NIC TRUSTEE: Rules should be followed

Three newly elected trustees joined the North Idaho College Board of Trustees. I personally do not know any of the five trustees. I do have knowledge of public sector procedures, responsibilities and actions. Decisions made by elected leaders may lean right, left, Republican, Democrat or other and on those decisions we can disagree, but we must follow the rules and the process.

Any public body agenda must be posted. Any member of the public generally has the right to comment on agenda items. Based on the Coeur d’Alene Press, two resolutions requiring trustee approval were introduced without placement on the agenda. One resolution proposed to delay the hiring and filling of certain vacant positions on the president’s cabinet.

In order to resolve the accreditation concerns, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities has required NIC to hire a permanent president, implement a board conduct policy and work toward filling vacant executive positions at the college. It seems posting and discussing at a public meeting are important since the accreditation committee considered these positions should be filled.

The second resolution was to hire the legal services of a private attorney. Again there is a proper process where professional service contracts are put out for bid. This process is followed by other public agencies. This insures the most qualified person is hired at the best possible price. How were these resolutions created prior to a public meeting? Any attorney being hired in this manner should offer his first legal opinion. You are not following the accepted process for such services by arbitrarily hiring me, and by the way was the open meeting law violated in this process?

I guess the so claimed new day is actually a return to the very old days. Being right or left is not the issue but being right or wrong is. Oh well, it’s just our community college.

PHIL WARD

Coeur d’Alene