A table-pounding debate between Chairman Keith Cheveralls and member Stu Sklar over a grievance-letter-made-public marked the opening of the School Committee’s June 29 meeting.

The debate focused on the publication by the Harvard Hillside of material from a letter sent by four fourth-grade teachers to Cheveralls, with copies to Schools Superintendent Thomas Jefferson, Harvard Elementary School Principal Mary Beth Banios, and President of the Harvard Teacher’s Association Kathleen Doherty. Cheveralls’ wife, Maryann Cheveralls, was one of the signatories. According to Banios, such a letter “would typically be considered confidential.”

“Are we going to discuss the disclosure of confidential information from the last meeting?” Sklar asked soon after the meeting began. He asserted that the information published in the Hillside had not been provided by the teachers and should have been treated as confidential by the School Committee.

Sklar subsequently noted that he had already filed a complaint about the alleged breach of confidentiality with the state Ethics Commission. He did so by telephone on the morning of June 29.

Sklar referred to a late-night e-mail message that Cheveralls had sent to other members of the School Committee and asked, “You seemed to take the fall on the sword for this. Is that really what happened there?”

In his e-mail, Cheveralls asserted that state ethics protocols require him to establish a conflict-of-interest file in the town clerk’s office because his wife teaches in the school system. Cheveralls recounted that he had placed the grievance letter in that file, along with his correspondence with various other parties on the matter. He then directed the Hillside reporter to the file.

Cheveralls said, “I accept full responsibility for my actions.”

Sklar was not convinced by Cheveralls’ explanation. “How is gaming the ethics law forwarding the work of this committee? How is that legal?” he asked.

Cheveralls responded, “I was not aware that that document was in any way marked confidential. . . . If it was an illegal act, then it was an illegal act.” He added, “I have always chosen to take the ethical high road and over-disclose.”

Sklar countered by reading from the Massachusetts General Laws on the conduct of public officials, Chapter 268a, Section 23(c): “No current or former officer or employee of a state, county or municipal agency shall: . . . improperly disclose materials or data within the exemptions to the definition of public records . . . acquired by him in the course of his official duties. . . .”

According to the General Laws Chapter 4, Section 7, several types of personnel information and policies fall outside the scope of public records, and, therefore, should not be disclosed. The law defines such matters as “those related solely to internal personnel rules and practices of the government unit, provided, however, that such records shall be withheld only to the extent that proper performance of necessary governmental functions requires such withholding.”

“You knew we had those conversations in executive session,” Sklar charged. “That letter was a confidential document to the board.”

Committee member Piali De asked how it was Cheveralls’ fault that the newspaper had gotten the letter from a public file. Sklar replied, “He told the reporter it was in that folder.” At this point, Cheveralls slammed the table and told Sklar not to interrupt De. Sklar also smacked the table and said, “I’m answering her.”

De then said that the committee’s only reasonable course of action is to get legal advice. “Your opinion doesn’t matter, and his opinion doesn’t matter,” she said. “If he broke the law, that does matter.”

Sklar then moved that Cheveralls recuse himself from discussing all Harvard Elementary School matters because of his conflict of interest. The motion was defeated 2–1, with De and Pat Wenger voting against it, Sklar voting in favor, and Cheveralls abstaining. Member Virginia Justicz was not present.

The letter that produced the verbal fireworks came from fourth-grade teachers Donna Piché, Kathleen Kittredge, and Karen Hurley-Cudmore, in addition to Maryann Cheveralls. The teachers were protesting a possible “involuntary transfer” for the 2010­–2011 academic year, in which one of them might have to become a fifth-grade teacher.

Banios noted that such transfers are common in all school systems, especially as in this case, where fifth grade will have substantially more students than fourth grade beginning in 2010. “Any staff transfers that occur are done thoughtfully, and we must evaluate our needs for the best service of the students,” she stated.

On advice from an attorney with the state Ethics Commission, Cheveralls is abstaining from any discussion stemming from the grievance letter.