Imagine: Breaking the Law

From the stellar folks at the Journal Gazette, who have proven that a critical journalists can impact public policy for the better:

Imagine’s closed votes broke law, expert says

Board denies any secret dealings on Texas school plans

Kelly Soderlund

The Journal Gazette

The local Imagine Schools board violated state law by not voting in public on a series of resolutions related to opening two charter schools in Texas, Indiana’s public access counselor ruled.

The ruling by Andrew J. Kossack was prompted by a complaint filed by The Journal Gazette that alleged Imagine Fort Wayne Charter School Inc., the non-profit board that oversees the Imagine MASTer Academy, violated Indiana law that relates to public meetings.

Instead of voting within the public view to create the schools, appoint and remove board members and name their own board president, Don Willis, to head one of the Texas boards, Imagine board members separately signed a resolution giving their consent.

Ball State University is also investigating whether the Imagine board violated state law, the result of a Journal Gazette investigation that described a lack of local control over two charter schools in Fort Wayne.

“The (Open Door Law) explicitly states that ‘final action must be taken at a meeting open to the public. Final action means a vote by the governing body on any motion, proposal, resolution, rule, regulations, ordinance or order,’ ” Kossack wrote.

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