The Board welcomes public comment on matters within its purview. Accordingly, the Board makes available a maximum 30-minute period at its regular meetings for persons in the audience to address the Board for no longer than 3 minutes. Written material of any length may be submitted. Preference will be given to persons who seek to address the Board on specific agenda items for the upcoming Board meeting. Agendas for upcoming Board meetings are generally posted forty-eight hours prior to the meeting on the Abby Kelley Foster Charter Public School website. Persons wishing to speak are strongly encouraged to submit their request before the day of the meeting; contact information is provided below. Preference will be given to those who submit requests by 5:00 p.m. on the Friday preceding the regular Wednesday meeting.
If time permits, the Chair will allow members of the public who have not contacted the Board in advance to speak in the public comment period; those individuals must sign in prior to the start of the meeting. The Chair may limit the number of speakers due to time constraints and may increase or reduce the time allocated per speaker. While there is no requirement to submit comments in writing, a speaker who elects to do so should submit an electronic copy of their comment prior to or at the meeting for distribution to Board members.
Requests to address the Board, written comments, and other inquiries may be transmitted by mail, e-mail, or telephone to:
Abby Kelley Foster Charter School
Attn: Naira Joseph, Administrative Assistant
10 New Bond Street, Worcester, MA 01606
Phone: 508-854-8400 ext. 3635
E-mail: [email protected]
Please make any requests for special accommodations or interpretation services at least 48 hours prior to the scheduled meeting.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AT OPEN MEETINGS
The Board of Trustees of a charter school is a governmental body; it must comply with the State’s Open Meeting Law, MGL c.30A, s.18-25. The Board meeting schedules and times are subject to change at the discretion of the Chair.
Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 30A Section 20(f) governs public participation at open meetings of municipal government bodies as follows: Section 20(f). No person shall address a meeting of a public body without permission of the Chair, and all persons shall, at the request of the Chair, be silent. No person shall disrupt the proceedings of a meeting of a public body. If, after clear warning from the Chair, a person continues to disrupt the proceedings, the Chair may order the person to withdraw from the meeting and if the person does not withdraw, the Chair may authorize a constable or other officer to remove the person from the meeting.
