Editor’s Note: Comments made by Bow school board members Melynie Klunk and Jenna Reardon were incorrectly attributed in the original version of the article. Quotes from Reardon and Klunk have been changed to reflect their correct attribution.

Bow residents are pushing for school board meetings to be livestreamed online and recorded, but the superintendent has some concerns.

Marcy Kelley, Bow’s superintendent of schools said she believes meeting recordings should stay on the district’s YouTube channel for a month and be removed once the minutes from that meeting are approved rather than stay up indefinitely.

“We have had meetings, one recently where it was very contentious and for me professionally I don't want that meeting to live out there forever,” said Kelley at Monday evening’s school board meeting.

She pointed out that a student’s name or sensitive personnel matter could be unintentionally mentioned during a public session. 

“I think in fairness to people on the board for the really hard work that you're doing, I don't think you want someone to manipulate what it is that you've said or represented in a meeting,” Kelley said. “That it would live out there for eternity, I think is a challenging idea for me.”

The town of Bow already live-streams and records all select board meetings, with recordings available dating back to March 2023. 

A petitioned warrant article from residents is calling for the school district to do the same and will be decided at town meeting in March.

Right now, most school board meetings take place in the high school auditorium, which is already equipped for live streaming. 

A tech staff member currently runs the equipment during meetings for $150 to $200 per session. Upgrading to an automated system would eliminate that cost in the long run but would require an upfront investment of $6,000 to $8,000.

The proposed warrant article, however, doesn’t address funding for these expenses.

Not everyone on the school board agreed with Kelley’s suggestion.

Melynie Klunk, a school board member said the recordings should be available for at least a year. 

“If people missed out, life was crazy that month or whatever they can go back and watch,” Klunk said. 

Kelley pointed out that analytics show most people only watch within the first week. 

Viewership averages just 8 to 12 minutes per person, and after that, the numbers drop off almost entirely.

Jenna Reardon, a school board member thinks a month is plenty of time for residents to stay informed on current events and decisions, email the board and ask questions. She said having it online indefinitely is also a privacy issue for the public.

“I think back also to the public that stands and states their name and ad dress and that got used against some of the  m,” Reardon said.

Sruthi Gopalakrishnan can be reached at sgopalakrishnan@cmonitor.com