Correction – Board Approves, Then Rescinds Emergency Powers For Superintendent

WSJM News has a correction to issue. We reported this week that the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education voted Tuesday night to grant emergency powers to Superintendent Andrae Townsel during the pandemic. That was correct. However, about a half hour after the school board’s vote, the body voted to rescind the emergency powers it had just given Townsel. That’s after Board President Joseph Taylor got an email from district attorney Timothy Gardner advising against approval of the emergency powers.

“I reached out to Tim just to make sure, what did they think, and they’re saying that Thrun Law Firm does not want us to approve that resolution that we approved,” Taylor said. “We could work on suspending the policies to do what you need, but this is the take of our law firm right now.”

The board then rescinded its motion from a half hour earlier and instead opted to follow a procedure where policies could be suspended to allow Townsel to respond to COVID-19 developments. They’ll be working on that with the law firm.

Source: WSJM
Full story at: https://www.wsjm.com/2020/09/23/school-board-grants-then-rescinds-superintendent-emergency-powers-during-pandemic/

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