Complaint Filed by Former Board of Education Member Over Budget Related E-mails

Earlier this month, former Board of Education member Cynthia McCorkindale filed a complaint with the State Elections Enforcement Commission (SEEC) claiming that Superintendent Dr. Gary Chesley sent out two Bethel Public Schools newsletters via e-mail that violated a state statue.

McCorkindale said she believes the two e-mails, sent May 5 and May 12 (the day of the referendum), included promotional language in support of the 2011-12 budget.

"There's a statute in the state of Connecticut that prohibits anyone from using the town's funds or resources to send out materials that are promotional within a certain time of a vote, or in this case a referendum,” McCorkindale said. “I found that two school newsletters that were clearly sent too close to the referendum…and it was very partisan.”

Along with other school news, each of the newsletters included information about voting on the budget at the beginning of the e-mails. Because of the language and that it was written in a bold, red font, McCorkindale said she thinks they are too one-sided.

The first e-mail was sent May 5 at 6:11 p.m. and said: "The School Budget, which calls for a 1.29% increase for 2011-2012, was resoundingly approved at the May 2nd Town Meeting. Bethel voters will be asked to go to the polls on Thursday, May 12th to approve this budget and preserve existing programs for your children. Polls will be open from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.  Please vote."

The e-mail sent on May 12 at 9:37 a.m. said: “Today is referendum day in Bethel. Voting for the school and municipal budget will continue until 8:00 p.m.”

McCorkindale said this complaint is currently pending and that if the e-mails are found to be a violation, Chesley could face a possible fine.

In response to the complaint, Chesley said no public money was spent on sending the e-mails and that referendum language was informative to parents.

“We didn’t spend any public money on any e-mails, so I don’t know what the [SEEC] will decide, but that’s the key factor; that no public money was spent on this issue,” Chesley said. “It will be interesting to see if they hear her complaint or not.”

McCorkindale was on the Board of Education from mid-2009 to the early 2011.

“We thought [the complaint] was very ironic, because when she (McCorkindale) was on the board, she was very critical of me of not being aggressive enough on explaining the budget and now she’s critical of me being too aggressive,” Chesley said.

While Chesley is soon retiring, McCorkindale said she still wants the e-mails looked at to hopefully set an example. She added that she doesn’t see the complaint as anything personal and she sees it as a "black and white" issue. 

“I’m aware that Dr. Chesley has retired, but that, to me, doesn't change my mind about filing the compliant,” she said. “It's important to me that whoever succeeds him knows that this is unacceptable and that there are rules and guidelines in place.”