Participants
Everyone the recording shows taking part or being named in the roll. Names follow the project's dialogue file and the 2015 to 2023 roster; no minutes are online to check spellings against. Where the dialogue file says Unidentified, this page does too.
| Name | Role | Participation |
|---|
| Frank Sprague | Chair | Presided; asked members to be concise, courteous and to wait to be recognized (0:22:56); asked the business administrator to explain catastrophic aid; suggested looking for "creative ideas on expanding funding" for the preschool waiting list; kept the nominations debate on the motion. |
| Jason Benware | Member | Moved the June 6 minutes (transcribed remove), the preschool handbook with Horsky's e-mail-links addition, and adjournment; asked whether the State "is not required to fulfill any of their obligations" on catastrophic aid; spoke for the ELO program and, as a parent, for the preschool. |
| Steven Horsky | Member | Asked that the head lice policy be tabled "due to the fact of some new information and developments"; seconded the minutes (medium confidence); asked whether a superintendent change affects the general-assurances signature; asked whether Mr. Moss's contract depends on New Hampshire certification; asked about unfilled science positions. |
| Michelle Pierce | Member | Moved the middle school handbook; asked why no parents sit on the scheduling committee; asked how teacher-student ratios are counted; asked whether resignations and nominations could be taken in one motion. Described by the superintendent as "the pivotal vote" on the preschool change. |
| Carolyn Towle | Member | Moved the amended agenda; corrected the June 6 minutes on her contact with Police Chief Mark Chase; asked about student ELO opportunities and why so many staff are leaving; reported that Chief Chase may present on school security on August 23. |
| Rebecca Zullo | Member (vice chair) | Named in the roll and by the chair ("Rebecca has a tendency to keep an eye out"). Two member voices the dialogue file cannot separate between Zullo and Petrin are left Unidentified (see below). |
| Michael Petrin | Member | Named in the roll (Michael. Patron) and by the superintendent as interested in grading and reporting. No speech is attributed to him by name. |
| Unidentified | Board members (Zullo or Petrin) | Two diarized voices, one asking about curriculum restructuring and counting "59" names on the departure list (1:47:24), and one asking whether the English position was cut. The dialogue file does not say which is Zullo and which is Petrin. 119 of 606 rows (19.6%) are Unidentified. |
| Middleton McGoodwin | Superintendent, SAU 6 (departing) | Superintendent's report; introduced the ELO, scheduling, CMS handbook and preschool items; the general assurances; resignations and four nominations; said "Indentured servitude is illegal in New Hampshire" in explaining that resignations are not accepted; responded to the exit-interview complaint. |
| Cory LeClair | Assistant Superintendent, SAU 6 (medium-high confidence; not addressed by name) | Explained the curriculum-specialist restructuring, grant signing authority, certification monitoring, paraprofessional turnover and class-size counting. |
| Michael O'Neill | Business Administrator, SAU 6 (surname per roster) | Expenditure and fund-balance report; explained catastrophic aid. |
| Mary Woodman | Clerk | Called the roll. |
| Christine Downing | Stevens High School curriculum specialist (departing) | Presented the extended learning opportunities (ELO) handbook and costs and co-presented the scheduling committee update; said she sits on the Goshen school board. |
| Larissa Cahill (spelling uncertain) | Co-facilitator, SHS scheduling committee | Presented the committee's history, composition, survey results, site visits and proposed grade-level advisories. |
| Paulette Gerald (dialogue-file label; spelling unverified) | Outgoing Claremont Middle School principal | Presented the CMS 2018-19 student and parent handbook. The superintendent refers at 1:38:56 to a principal change "just as it was with Paulette Fitzgerald" in April; the spelling is unresolved in the project roster. |
| Audra Buckland (spelling uncertain) | Assistant Principal, CMS | Asked board members to pass on parent feedback about the handbook. |
| Matt Bean (spelling uncertain) | Citizens' comments, Ward 1 | Thanked Dr. McGoodwin, including for monthly lunches with life skills students. |
| Linda Patch (spelling uncertain) | Citizens' comments, Ward 2 | Read a statement criticizing the board over the superintendent's departure. |
| Mimi Rhines (spelling uncertain) | Citizens' comments, Ward 1; SHS school counselor | Thanked Dr. McGoodwin for hiring her; spoke for the school nurses' role in student support. |
| Karen Collison | Citizens' comments; Lempster resident, departing SHS English teacher | Explained at length why she resigned after 18 years. |
| Unidentified | SAU 6 board chair, in the audience | The chair said "we have the essay board chair here" (1:54:57) and a voice from the audience answered. The name is not spoken. The SAU 6 board had elected Marjorie Erickson its chair on June 14 (June 14 page), but the dialogue file does not name this speaker and this page does not either. |
Order of business (reconstructed)
No agenda for this meeting is posted in any district share, so this list is reconstructed from the chair's transitions on the recording. A written agenda with Roman-numeral items existed ("If we could redact Roman numeral five, be the school nurses"). Hover over (or Tab to) a clipped entry for the full text.
| Taken up | Item | Agenda text / disposition |
|---|
| 0:00:19 | Call to order, pledge, roll | See Board composition above. |
| 0:01:22 | Agenda amendments | School nurses and grading and reporting removed; four nominations added; Richard Johnson removed from the resignations list and Dan Sherry and Brianna Cornell added; head lice policy tabled at Horsky's request. Moved by Towle (0:03:25); voice vote at 0:03:35. |
| 0:04:20 | Minutes of June 6, 2018 | Moved by Benware ("I move to remove the minutes for June 6th, 2018.", transcript for approve), seconded by Horsky (medium confidence); Towle's correction on school security; one member said "Wasn't here" (0:05:57), read as an abstention. |
| 0:06:00 | Student representative; superintendent's report | No student representative. Report on Rural Pride, an elementary-school visit and early intervention. Informational. |
| 0:08:11 | Citizens' comments | Matt Bean, Linda Patch, Mimi Rhines, Karen Collison. Closed at 0:22:56. |
| 0:23:46 | Discussion: expenditures, revenues, fund balance | Business administrator's report; projected fund balance about $275,032. Informational. |
| 0:33:50 | Discussion: SHS 2017-18 extended learning opportunities | Handbook and cost report. Informational. |
| 0:52:32 | Discussion: SHS scheduling committee update | Committee history, survey, visits and advisory proposal. Informational. |
| 1:23:34 | Action: CMS 2018-19 student and parent handbook | Moved by Pierce (1:26:43), seconded by an unidentified member; voice vote at 1:29:08, no audible opposition. |
| 1:29:21 | Action: Claremont preschool family handbook | Moved by Benware "with the addition of what Steve had asked for", links to board members' e-mail addresses (1:35:20), seconded by an unidentified member; voice vote at 1:35:58. |
| 1:36:48 | General assurances | Chair to sign the certification page for the Department of Education by June 30. No vote taken. |
| 1:38:14 | Resignations and nominations | Resignations reported, not voted. Four nominations (Shelby Klink, Jennifer Garner, Brynn Cain, Steven Moss) approved with regret expressed to departing staff; the motion's mover is not clear on the recording, seconded by an unidentified member; voice vote at 1:52:18. |
| 1:53:44 | Adjournment; for the good of the order | Benware moved, Pierce seconded; Towle's items (an unreadable system of care document, Chief Chase on August 23) were taken before the vote at 1:55:46. |
Discussion timeline
Chronological, from the dialogue CSV. Times are the start of the cited exchange, taken from the CSV's own second count. Hover over (or Tab to) a clipped cell for the full entry.
| Time | Topic | What was said | Flags |
|---|
| 0:01:31 | Agenda changes | Superintendent: "if we could add a nominations to the the agenda beside where it says resignations, you have four nominations in front of you that I received today." Horsky at 0:02:46: "I'd like to table it and move it to a future agenda item, maybe a few meetings out so we have time to meet." | |
| 0:04:49 | Minutes correction | Towle on school security: "he's trying to commit to the August 23rd, but I wanted to make sure that it wasn't noted that I was contacting him." | OBSERVATION |
| 0:06:09 | Superintendent's report | Representing SAU 6 at Rural Pride; an elementary school visit; early intervention: "another thing that the Claremont School District should be proud of." | |
| 0:08:21 | Citizens' comments: Matt Bean | "I'm really here tonight to for one reason. That is to thank the doctor Goodwin, for his service to the Claremont School District." At 0:08:56: "Thank you for having lunch with the Life skills students at least once a month this year." | |
| 0:09:41 | Citizens' comments: Linda Patch | "It is with a great deal of sadness and disappointment that I have heard of the termination of Doctor Goodman as superintendent of saw six." At 0:10:59: "I believe that you, the school board, took the coward's way out behind his back." The decision was the SAU 6 board's, taken June 14 (June 14 page); no board member responded on the record. | |
| 0:12:11 | Citizens' comments: Mimi Rhines | "you took a chance on me when I had no experience as a school counselor." At 0:13:04, on nurses: "oftentimes nurses are the first one to pick up on concerns of kids". | |
| 0:14:05 | Citizens' comments: Karen Collison | "I've been an English teacher at Stevens High School for 18 years." "I have not been sent a survey asking why I was leaving." At 0:15:35: "I'm leaving because I'm tired of fighting." At 0:16:07: "The Claremont School District lost a curriculum and instruction director". At 0:18:03: "Our district is not failing because we don't have money." At 0:20:21 on retirees: "No golden apple. No gift card to the tavern. No recognition from the school district." | OBSERVATION |
| 0:22:56 | Chair on board conduct | "I'd like board members in addressing. Questions to be concise, to be to the point. And also be courteous to other board members and to administrators and presenters. And please do not talk over each other." | |
| 0:25:38 | Expenditure report | "same report I'll do every time. I don't want to change it up and make it look like I'm trying to hide stuff." At 0:25:52: total budget "31474747" [$31,474,747]; spent "$29,700,200.61". At 0:27:24: sick and personal buyback "about $55,000"; "another $35,000" in retirement and leaving bonuses. At 0:27:46: "a resulting budget balance of 429021, which is just over 1% of the budget". | POSITIVE |
| 0:29:02 | Revenues | Energy rebate "16,000 this year"; tuition "Last year we had 341,000. This year we're going to end up around 513,000". At 0:29:56: "The one that bothers me the most is the second one from the bottom. Catastrophic aid." At 0:30:16: the State "went back retroactively in January, and they disallowed expenditures relative to non educational hours". | OBSERVATION |
| 0:31:20 | Projected fund balance | "a projected fund balance of 275,000. 032 which is money that would be returned to the taxpayers, which is about what we projected on the budget. I think we projected 311,000. We do have some carryover fund balance of 170,000". | POSITIVE |
| 0:31:59 | Catastrophic aid explained | "The first threshold is three and a half times the average cost to educate a child in the state." At 0:32:16: "anything you spend over 52,000, we're going to give you back 50%." At 0:32:32: "So we don't get the money that we're entitled to under the RSA. We get two thirds of that." At 0:32:47: "about 66 to 68%". Benware at 0:33:03: "The state is not required to fulfill any of their obligations." Superintendent at 0:33:22: "The playing field is not level." | OBSERVATION |
| 0:35:13 | Extended learning opportunities | Downing: the ELO handbook "really went into effect in about January of 2017." At 0:42:11: for 2016-17 the transcript gives the stipend cost as 8250 and the amount actually paid as 4650. At 0:43:00: 2017-18 "a total of 16757 50", at 0:43:19 "really paid out was 113 50" [figures as transcribed]. At 0:44:50: "in 18 months of this program, basically starting in January, we've done 95 ellos already." | |
| 0:52:32 | Scheduling committee background | Superintendent: "four years later, with grievances, public employee labor relations board, arbitration and a hearing at the Supreme Court, we now are in a position where there isn't anything in our way as far as a collective bargaining agreement or sidebar letters". Cahill at 0:54:37: the committee formed "based on an MoU between the ESA as well as the Claremont School District". | |
| 1:17:50 | No parents on the committee? | Pierce: "I didn't see any parents. Is that due to lack of interest or." LeClair at 1:18:19: "There are folks who are parents on the committee, but they are not serving only in the capacity of parent." At 1:18:41: the committee is "bound to meeting at 215 in the afternoon". | |
| 1:24:15 | CMS handbook | "we have a deadline. That we have to meet, which is next week." LeClair at 1:27:15: "What is printed in this agenda aligns greatly with your policies as a school board." Approved by voice at 1:29:08. | |
| 1:29:21 | Preschool handbook | Superintendent at 1:31:18: "It would cost more. Not to have the program by providing services for the required children outside of Claremont." "We have a waiting list on this program." At 1:36:02: "Michelle was the pivotal vote." Approved at 1:35:58. | |
| 1:36:48 | General assurances; grant signing authority | "the school board chair representing the school board needs to sign the certification page in blue ink, by the way. In the past, it was only the superintendent." LeClair at 1:37:54: the board at a previous meeting ("would not be able to tell you the date") gave her signing authority on grants. | OBSERVATION |
| 1:38:56 | Resignations | Dan Sherry (Maple Avenue principal) and Brianna Connell. At 1:39:19: "I disappointed that, Karen Collison did not receive an excellent interview. It is my understanding that every time a person resigns, they are sent an electronic exit interview". At 1:43:25: "Indentured servitude is illegal in New Hampshire." At 1:43:41: "with nominations, we do need your approval. Because you control the budget." | OBSERVATION POSITIVE |
| 1:40:03 | Four nominations; curriculum restructuring | Klink, Garner, Cain and Steven Moss, "replacing Christine Downing". LeClair at 1:42:45: "We didn't add any new positions. We just shifted the grade span responsibility". At 1:45:56: Moss is "in the process of transferring his certification over from Texas". | POSITIVE |
| 1:44:08 | Why staff are leaving | Towle: "Is there a quick answer as to why?" LeClair at 1:44:31: "We had eight openings at the end of the year for paraprofessionals." Superintendent at 1:44:53: 2011 to 2013 "There was no contract"; "Compensation is, in my view, problematic." A member at 1:47:24: "I just added up the list that we received and there's 59." | OBSERVATION |
| 1:48:09 | English and science positions; class size | LeClair: "We cut one English position out of the budget, so we reduced from six English positions to five". At 1:50:34: classes "on average we are mid teens to mid 20s". Horsky at 1:52:29: "We're short all three grades" in science. | |
| 1:51:56 | Nominations approved | "So we have a motion on the table as far as expressing, accepting nominations for the new hires and expressing regret to those that are leaving. So all those in favor?" Aye. | POSITIVE |
| 1:54:00 | For the good of the order | Towle on a document she "cannot read" even enlarged; the chair: "That's the system of care." At 1:54:30: Chief Mark Chase "might be able to be part of the agenda for August 23rd". At 1:55:27: "Security, sort of hardening our buildings." | |
Items flagged for review
Flags are a reviewer's aid generated by comparing the meeting against the law in force on June 20, 2018, cited as it then read. They are not findings of violation, and nothing here is legal advice. Where no verified rule applies, the flag says so and is recorded as an observation. Six flags follow, ordered by severity.
OBSERVATION The board was told the State pays back "50%" above the catastrophic-aid threshold; the statute then said 80 percent
Asked by the chair to explain catastrophic aid, the business administrator said that above three and a half times the state average cost "we're going to give you back 50%" and 100% above ten times (0:32:16), then that the State prorates, so "We get two thirds of that" and the rate has been "about 66 to 68%" (0:32:32, 0:32:47). RSA 186-C:18, III, as amended effective July 1, 2017, made the department "liable for 80 percent of the cost above" the 3 1/2 times threshold and for all costs above 10 times. The 50% figure understates the statutory share. The rest of the explanation fits the statute: it provides that an insufficient appropriation "shall be prorated proportionally based on entitlement", with no floor in 2018, which is also why "even though it's statutorily required that they pay us that" (0:32:47) overstates the entitlement. Benware's reading at 0:33:03 is close to the statutory position. Recorded as an observation: a misstatement in a briefing, not a decision.
Sources: RSA 186-C:18, III (2017 codification; source 2017, 156:96-100, eff. July 1, 2017): 80 percent above 3 1/2 times; proportional proration.
OBSERVATION Grant signing authority was delegated at a meeting nobody could date, and the general assurances were signed without a vote
The superintendent asked the chair to sign the Department of Education general-assurances certification, a new requirement ("In the past, it was only the superintendent", 1:36:48). No motion was made; Horsky's question about the superintendent change was answered "there is no impact" (1:37:40). LeClair then said the board had given her signing authority on grants "at a previous meeting" whose date she could not give (1:37:54). No rule was identified that requires a vote before the chair signs an assurance page. The point is traceability: with no minutes online for 2018, a citizen cannot find the meeting at which the delegation was made or its terms.
Sources: the recording at 1:36:48 to 1:37:54. No statute relied on.
OBSERVATION A departing teacher said she was never sent an exit survey; the superintendent said every leaver is; 59 names were on the list
Karen Collison said "I have not been sent a survey asking why I was leaving" (0:14:05) and gave her reasons in public instead. The superintendent answered that "every time a person resigns, they are sent an electronic exit interview" and that he would check (1:39:19). A member counted 59 names on the departure list (1:47:24), and LeClair reported eight paraprofessional openings (1:44:31). The two accounts of the exit process conflict on the record, and the check the superintendent promised falls after his departure. No legal rule is engaged; this is recorded because the board asked for staff-departure information at its June 6 meeting (June 6 page) and exit data is how it would get the reasons.
Sources: the recording at 0:14:05, 1:39:19, 1:47:24. No statute relied on.
OBSERVATION No agenda, packet or minutes for this meeting are posted online
MAP.md section 71 records that neither district Drive share holds anything older than 2022 (checked 9/26/26), so this page rests on the recording alone. That is a limit of what the district posts online, not by itself evidence that records were never made: the board approved and corrected the June 6 minutes at this meeting (0:04:30 to 0:05:57), and members worked from a packet. RSA 91-A:2, II, as it read in 2018, required minutes to "include the names of members, persons appearing before the public bodies, and a brief description of the subject matter discussed and final decisions" and to be open to inspection "not more than 5 business days after the meeting". The requirement to name the mover and seconder of each motion was added later (2018, 244:1, effective January 1, 2019) and is not applied here. The project's missing-records rule is applied on its online-availability limb.
Sources: RSA 91-A:2, II (2017 codification; source note ends 2017, 165:1 and 234:1, eff. Jan. 1, 2018); Input/SupportingDocuments/MAP.md section 71.
POSITIVE New staff were put to the board for election, and the difference from resignations was explained in public
The superintendent brought four nominations to the board, added to the agenda because they arrived that day (0:01:31), and explained the distinction a member asked about: the board has "no control over a person leaving", "But with nominations, we do need your approval" (1:43:25 to 1:43:41). Members questioned the restructuring and one nominee's certification before voting (1:42:45, 1:45:34). RSA 189:39 provides that "Superintendents shall nominate and school boards elect all teachers"; this is that process done in open session.
Sources: RSA 189:39 (superintendent nominates, board elects teachers; source note ends 1971, 371:2).
POSITIVE A standing expenditure and fund-balance report, walked through line by line in public
The business administrator presented the same running report the board had asked for, "I don't want to change it up and make it look like I'm trying to hide stuff" (0:25:38), and took members through spending, encumbrances, bonuses and buybacks, each revenue shortfall and the projected $275,032 fund balance against the $311,000 budgeted (0:31:20). No statute requires a monthly fund-balance report to the board, so the practice goes beyond the legal minimum.
Sources: the recording at 0:25:38 to 0:31:20.
Appendix: source files
Official and public sources
Project files
Working files this page was built from. The dialogue file is linked; the others are not published with the page.
Dialogue/9850 SchoolBoard062018.mp4.CSV (606 attributed rows; the basis of this page)Input/Videos/9850 SchoolBoard062018.mp4Input/Transcripts/9850 SchoolBoard062018.mp4.jsonScripts/attribution_reports_2015_2023/9850 SchoolBoard062018.mp4.mdInput/SupportingDocuments/MAP.md, section 71
Laws and rules cited on this page
- New Hampshire statutes, as in force on June 20, 2018. RSA 91-A:2, II (minutes; 2017 codification). RSA 186-C:18, III (catastrophic aid; 2017 codification). RSA 189:39 (election of teachers; unamended since 1971).