Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Newhall School District Board Votes to Tape-Record Meetings

Newhall School District board meetings will now be regularly recorded on audiotape in an effort to provide more thorough record-keeping.

Trustee Zandra Stanley said she pushed for the recordings after confusion over whether the board made an earlier decision to spend $9,000.

Following a petition drive that would have put the controversial issue of multitrack year-round schedules up for a special election in June, the board talked about spending $9,000 to verify the collected signatures. Stanley said there was discussion of the issue, but that it was unclear later if any decision had been made, and the minutes were no help.

“The board talked about having those signatures verified. The minutes certainly didn’t reflect the discussion, let alone a vote,” Stanley said.

Trustees voted 5 to 0 Tuesday night to tape the meetings, continuing the process that was started on a trial basis in March. Audiotapes will be maintained only until written minutes are compiled and then approved by the board.

Supt. J. Michael McGrath, who has taken minutes for the board as its secretary for more than 20 years, said the other four board members and three top administrators remembered the board reaching consensus to verify the signatures.

Although the board did not attempt to change whatever earlier action may have been taken, Stanley believes the recordings are necessary because the board deals with taxpayers’ money.

“This is not the first time something has happened along these lines,” Stanley said, contending that minutes are “sometimes written in a slanted manner” by McGrath.

McGrath stands by the accuracy of his record-keeping and says he does not expect tape-recording of the sessions to make any difference.

McGrath and Stanley have disagreed on issues in the past, with Stanley an outspoken critic of the superintendent. Not surprisingly, the two disagree on the effect of the tapings that began in March.

“I’ve noticed the tone and tenor of the meeting has gotten better with the tape recorder sitting there,” Stanley said.

“It so unobtrusive, I don’t think anybody notices that it’s there,” McGrath said.