The Pagosa Peak Open School (PPOS) Board of Directors appointed two board members to three-year terms and elected a board president, vice president, secretary and treasurer during its regular meeting on Wednesday, May 21.
Board member Jesse White self-nominated for president of the board, which was unanimously approved, and board member Catherine Siebel nominated herself for the vice president role and was also unanimously approved.
Two board members also nominated themselves to continue holding their same positions, with Pamela Meade as the board’s treasurer and Bill Hudson as the board’s secretary. Both were unanimously approved.
Hudson’s and Meade’s board terms were both extended for three more years after their previous terms ended in May.
The PPOS board now has six active members, including Hudson, Meade, White, Siebel, Lawrence Rugar and Chris Frederics.
Rugar joined the board in 2022, with his current term coming to an end in May 2026. White joined the board in 2023, with his current term ending in May 2027. Meade has been on the board since 2023, with a new term ending in May 2028.
Hudson is the board’s longest-serving member, joining in 2017. His new term ends in May 2028. Siebel was appointed to the board in May 2024, with her term ending in May 2027.
Frederics is the board’s newest member, joining in May, with a three-year term ending in May 2028.
School Accountability Committee
Later during the meeting, the PPOS board discussed possible options for the structure of its School Accountability Committee (SAC), with White initiating the conversation.
White explained that Frederics would be taking on the responsibility of coordinating the SAC and how information would be relayed to the board of directors.
Rugar noted that he wanted to see results of student, staff and parent surveys, noting that “the data is important” and the “surveys are absolutely worthless if we don’t get to discuss the results of it.”
Siebel noted that previously surveys were distributed three times throughout the school year: beginning, middle and end, noting, “The end of year one is locked and ready to go.”
She explained that there is still some discussion on how to disseminate the surveys and that the board won’t have data until next year.
Meade mentioned that there will be a report from the board representative in the future to the SAC, but asked for clarification if the SAC is something that the board representative attends or if it is a board-run committee.
White explained that Frederics was previously on the SAC, and more questions were asked about how the committee operates.
Frederics mentioned he didn’t have a “strong memory of this role” and wanted to know more about the boundaries of the SAC and board of directors.
“I truly have never understood what precisely they’re in charge of,” Siebel said, noting that she understands the accountability aspect, “but, like, I don’t know what that means in the day to day.”
Frederics responded to Siebel’s comment by stating he would try to deliver the “most unfiltered belief of that committee I possibly can to you.”
He explained that it is essentially a way for “parents to be involved,” noting that sometimes can mean through a parent-teachers association.
Frederics added it is “essentially structured a way that is required by [Colorado Department of Education] for administrators to deliver information to parents so they can give them feedback.”
He noted that the SAC does not have any authority, but is a way to loop parents into the decision making of the school.
PPOS School Director Emily Murphy explained that she is required to be at every SAC meeting, noting she could be the one who presents information from the SAC to the board.
Murphy described the SAC as a “space where parents can get information about policies and procedures within the school, ask questions, make complaints.”
Siebel then asked if complaints from the SAC would then go to Murphy and on to the board of directors.
“Ideally, no,” Murphy said.
Siebel then asked for clarification on who would make complaints to the board.
“It doesn’t seem like going through a director in any case is the ideal pathway,” she added.
Siebel then asked that, if it is the board’s job to convey information to families, “which I firmly believe in,” then what is the right pathway for complaints to be made to the board?
Siebel suggested that the order should not be Murphy to the board and then to parents.
“Well, I mean, if it’s operational questions, it should come from [Murphy] because she understands the operations,” Hudson responded, noting that if it has something to do with operations then that has to do with the board of directors.
Siebel then asked who the person the board would be communicating with is.
Murphy mentioned that it makes sense to have information from the board pass through the administration to parents.
“This has been a thing for, like, over a decade,” Frederics commented, explaining that every school in Colorado has to have a SAC and that there is not a “one-size-fits-all” policy.
Frederics went on to explain that, in his opinion, “I would say we already have many avenues for parents to be engaged,” noting that could be through becoming a board member or through the parent council.
“I don’t think we need one,” he added of the SAC, explaining the intent of this policy is so there is “no way a parent could feel excluded from the process of influencing the school in their small way.”
Murphy noted that the school would be excluded from receiving federal funding if it says it does not have a SAC.
Rugar asked if members of the SAC are all parents of students, with Meade explaining there are parents and nonparents on the SAC.
Meade also explained that the SAC needs to have a principal, one instructing teacher, three parents of students enrolled and at least one adult member of an outside organization.
Murphy noted that because PPOS is so small, the school does not have the same requirement of having at least seven members.
Hudson commented that he would be “glad” to do some research and find out exactly what the school is required to have and prepare a recommendation to be presented at the next board meeting.
The next PPOS board meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, June 18, at 5 p.m. at 3133 Cornerstone Drive.
The meeting is also available to view via Google Meets. The link for the meeting can be found on the school’s calendar online at https://pagosapeakopenschool.org/family-calendar-3/.
clayton@pagosasun.com
