From kick-off to adjournment, the Halton Catholic school board’s Sept. 1 meeting lasted about six hours.
Nearly the only thing trustees could agree on was the fact that they need help learning how to run their meetings.
On a night that saw arguments and dissension over even the approval of the agenda and past meeting minutes, the trustees unanimous agreement on a plan to seek help from a professional parliamentarian was noteworthy.
While the contentious issue of mandatory masks for students younger than Grade 3 took up most of the evening, the meeting was constantly slowed by interruptions for “points of clarification,” challenges to the board chair’s rulings and numerous recorded votes on procedural matters.
The meeting, which dragged on until 1:30 in the morning, saw seemingly confused Halton Catholic trustees making a $3 million spending decision in the middle of the night.
“I just think we are not good to make a decision at midnight,” complained Oakville trustee Helena Karabela.
Months ago, Halton-Hills trustee Janet O’Hearn-Czarnota suggested the idea of hiring a professional parliamentarian to provide the board with guidance.
Lengthy meetings and unfinished agendas over the last several months meant that her idea wasn’t considered until Tuesday night, somewhere around 11 pm.
“The spirit of this motion is about education, not criticism,” said O’Hearn-Czarnota.
She suggested the consultant could review meetings, provide feedback and training, and answer board questions to “scaffold us in our journey as trustees.”
After arguing over how many and which meetings the consultant should review, trustees eventually all agreed with the motion.
Director of Education Pat Daly has been asked to come up with a list of possible parliamentarians for trustees to consider at their September 15 meeting.