CARE 'trying to keep up with school district's strategies'
Thursday, May 01, 2008
A school district watch group says it requested public records involving some parents to protect the group's reputation.
Mason Citizens for Accountability and Responsibility in Education, or CARE, representative Sharon Poe asked for "e-mails, letters, documents and any other forms of electronic transmission" in a public records request to the Mason City School District in January. Poe's request included
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correspondence to six private citizens she called the district's "spin-meisters."
"It's kind of like being a private detective, in that you're trying to keep up with their strategies," Poe said.
Poe said the request was made to "keep abreast with the schools' strategies of trying to destroy the integrity of Mason CARE."
District spokeswoman Tracey Carson said the organization has made several requests in the past few years. The January request was the only one including people not employed by the district, said Carson.
Carson said, "... CARE appears to be interested in viewing e-mails between private individuals and their children's teachers and administrators, rather than ... people employed by the district. We're not sure that this is what lawmakers intended ..."
Carson referred to Ohio's Sunshine Law, which requires public entities such as schools and governments to release public records upon request.
CARE intends to continue its "frequent informational requests," said Poe.
Contact this reporter at (513) 696-4541 or dwilson@coxohio.com.
