Provided by KELLY GERLACH (News Editor- [email protected])

The Delwood Community School District’s superintendent, Chris Fee, violated state law earlier this month when he refused to provide public records to a member of the public, according to Randy Evans, the executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council.

Fee refused to provide what is known as a board packet to Ron Filloon, a member of the community who previously served on that school board for 23 years. Administrators put board packets together for school board members prior to board meetings and, under Iowa law, they are public records.
Filloon, 61, resides in Delmar, where he’s lived for the past 59 years.

Filloon said family members asked him to attend the July 21 meeting to show support for a teacher facing termination by the district. Five days before the meeting, on July 17, Filloon emailed the school board secretary, asking for a copy of the board packet to familiarize himself with the issues on the board’s agenda. The meeting drew an unusually large crowd – about 35 people – who showed up mostly to show support for Charley Ohnemus, an art teacher the board voted unanimously to fire as its final action of the meeting.
On July 18, Fee emailed Filloon to say the packet was ready, “however, this is not something we typically share publicly.”

“As you know, the notes are intended to help make the board members aware of information pertaining to items on the agenda,” Fee wrote to Filloon via an email obtained by the Sentinel-Press. “We need to be consistent with what we share with members of the community so we will not be sharing the board packet in advance of our meetings. If there is something you have a particular interest in now or in the future please contact Denise and we will accommodate the best we can. Considering all your service on our school board we hope you understand the need to be fair and consistent.”

The email included the general July 21 meeting agenda but nothing else.

It is immaterial if the board packet is not something the superintendent typically shares, according to Evans. “The public records law takes precedence over the school district’s policy.
Iowa Code Chapter 22, Iowa’s open records law, is designed to guarantee the public has access to public records of government bodies.

“Documents provided to board members by the superintendent or other administrators are a public record and must be provided to any requester unless the superintendent can cite a specific section of Iowa law that makes a particular document confidential,” Evans told the Sentinel-Press.

“Once the board packet is provided to board members – regardless of whether that occurs prior to the meeting or once the meeting convenes – that packet becomes a public record,” Evans added.
State law allows the superintendent to withhold a specific document while checking with the school attorney to determine whether it is public; however, other documents must still be shared with the requester, Evans explained.

The Sentinel-Press, on July 24, asked Fee to comment on the public records denial. His email returned a response saying he would be out of the office until Aug. 4. The board secretary said she would “see what I can do” to have Fee respond. Fee had not responded as of press deadline July 28.

Filloon, on July 20, filed an electronic Freedom of Information Act request to obtain the board packet, the day before the meeting. He received a link to the board packet Thursday morning. However, the delayed response deprived him of the packet prior to the meeting.

“This is a troubling failure by Delwood administrators to comply with the public records law,” Evans said. “This lack of sound judgment by the superintendent could cost the district thousands of dollars in attorney fees if someone decided to sue to challenge this unwarranted secrecy.

Sentinel-Press Publisher Trevis Mayfield said while the newspaper does not plan to take any legal action at this time, it will monitor Delwood’s compliance with Iowa’s transparency laws to ensure the public’s rights are not violated in the future.