Having witnessed a steep and steady rise in Scarborough property taxes over the past few years, watching the Scarborough School Board on television and in person, and seeing the new Wentworth school in the papers, I decided to address the School Board on my concerns. Much to my surprise and chagrin, I found out the public is not allowed to address the School Board except on agenda items immediately before the Board. I also found out that the meetings posted on their web site are not meetings, but workshops every other date, and the Finance Committee meets at the direction of the Committee Chair instead of regularly as the Town Finance Committee does. With no outlet for my growing frustration, I am writing to you in the hope you will print my intended address to the School Board in its entirety.

I wish to speak on two points: Conflict and perception.

1. To the first point: Conflict. Whenever two or more people interact, conflict is a periodic result. How we handle the conflict is the important ingredient. It appears I am in conflict with the Board of Education in several areas to such an extent that I can no longer keep silent. I mean no disrespect to individual or collective members of the Board. I do not want to be known as the guy who starts an argument with the Board, and I do not want to be on anyone’s enemies list when I say the following.

The new Wentworth school is a testament to extravagance and excess. Somewhere along the line between the original idea to replace the old school and the finished product, everyone involved forgot the primary objective: to build a school house. One of the original members of the working group that had inputs to the school had coffee with me two weeks ago. He told me he and one other person provided inputs that would have saved the town anywhere from one to fifteen million dollars. When their ideas were dismissed, they quit the group in frustration. While I cannot verify this, I believe in this man. If you believe that teachers are the key component in a school, imagine how many teachers you could hire with $15 million. While listening to the arguments for the school, one theme kept coming out: it’s for the children. This building is not for the children. The children will probably not even notice the oak, the carvings, the art work. They did notice a TV in the library. A functional school could have been built and saved the taxpayers a lot of money.

The educational philosophy of the Scarborough School web site mentions everything except money. I would like to see an addition that would mention a great education at a reasonable cost. I offer the board an article from an educator and school superintendent that has some fresh ideas. See http://bangordailynews.com/2014/07/18/opinion/contributors/maines-public-schools-need-to-be-bold-and-change-whats-not-working/.

2. To the second point: Perception.

When holding public office, perception is as important as truth. The perception is that money is not a consideration for this Board. It appears the Board will consider all aspects of education except the burden on the taxpayer.

The perception is that the Board of Education is operating without regard to the public that elected them. While I have been assured that the Board meets in public, the perception is different. Again, I mean no disrespect to individual members of the Board when I say the following.

My friend asked when the Board’s Finance Committee met, the answer was that the chair of the committee sets the meetings. The town finance committee meets on a regular schedule and that is posted well in advance on line. The Board of Education appears to meet whenever it pleases the chairman. That gives the appearance of secrecy.

When my friend asked about the Board of Education retreat, he received no answer from the Board’s chair. He then went to the Superintendent. Kelly Johnson put his call on hold while she checked with the Superintendent. She then told him the meeting was not a retreat, but a planning meeting and therefore not open to the public. If the meeting is not public, why was it on the BOE’s calendar that is available to the public? If it is public, why was my friend told the public could not attend? Dr. Entwistle answered further to explain the purpose of the retreat and the public was allowed to attend, but not participate in the discussions. When my friend went to the Council Chambers A/B as posted on the calendar, he found them empty. The Superintendent’s office informed him the meeting had been moved to the new Wentworth School. After the retreat, the Board’s chair told my friend that there was a ‘calendar glitch’. If the council chambers were open, where was the ‘glitch’?

It appears glitches are the norm. The finance committee met on 27 Aug 2014, but did not put this meeting on the public calendar.

Perception is part of holding public office. The perception is that the school board meets in private, is interested in everything except the public that placed them in office.

I must tell you that these opinions are my own, but that they are shared by a great number of people.

Michael B. Turek is a resident of Scarborough.