Merrill Area Public Schools Board of Education president Jen Seliger has been named in a civil action alleging the school board did not give proper notice of a closed session discussion in May.
According to the complaint filed July 26 by District Attorney Don Dunphy in Lincoln County Circuit Court, the board held a closed session at its May 25 meeting “for which a public notice, reasonaly likely to apprise the public of subject matter of the session, was not provided.”
The agenda for the May 25 meeting included a notice of the closed session, along with the statutory exemption allowing it. “The purpose of the closed session is for a presentation by administrators regarding a personnel matter,” the notice futher stated.
Whether that last statement was too vague is at the center of the issue.
A scheduling conference in the case is set for Sept. 28. If Seliger is found to be in violation of the state statute governing open meetings, the penalty is a forfeiture ranging from $25 to $300.
The Board of Education discussed the case in closed session Wednesday night, but did not take any action in open session.