District 211 to research broadcasting its meetings

Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 board members in December will hear an estimated cost and implementation time for a system of video recording and broadcasting their meetings after several expressed support for the idea Thursday.

The discussed proposal was to upload the recordings to the district's website but retain the authority to edit out anything said by a member of the public that would violate the privacy of any individual student.

Board President Mucia Burke and board member Anna Klimkowicz said maintaining this ability settled one of their main concerns about video recording.

Board member Pete Dombrowski pointed out that media outlets and other members of the public would still be free to make their own recordings and use them as they wanted.

But Superintendent Dan Cates said the district - though responsible for keeping the recordings as public records - would have the right not to post anything inappropriate on its website.

The other main concerns were the cost and quality level of the recordings. While district residents John Parker and Mark Puchalski of Schaumburg advised that very inexpensive options were available, board members argued that a certain level of quality would be expected by viewers.

"I think we need to be above a camera on a tripod," Burke said.

"If we're going to do it, we need to do it right, do it well," Klimkowicz agreed.

Cates originally proposed to bring samples of different image qualities to the board in October, but said he could narrow those down to a single recommendation by the Dec. 8 meeting.

Though no cost estimates were immediately available Thursday, board members said they believed the broadcasting of meetings was a step in the right direction.

"I think it's a very positive thing for the board and community," Klimkowicz said. "I think it allows for a lot more communication and dialogue, and as we said, transparency."

Burke said the issue of video recording and broadcasting meetings has been raised in the past, but the board felt it would be best for the recently completed strategic plan to set the stage for such a decision.

Though the community survey used in the strategic planning process did not reflect a high level of interest in the broadcasting of meetings, Burke said she believed there was still value in the idea.

Parker and Puchalski have been advocating the district's broadcasting of its meetings for years, often recording and posting them online themselves.

Board members Lauanna Recker and Will Hinshaw were absent from Thursday's discussion.