TODAY 2/1/22: You Can Object to the Board of Education Hiding in a Closed Session to Discuss Snow Days and/or New Superintendent Hire

Today at noon the Montgomery County Board of Education is going in to a Closed Session. 

What will they be discussing? They don't want you to know, but the public can guess.  Maybe they will be discussing virtual snow days? Maybe they will be voting to pick the next superintendent? 

Do you want the Board of Education to discuss these topics in secret or do you want Board members to have a public discussion about these topics? 

The Board of Education doesn't want you to know what they are discussing so they are claiming an exception to the Maryland Open Meetings Act allows them to hold this closed meeting to exclude the public.

  Section 3-103(a)

a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section and § 3-104 of this subtitle, this title does not apply to:

(1) a public body when it is carrying out:

(i) an administrative function;

(ii) a judicial function; or

(iii) a quasi-judicial function; or

(2) a chance encounter, a social gathering, or any other occasion that is not intended to circumvent this title.

Under the Maryland Open Meetings Act a member of the public may object to the Closing of a Board of Education meeting. 

From the Maryland Open Meetings Act manual (page 78): 

 If a member of the public objects to the closing of a session, the public body must send a copy of the closing statement to the [Open Meetings Act] Compliance Board. See § 3-305(d)(3).

Even for a virtual meeting, the Board of Education must meet in public first and allow the public the option of objecting to the closing of the meeting.  15 OMCB 5,8 

If you object to the closing to today's Board of Education meeting notify the Board through the chat function of the virtual meeting or any other method available. The Board of Education will then have to comply with the law and send a copy of their Closing Statement from today's meeting to the Maryland Open Meetings Compliance Board.  

The Parents' Coalition suggests the following options for objections to today's closed session of the Board of Education:  virtual chat, e-mail [ boe@mcpsmd.org ] , Twitter, phone 240-740-3030, or FAX  301-279-3860