SchCmte Chair Paul Griffith helps condense and elaborate on what happened at the SchCmte Mtg of Nov 18, 2025 (audio)

FM #1587 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 1587 in the series. 

This session shares my conversation with the new Chair of the School Committee Paul Griffith.  We had our discussion via Zoom on Thursday, November 20, 2025. We condense and get into the explanations behind the key items from the recent School Committee meeting Nov 18.

Quick recap:

• Supt Giguere opens the session, solicits nominations for Chair. 

• One made by Callaghan for Griffith. Vote on the nomination passes 7-0

• Nominations asked for Vice Chair. One made, Griffith nominates Callaghan. Vote on the nomination passes 7-0

• Pledge students from the Washington 3-5 school. 5 students in one class had originated in one of the other 5 elementary schools

• Policy - 2nd Reading/Adoption. Superintendent recommends adoption of the following policies as discussed: 

• IKF - Graduation Requirements

• IKFE - Competency Determinations

• Discussion on the adjustments to the grad requirements and competency which fine tuned the language for clarity. Moved to accept as discussed, passes 7-0

• Discussion Only Items, informational for new members and for the weather as winter approaches for all

• A. Inclement Weather Notice

• B. Review of District/Superintendent’s Goals

• C. ACCEPT Quarterly Update

• Spent time on the rationale and objectives for each of the subcommittees or liaisons for the SchCmte to assist the new members as which ones to select. Chair will make alignment and reveal for next meeting so they can begin scheduling meetings as needed

• The importance of the MASC Workshop providing the first hour of training on the do's and don't of a School Committee member

Our conversation runs about 40 minutes. Let’s listen

Audio link -> https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1587-chalkboard-chat-11-20-25/

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SchCmte Chair Paul Griffith helps condense and elaborate
on what happened at the SchCmte Mtg of Nov 18, 2025 (audio)

School Committee page (with contact info) ->  https://www.franklinps.net/o/fpsd/page/school-committee 

School Committee newsletter with brief biographical info on the 7 members in addition to other school news -> https://5il.co/3sh1v 

Franklin TV video of the Nov 18 meeting is available for replay -> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ea9CmNWJI1s 

The agenda doc can be found ->  https://core-docs.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/4780/FPSD/6138802/SCAGENDA11-18-25.pdf  

The meeting packet folder with other docs released for this session ->

https://www.franklinps.net/documents/departments/school-committee/meeting-packets/2025---26-meeting-packets/november-18%2C-2025-sc-meeting-packet/862192 

My notes in one PDF -> https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xlF11yc5sLUZBOhYoY_95dGb6zI68i0e/view?usp=drive_link 

Pictures captured during the session are in one photo album -> 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/TKFnfsbkzprJ5xSj9

 

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We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial. 

This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but we can't do it alone. We can always use your help.

How can you help?

• If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors

• If you don't like something here, please let me know

• And if you have interest in reporting on meetings or events, please reach out. We’ll share and show you what and how we do what we do

Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.

For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/  or www.franklin.news 

If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com

The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana"  c. Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission.

I hope you enjoy!

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You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"

Finance Committee reschedules their deep dive on Technology until the fall (audio)

FM #1467 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 1467 in the series. 

This session shares the Finance Committee meeting very briefly conducted Wednesday, June 11, 2025. The Committee initially struggled to make a quorum needing 5 members. It had one, then 2, 3, and 4. Discussion on whether to hold the meeting as quorum appeared to be in jeopardy. 2 more arrived to make quorum. 

Given the nature of the topic, a deep dive on Technology, that 3 new members of the committee will be appointed in July and should participate, that 1 present wouldn’t be returning, it was decided to postpone the meeting and topic until the fall.

For the record, the decision was formalized with the ‘official’ meeting opening and closing in less than one minute. 

Audio link -> https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1467-franklin-ma-finance-cmte-mtg-06-11-25/

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Agenda doc -> https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_06112025-1781

-------------

We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial. 

This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but we can't do it alone. We can always use your help.

How can you help?

• If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors

• If you don't like something here, please let me know

• And if you have interest in reporting on meetings or events, please reach. We’ll share and show you what and how we do what we do

Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.

For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/  or www.franklin.news 

If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com

The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana"  c. Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission.

I hope you enjoy!

------------------

You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"

Recap: Procedure review completed; Town Administrator review previewed

Quick Recap:

• In back to back meetings on Wednesday, two subcommittees of the Town Council completed discussion on their tasks
• First, the Procedural Review picked up from their Dec meeting to complete review of the current document and make mostly minor and/or technical revisions. One key component is to expand the remote participation up to "no more than 4". Pre-pandemic only one councilor was allowed to participate via phone remotely. Now, with Zoom in place, the limit can be raised to 4. Still need to maintain a physical quorum in the room
• This is also pending further review depending upon what the State House does with the Open Meeting Law requirements with the current pandemic exceptions expiring in April (or June?)
• The procedure doc changes as drafted by the subcommittee will be reviewed at a meeting Feb 2, before the full council session at 7, and scheduled for full discussion with the Council
• Second, the Ad Hoc Town Administrator Review subcommittee met to review the performance and accomplishments of Jamie Hellen
• Jamie insisted that his review is a reflection of the overall town personnel in providing service to the community. When pressed if he had any plans to leave, he said no. Paraphrasing - I don't take things for granted, it has been most rewarding here, we are rooted in MA, if I had my druthers, I'd stay here. I am still young. #tctar0126 I'd be more than honored to serve here at your discretion.
• The full review write up is currently planned to be brought to the Town Council for the Feb 16 meeting for their full discussion and approval

The combined Twitter thread for the two meetings is located here (below).  

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1MBd3ieaUnIBVv8rrJ9zV_Bo2e8FBhJK9/view?usp=sharing

The audio recording of the TA review meeting will be available in a couple of days.

 

Town Administrator Jamie Hellen updating the Council at a recent meeting

Open Meeting Law Guidance Spotlight: Subcommittees and Sub-quorum Communications

From the MA Attorney General's Office on Open Meeting Law Guidance:

Guidance Spotlight: Subcommittees and Sub-quorum Communications

This month we offer guidance on the creation of subcommittees under the Open Meeting Law, and permissible communications among members that constitute less than a quorum of a public body.  We recognize that public body members want to conduct business efficiently and effectively.  However, public body members must exercise caution when communicating and carrying out the public body’s responsibilities outside of a properly posted meeting.  The Open Meeting Law prohibits deliberation outside of a posted meeting. “Deliberation” is communication among a quorum on a matter within the public body’s jurisdiction.  Because the Open Meeting Law focuses on communications among a quorum, there is no prohibition on communications outside of a meeting that do not involve or reach a quorum of members—as long as the members are not also a quorum of a subcommittee.  Therefore, it is important to understand whether members of a public body may constitute a designated subcommittee.

The Open Meeting Law defines “public body” as any “multiple-member board, commission, committee or subcommittee within the executive or legislative branch or within any county, district, city, region or town, however created, elected, appointed or otherwise constituted, established to serve a public purpose.”  G.L. c. 30A, § 18.  The Law further defines a “subcommittee” as “any multiple-member body created to advise or make recommendations to a public body.”  Id.  A public body forms a subcommittee when the body formally authorizes multiple members of the public body to advise or make recommendations to the public body.  Whether a subcommittee was created hinges on the public body’s action and whether it intended to create a multiple-member body, or whether it intended to assign the task to one person, even if another member of the public body subsequently volunteers to assist. Therefore, if a single member undertakes a task, or multiple members decide on their own to communicate about a matter or prepare a recommendation without having been designated to do so, no subcommittee is created. Furthermore, the name of a group—whether called a subcommittee, a “working group,” a “task force” or something else—will still be subject to the Open Meeting Law if it is a multiple-member body created to advise or make recommendations.  Even subcommittees that have members who are not part of the public body will be subject to the Open Meeting Law if they meet the Open Meeting Law’s definition of “public body.”

Subcommittees are public bodies in their own right, which means they must follow all of the Open Meeting Law’s requirements applicable to public bodies.  Subcommittee members should be particularly careful about any communications they have with their fellow subcommittee members in order to avoid deliberating outside of a posted meeting, as the subcommittee has its own (smaller) quorum.  The quorum of a public body, including a subcommittee, is a simple majority of its members, unless otherwise provide by law.  Therefore, although it is generally permissible for public body members to communicate amongst themselves outside of a posted meeting as long as the communications do not involve or reach a quorum (whether concurrently or serially), public body members must always be cognizant of the makeup and quorum of the public body, including any subcommittees on which they serve.

Determinations Regarding Subcommittees and Sub-quorum Communications:

OML 2021-176: Finding no violation of the Open Meeting Law because text message conversations did not contain or reach a quorum of the Board.  In all cases, the Board members engaged in one-on-one text exchanges during the meeting.  In addition, we find no evidence of serial deliberation among a quorum of the Board.

OML 2021-115: Subcommittee deliberated outside of a posted meeting, in violation of the Open Meeting Law, when a quorum of the Subcommittee discussed the status of a matter that was clearly within the Subcommittee's jurisdiction outside of a posted meeting.

OML 2018-128: Board did not create a subcommittee where the Board took no vote after one member offered to research a topic and another member of the public body subsequently volunteered to assist.

OML 2017-111: Board did not create a subcommittee where the Board clearly intended to assign a task to one person and another member of the public body subsequently volunteered to assist.

OML 2016-96: Working Group did not create a subcommittee where two members of the Working Group, on their own initiative, worked on projects for the benefit of the Working Group, without the Working Group taking any official action to delegate that responsibility to the two members. 

For more info on Open Meeting Law visit ->  https://www.mass.gov/the-open-meeting-law

Open Meeting Law Guidance Spotlight: Subcommittees and Sub-quorum Communications