New Board Policy needed re email addresses

The following email was sent to Richland 2 school district on April 27. Watch tonight's meeting to see if a Trustee makes a motion for a new policy.


Mr. Manning and Supt. Davis,

Board Policy BEDB permits the public to suggest items of business for consideration by the board.

I request a new Board Policy that would require all Board Members to use only official email accounts on the District's email server for school-related correspondence. Full compliance with FOIA Requests to the District can only be guaranteed, when the District controls the retention of email received by and sent by board members. The District-issued email address should replace the personal email address on the Board Members' webpage.

When a personal email account is used for official business, the District cannot control access to and retention of that email for responding to a FOIA request. Currently, two board members use personal accounts: Teresa Holmes and Monica Elkins-Johnson.

A board policy would require them to use an @richland2.org email address for all school-related correspondence. Please include a direction to Holmes and Elkins-Johnson to retain their personal email accounts beyond their term of office (for a specific term; ex., ten years) and not to delete any official correspondence.

It is my understanding that the SCSBA might condone use of personal email accounts; e.g., in small districts without an in-house server. Richland 2 is not in that category.

Will you please place my request on the agenda for the May 12, 2020 Regular Meeting or as soon thereafter as practicable? I shall be happy to address the board at a Regular Meeting and answer questions about the need for this policy.

Perhaps a board member will make a motion at this week's meeting to include this item.

Respectfully,

Gus Philpott