Red Oak school board accused of breaking open meetings law

 DES MOINES – Members of a state board are considering bringing charges against the Red Oak school board and its individual members for allegedly discussing the termination of high school principal Jedd Sherman in closed session. 

The Iowa Public Information Board, appointed by Gov. Terry Branstad to enforce the state’s open meeting laws, stated Feb. 20 the board is obligated to discuss Sherman’s performance and evaluations during public meetings, if requested. The advisory opinion was issued at Sherman’s request by the IPIB’s executive director, Keith Luchtel, following a December meeting in which the high school principal said the board discussed his job performance. Sherman has disputed the validity of his evaluations by Superintendent Terry Schmidt, requesting they be discussed publicly.  

While Sherman provided the school board copies of the IPIB’s opinion, directors closed a portion of meetings April 14 and May 5 to allegedly discuss the principal’s job status and possible termination. 

School district attorney Rick Engel advised the board to go into closed session for both the April and May meetings, aware of the IPIB’s opinion. However, he said in an interview Monday with the Express, the IPIB’s opinion stemmed from the December 2013 meeting, and not the latter two, which he pointed out were closed largely due to the law’s “imminent litigation” clause. 

“That is the very, very important difference between the latter two meetings and what the advisory opinion was about in my mind,” he said. “Obviously, we believed to use that  section and to give them that device, we were in a position to discuss imminent litigation with counsel.”

Engel was present at one meeting and another board attorney, Jim Hanks, was present at the second. 

“When a school district attorney needs to talk to a school board about imminent litigation, do we proceed in open session,” Engel asked. “That has standardly been something school boards can talk to their lawyers about. To talk about such things in open session makes no sense to me at all.” 

However, following the May 5 closed session, the board reconvened in open session and voted to terminate Sherman’s contract, effective June 30. 

Don Rogerson, who filed a formal complaint with the IPIB following that meeting, stated it was obvious more than pending litigation was discussed in closed session. 

“It seems probable that the discharge of Mr. Sherman was discussed during the closed session, as this was the only action taken by the board after emerging from closed session, and because no discussion of his discharge is indicated in the minutes of the open portion of the meeting,” Rogerson stated in his complaint. 

Sherman also filed a formal complaint with the IPIB following the April meeting. 

Luchtel said the next step in the process is for the IPIB to decide whether or not to accept or reject the two complaints. If accepted, charges can be filed against school board members and a hearing would take place before the nine-member IPIB with an administrative law judge presiding. 

The board would then decide what, if any, punitive action would be taken against the Red Oak school board members, which can include fines up to $1,500 per meeting, per member. 

Either side can then appeal the IPIB’s decision up to the Iowa Supreme Court. 

Luchtel said the IPIB, which formed in 2013, has never conducted a formal hearing.  

“We aren’t quite used to have somebody take a recommendation and go ‘no, we aren’t going to do that,’” Luchtel said. 

Board Chair Bill Monroe told the Des Moines Register he felt the school board left the IPIB little choice regarding the pursuit of a formal hearing. 

IPIB Member Jo Martin echoed his sentiments, telling the Register “I think they’ve (Red Oak school board members) drawn a line in the sand.” 

Engel maintains though the IPIB is simply reacting to what they have been told from the complaints they have received. 

“The criticisms seem to assume everything was the same and I don’t believe it was at all,” Engel said. “Different reasons were used (to close the meetings) with different rational for the different meetings. We have not had any opportunity yet for our side of the story to be told and that will be done.”

The school district will present its response to the formal complaint at the June 19 meeting which starts at 2 p.m. in Des Moines.