After months of ire from families and stakeholders, Pittsburgh Public Schools will consider cementing a hybrid public hearing format into its policies.
While PPS public hearings have historically been held solely in person, school board members allowed speakers to participate remotely at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The district transitioned the meeting to a hybrid model — with options for both in-person and Zoom participation — in November 2023, and it continued that way through the end of the 2023-2024 school year.
In July 2024, however, the district announced the public hearings would transition back to a fully in-person format the following month, citing progress in vaccination rates and a decline in COVID-19 hospitalizations. At the time, school board president Gene Walker told WESA it would bring “more structure” to the meetings.
But in the months since, parents and community members have voiced their frustration over the change, raising concerns about accommodations for people with disabilities, access to transportation and childcare needs.
During a school board policy workshop on Monday, Walker signaled an interest in change as a result of that input.
“I recognize that's cause for some frustration and some anger by folks who felt like we were doing something to kind of take their voice away,” he said.
The district’s current public hearing policy allows for broad interpretation, charging the board only to “provide a period for public participation” and to “formulate rules to govern such public participation in Board meetings.”
Because of that, board members can reinstate the meeting’s hybrid format without a formal policy change. But vice president Devon Taliaferro suggested that doing so first in writing would create more clarity and consistency for PPS families.
“We just have to make sure that we make testifying and the voice of the public heard very clear and concise so that everybody knows what they're supposed to do and that we get to hear the voice of the people,” she said.
Members of the board’s policy committee will now work to draft language for review during February’s policy workshop. That policy would then be subject to a 30-day public comment period before it makes it to a board vote in March.
More transparent and efficient meetings proposed
Board members also discussed ways to make their governance policies more clear and efficient. PPS has enlisted the help of the Council of Great City Schools, a Texas-based nonprofit, to redesign the board’s practices and procedures.
Ben Mackey with the organization presented the policy committee with several changes to streamline the board’s processes. That includes lengthening the time school board members have to review agenda items prior to their monthly meeting from three days to 10 days.
The proposed policies would also require PPS to publish all school board member questions and answers about a given agenda item for the public to review.
“This is kind of codifying greater transparency so that we, as directors, are doing our due diligence, and that exchange with administration is then shared with the public,” said director Yael Silk.
Other proposals would define the board’s process for monitoring district progress, expand conflict of interest language to cover campaign contributions and require that all policies be reviewed at least every four years.
Board vice president Tracey Reed said the proposals are indicative of the “healthy direction” in which the board is moving. Board members previously gave themselves failing grades on a self-evaluation. City controller Rachael Heisler, who also serves as school district controller, called on the board to improve its governance strategies last fall.
Residents will have 30 days to submit public comment on the proposed policies, which will be posted to the district’s website.
