Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1910-04-20
ILLUSTRATES PLAN
Of BOARD TO HOLD
SECRET SESSION
BelleviIIe Education Body Is
Obliged to Consider Salary In
crease at Open Meeting.

An effort of the Bel1eville Board OF
Education last night to hold an cxecu-
tive session was upset when School
Commissioner DIR. John F.. Condor left
the meeting room after a secret meet
ing was agreed upon by a majority OF
the members. The executive session,
however, only lasted about one minute,
no business having been transacted
when the doors of the meeting cham
bers We're thrown open to the public.
The matter of adopting the school
teachers salary schedule for the COM
ing yea had been advanced, and Com
missioner Emil c. Merit moved that
the board go into executive session
to consider the matter DR.. Condor
~strenuously opposed this. saying the
public should know what public serv-
ants are doing"
The result OF a roll-call which fol-
lowed showed that DIR. Condor was
supported by only n member of the
board in his contention for the trans
action of public business open and
above-board." The other member who
positively declined to act in a secret
manner was Commissioners Alfred
Cooper.
DIR. Condor denounced the holding of
executive meetings and declared that
he would refuse absolutely to sit in Sc
cret conferences with his colleagues.
The question of fixing the teachers
salaries was fully covered in a
report by Supervising Principal George
r. Gerard, in conjunction with the
teachers committee.
In the recommendation, as it was
afterward stated, everything was "cut
and dried" and it had been intended,
it was also said, to rush the recon-
mendation through without any special
comment as to salaries. This scheme,
though, was shattered when instead Of
passing the salary schedule without ado
considerable discussion among the
members took place, Immediately after
DIR. Condor had won his fight, although
he was greatly in the minority. Ex-
element ran high at the meeting.
When 1t was seen that most of the
members wanted to work behind closed
doors. DIR. Condor arose and said: II
refuse absolutely to sit in or have any
thing to do with an executive session
of this board. The Board of Education
is a public servant, and why should
matters of vital interest to the people,
such as paying salaries to teachers, be
concealed?
THE people, the taxpayers, are pay
ing these teachers. and they have every
right to know and hea the boards at
titude. Now, | want it to be duly re-
corded on the minutes of this meeting
that l will never sit in an executive
session of this body
John w. Depue. vice president of the
board, who acted as chairman of the
meeting in the absence of President
Oliver II. Perry, was apparently heart
lily in favor of t~ransacting matters be-
hind the scenes. This was shown by
the fact that Mr.. Depue told DR.. Con-
don that The was sorry that the doctor
felt that way about it,"
The physician remained firm in his
stand and left the room. Mr.. Cooper,
who voted against the usual method of
procedure of the board. remained in the
room. It was thought that in the COM
motion he was undecided as to what
to do as to departing.
DIR. Condor was out in the corridor
a minute or thereabouts when the."ex-
elusive" deliberations terminated. ON
resuming his seat, the physician found
that the salary program had not been
adopted, but was on the table UNI
touched.
When the schedule was put before the
house DIR. Condor voiced his disap-
rroval of the manner in which the
teachers yearly compcnsstions are
recommended for enactment. and said
that in the past lie thought that teach
ers' yearly Increases were effected
through mutual agreement with the
in structors that the lucky ones would
not disclose their salary raises to those
who might not he fortunate enough
to get more money.