Sumter School District will allow alternative means of public participation

After basically a year without public participation amid the pandemic, Sumter School District's Board of Trustees will move forward with allowing public comment, albeit in a different format, at its April board meeting.

That comes after the full board voted Monday to reconsider its temporary suspension on public participation at meetings with a new electronic or telephone line submission process, where comments will be read aloud at the trustees' regularly scheduled monthly board meeting.

The new modes of receiving input will be allowed while all board meetings will remain closed to the public in at least the near term, given COVID-19.

Since its April 6, 2020, meeting - in the initial weeks of the pandemic - all district board meetings have been closed in person to the public and without any form of public participation. Meetings have been virtual and broadcast live via YouTube.

The trustees generally meet twice per month for a scheduled full board meeting and a scheduled work session.

Before the pandemic, public participation was held once per month during the scheduled board meeting, and it will begin again with the April 12 virtual board meeting.

The telephone line and webpage on the district's website for public comment will launch Monday, according to Shelly Galloway, the district's executive director of communication and community engagement.

Board members will receive all public participation comments, but given the normal time for public participation (15 minutes), all comments may not be read aloud at virtual board meetings.

If numerous comments are related to a particular subject, they could be combined by the board chair for reading based on the time allotment.

Galloway noted that before submitting comments for public participation, questions should be directed to appropriate district personnel and/or departments, such as a teacher, school principal, the district's chief of schools or the superintendent. If concerns have not been resolved after communication through those channels, submitting comments for public participation to the full board is appropriate.

Further instructional details will be released by the district on Monday when the telephone line and webpage launch, Galloway said.

IN OTHER NEWS

In other matters from Monday's board meeting, the trustees decided to postpone a vote on employee bonuses after the trustees discussed the issue.

The full board also approved nominations for public members to serve on a newly created Citizens Advisory Committee to the board. Also, Trustee Frank Baker, chairman of the board's Transportation Ad Hoc Committee, said the committee's next meeting will be Thursday, March 18, at 6 p.m.