to sign up. She noted that many grandparents and low-income residents do not have digital access. The parent also asked how people would know if they were among the first 13 to sign up to speak at the Board Meeting. She said members of the public could come to a board meeting only to find out they could not speak. She also noted it was difficult to get through to the Board of Education Office by phone. Board Chair Sara Elaqad said the policy was a pilot policy and the Board of Education would be working out the kinks. She said people who don’t have digital access could call the Board of Education for help in signing up to speak. The parent replied that not having digital access often means you don’t have a cell phone and can’t call.

     At the October 24, 2023, Board of Education meeting, the Board introduced a resolution to amend the Public Participation Policy. Despite members of the public again speaking out against the changes, the Board of Education voted 6-0 to implement the amendments to the Public Participation Policy.

     Under the Administration of Eric Gordon and previous Board Chairperson Anne Bingham, the Cleveland Board of Education had one of the most progressive public speaking policies in the area. Those wishing to make public comment simply filled out a form at the beginning of the meeting and were granted three minutes to speak. The Board was tolerant of those who went over the limit often letting them finish their comments. In addition, Chief Executive Officer Eric Gordon responded in writing to each-and-every public comment. The responses were printed in the next meeting’s minutes and available to the public to read. Under the new administration and Board of Education leadership the public comments will still receive a response, but the responses will only be available online. They will not be printed with the minutes of the previous meeting and made available at the Board of Education meeting.