Public School Board votes down video in meetings

Trustees also defeat motion for minutes to show how each of them votes on issues

To have somebody taking a video and not knowing where that goes is not something I would want to deal with.

Regina Public School Board trustee Adam Hicks stood alone in support of two motions he argued would increase public engagement and board transparency in last week’s meeting.

The first motion resolved to allow audio and video recording during the public board meetings, which are rarely attended by anyone other than teachers and division staff.

Recording is allowed, according to the current policy, although only with prior approval of the chair.

“To be honest it’s about engagement and I feel very strongly about engaging our community in education,” Hicks said following the Feb. 14 meeting.

He gave notice of the motion in November, after seeing success on his Facebook page for Subdivision 3.

Even before his first-term election on Oct. 26, Hicks has posted text and video to the page, with views ranging from 56 to 10,000.

Hicks has noticed the sparse attendance at board meetings. He said video of meetings might get citizens more interested in the process, and better engage the community in education.

“This was just a small little thing that I thought might help us,” Hicks said. “Even if it’s 100 people that are paying attention and being a little more engaged, that to me is a success. It’s not thousands of people, but it starts somewhere.”

The second motion, quickly defeated, called for all votes to be recorded with trustees’ names and positions highlighted in the meeting minutes. As it stands, the policy requires a recorded vote only when a trustee requests it, prior to the vote being taken.

There are precedents for recording during meetings.

Prairie South School Board has live-streamed its meetings for about three years, said Tony Baldwin, director of education for the division that includes Moose Jaw.

“It was a board initiative; it was an attempt on the part of the school board to be more transparent,” said Baldwin, as the division covers a large geographic area and it is difficult for some people to attend meetings. During the most interesting meetings, said Baldwin, there might be 20 hits online.

Meeting attendees are not allowed to personally record.

Regina city council meetings have streamed online since 2012; attendees can record in the chamber with their own cameras.

School board vice-chair Aleana Young pointed out Regina’s relatively small size, compared to bigger jurisdictions where videos of meetings might be warranted.

She said in five years as a trustee, she has never heard of someone wanting to record a Regina public board meeting, even when contentious issues were up for discussion.

Trustees Cindy Anderson, Jane Ekong and chairwoman Katherine Gagne also spoke in opposition.

Standing on procedure, Gagne said a decision like this should follow proper process; it should be overviewed and amended by the policy and planning committee.

Lest someone “cherry-pick” the trustees’ quotes and use videos out of context, Young said it would be incumbent on the board to also film its meetings, as “a matter of record.”

Anderson said the board bears witness to some “very emotional” presentations. In those circumstances, it would be “intimidating ” to present on camera.

“To have somebody taking a video and not knowing where that goes is not something I would want to deal with,” Anderson said.

Ekong said she doesn’t want her image used without her consent.

Hicks said the board meetings are known to be open, and trustees are elected officials in the public eye.

Ekong believes the board is already being transparent, posting minutes to its website, having public meetings open to anyone to attend.

Hicks is hopeful the subcommittee process could result in video being allowed in the future. He said he has made three requests to personally record meetings, and was denied.

Young pointed to the cost of streaming videos, should the board go that route.

Baldwin said streaming the meetings from Moose Jaw is not a complex or expensive process. A GoPro camera is mounted to the boardroom wall, and an IT person sets up microphones and sound equipment early in the day.

He said after the meetings there’s some “IT wizardry” to publish the videos to the website. But during the meeting, “it runs all by itself.”

The annual cost to stream city council meetings is about $5,000, as a third-party company provides equipment, and maintains and supports the streaming app.

The actual video is shot by Access Communications, which also broadcasts the meetings on TV. That same image is streamed online with the click of a button.

People are allowed to record during city council meetings.

There are 14 city council meetings per year; the Regina public board has roughly the same number.