Why Should Delaware Care?
Multiple bills that have already passed through the full House and the Senate Education Committee aim to address the public’s concerns relating to weak background checks and the residency status of board of education members. Four of those bills now await the governor’s signature.
Five education bills that are inching toward becoming law would strengthen school background checks, mandate that school boards broadcast meetings online, and require board members to reside within their districts.
The Delaware Senate passed all five this week, sending four of them to Gov. Matt Meyer’s desk. One bill, which requires a school board member to physically reside inside their district for most of the year, was amended by the Senate and will need to be passed again by the House of Representatives — it has just two legislative days left to do so.
If signed into law by Meyer, two of those bills would directly address some of the biggest recent controversies in Delaware schools – the status of a Christina school board member who lives in Pakistan; and the hiring of a Middletown private school leader who had left a job in Louisiana amid sexual harassment claims.
Addressing residency concerns, allowing remote access
Within the past year, community members in the Christina School District have expressed growing frustrations with their Board of Education, specifically over the residency of board member Naveed Baqir.
Baqir, who represents the Newark area of the school district, has not attended a board meeting in person in 16 months, but has often joined remotely while reportedly living in Pakistan.
Last September, community members created a Change.org petition, calling for Baqir’s removal.
That same month, Baqir addressed the residency questions, saying during a board meeting that he lives in Pakistan to attend medical school and care for his family.
In March, Rep. Madinah Wilson-Anton (D-Bear) introduced two pieces of legislation – House Bill 82 and House Bill 83 – in response to Baqir’s physical absence from his school district.
HB 82 would require school board members to live within their district’s footprint for at least 75% of a given year.
The other, HB 83, limits remote attendance for board members at meetings to certain circumstances, such as illness or military deployment. It would also allow a school board to set a limit on how many times remote attendance would be permitted.
Earlier this month, Christina Board of Education President Donald Patton announced that Baqir would step down from the board, effective on July 15.
On Tuesday, HB 83 passed the full Senate. On Wednesday, HB 82 passed the full Senate with an amendment that adds an exception to the residency requirement.
During the meeting, Senate President Pro Tem David Sokola said the amendment mirrors the residency requirement exception for state legislators. The general residency requirement does not apply to legislators in the event of redistricting or other unforeseen circumstances.
While Wilson-Anton’s bill would require most board members to attend meetings in person, another bill would allow the public to view them remotely.
House Bill 64 would require boards of education to establish methods for allowing the community to view meetings and provide public comments remotely. The bill also passed through the full Senate on Tuesday.
Strengthening background checks for board members, private schools
Among the two other education bills awaiting the governor’s signature is one that seeks to clarify how background checks would be conducted for school board members.
Although elected school board members are required to complete a background check, the process for appointed members is less clear, particularly regarding who reviews the background check and how it’s conducted.
House Bill 85, sponsored by Rep. Kim Williams (D-Stanton), aims to make it clear that a future board member can’t be appointed unless a background check is completed and the Commissioner of Elections determines the person is qualified for the seat.
Separately, Williams’ bill also explains that if there is a vacancy on a school board — for reasons other than the term ending — an individual will be appointed by the remaining members of the board for the remainder of the fiscal year.
A new board member would then be elected at the next regular school board election.
Another education bill would remove exemptions for background checks for employees, contractors, and volunteers at private schools and youth camps.
Specifically, House Bill 47 would remove the exemptions that allow private schools and youth camps to use a name-based, rather than fingerprint-based, background check, or opt to not hold background checks at all.
In January, Justin Lee Smith, then-head of the St. Anne’s Episcopal School in Middletown, was charged with 25 counts of felony dealing in child pornography.
Smith had a controversial tenure at his previous school in Louisiana before coming to Delaware, after he sent an email to parents that included a porn actor’s name and the word “threesome,’’ according to a WHYY report that cited emails obtained by the news outlet.
The same WHYY report said Smith had an affair with a female staff member, among other accusations.
Some parents questioned how Smith was hired after these incidents in Louisiana.
Both bills relating to background checks were unanimously approved by the General Assembly and now await action by Meyer.
