The Board of Education voted at its meeting on Wednesday, November 4, to direct its chair to look into hiring an investigator following an announcement by board Secretary Kathy Hamilton that she had shared a text message of a digital conversation by the board months ago.

The topic of the text message and an e-mail, both of which the board has referred to as “leaked communications,” have been discussed at multiple meetings in recent weeks.

On Tuesday, October 20, the school board discussed the leaked e-mail, from January 2014, that revealed communications regarding the superintendent’s contract between board members and the board’s attorney at the time. After a vote at a special meeting on Monday, October 26, to have the school board chair look into hiring an investigator, member David Freedman announced the following day that he had released the e-mail.

This week school board Chair Keith Alexander said he held off looking into hiring an investigator before he could speak with his board members in light of Mr Freedman’s announcement.

“That accepting of responsibility was sufficient to  me to hold off hiring an investigator, because that should be sufficient information for us to consider what action the board might want at that point,” said Mr Alexander, who added that he asked Mr Freedman to share all communications he had when sharing the e-mail “so that we know the extent of this release of information.”

Mr Alexander said the e-mail included attorney-client privileged discussion and would be exempt from the Freedom of Information Act, but he later said the text message is not exempt.

“The release of [the e-mail] concerned the board, because we have rules of management,” said Mr Alexander.

Board members, the chair said, can speak with him, the superintendent, or with the FOI Commission directly.

“All that is available and no one has put that forward,” said Mr Alexander.

The text message, from June 2015, referenced a then-upcoming executive session discussion about the superintendent’s contract. The information is now public record. Mr Alexander said the text message is available under FOI.

After board members discussed conducting an investigation and asking Ms Hamilton about the text message, she responded.

The text message,  Ms Hamilton said, was one that Mr Alexander sent out to board members.

“I shared it with other people. I’m not going to tell you who I shared it with, because I’ve already seen what happened all over Facebook and everywhere else,” said Ms Hamilton.

After Mr Alexander sent the text message in June and another e-mail about the superintendent’s salary negotiation, Ms Hamilton said she asked him to refrain from sending messages to the board as he was starting an online meeting.

Following the board meeting, Ms Hamilton specified she had shared the text message before Mr Alexander stopped sending messages to the school board.

“Rather than focus on what has gone on in the past, I’d really like to focus on our work,” Ms Hamilton said at the meeting. “I think that my vision would be to have the newly seated board go through another FOI meeting.”

In the past the Board of Education has held FOI Commission presentations following new board members taking their seats. Ms Hamilton said having that take place would help to ensure proper procedures are followed.

“In my mind it is a lesson on how boards are supposed to operate, and this is a continuous problem on the board,” said Ms Hamilton, adding the board should consult the Board of Ethics over hiring an investigator.

Multiple board members questioned whether a FOI training presentation would be helpful.

Conducting meetings online, Mr Alexander said earlier in the meeting, “is wrong,” but he also said it is hard to keep track of the dialogue. When it happens, he said he tries to “shut it down.”

“The concern is we have a lack of trust,” Mr Alexander said.

Ms Hamilton said on Thursday that she had spoken with Mr Alexander prior to the executive session on October 26. Nothing in the text message, she said, was private or confidential.

“People have to know that what I did was not unethical,” said Ms Hamilton. “I shared a text of a message he sent to the whole board, and it is an example of improper [communications].”

After board member John Vouros moved to hire an investigator and Debbie Leidlein seconded, board Vice Chair Laura Roche called the situation “ridiculous.”

Ms Roche said the board is wasting its conversation on the topic of the leaked communications when the Republican Town Committee secretary and part-time municipal town employee who shared the information online can “end this right now” with an explanation. Ms Roche also said Ms Hamilton could end the conversation by sharing further details.

Both Ms Hamilton and Mr Freedman have stated they did not share the communications with the RTC secretary and part-time town employee.

(For more information about the Board of Selectmen’s meeting on Monday and the decision to refer to the local Board of Ethics regarding the topic, see )“Selectmen Make Ethics Referral On Leaked Email Chain.”

The situation, Ms Roche said, is “insane.”

“Why should we hire an investigator when we are grown adults, who are sitting around a table, who can solve it very quickly?” Ms Roche said. She added later, “People just speak the truth, get it out there, tell everybody what happened, and move on. But to go through a training is not going to fix it.”

Mr Vouros said the board does not know who received the leaked information and “why it was sent to them.” He also spoke about transparency.

“I think we should be focusing on all the board processes and procedures,” said Ms Hamilton.

The board voted 5-1 to hire an investigator to look into both the email and the text message, with Ms Hamilton voting against the motion.

Mr Alexander said he will report back to the school board, most likely during a special meeting before the board’s next scheduled meeting, on the cost and other related details of hiring an investigator.

The school board also voted 5-1 in two motions to schedule discussions about Ms Hamilton and Mr Freedman. Ms Hamilton voted against those motions.

Mr Freedman was not at the Wednesday meeting. Mr Alexander said the missing board member had reported feeling “under the weather.”

Mr Alexander also said the board’s discussions about Mr Freedman may be less effective since he was not reelected to the school board in Tuesday’s local elections.