After some discussion, the trustees decided to return to two standing committees: one for planning and one for performance, with the addition of a governance and an executive committee.  Committee membership will be determined after trustee interest has been solicited. Appointments will be made as soon as possible.

The trustees also voted to impose a five hour time limit on regular board meetings. Committee meetings will “strive to be no longer than two hours.”

The change came after board president Deb Mexicotte introduced policy changes to address board meeting times, the process for adding items to the agenda, and the committee structure at the March 27, 2013 meeting. Concerns surrounding these issues have been raised by the trustees, the administration, and the community.

This brief was filed from the board room of the Ann Arbor District Library in downtown Ann Arbor at Fifth and William. A more detailed report of the meeting will follow: [link]

The board’s resolution, which was put forward by trustee Susan Baskett, asks Washtenaw County prosecutor Brian Mackie to reconsider the charges his office has brought against the young men. Included as “resolved clauses” in the resolution were the  following:

THEREFORE, we ask that our students, when required to be accountable through the judicial system and thereby learn from their mistakes, be treated with compassion, fairness, equity, efficacy, and respect for their ability to learn, and
WE THEREFORE FURTHER RECOMMEND that the Prosecuting Attorney, Brian Mackie, consider the best interests of the injured student, the students criminally charged and the community by re-evaluating the degree of criminalization of adolescent behaviors that would be better resolved through a greater emphasis on educational and developmentally appropriate measures relative to harsh charges and convictions.

The board had voted at its Feb. 27, 2013 meeting to place the resolution on the March 13 agenda – over dissent from trustees Andy Thomas and Irene Patalan. The resolution was unanimously passed.

This brief was filed from the board room of the Ann Arbor District Library in downtown Ann Arbor at Fifth and William. A more detailed report of the meeting will follow.