MIDDLEBURY — Middlebury School Board and Administration chastised Purple for Parents members for their commentary and what the administration deemed “manufactured outrage” during the library’s meeting on Tuesday.
Discussions commenting on members of Purple for Parents who attend the meeting or regarding contentious topics with the organization — specifically on Tuesday’s agenda, the library board — took up nearly a quarter of the less than 45 minute long meeting.
Cindy Hajicek, Executive Director of Purple for Parents Indiana, said she attended the July meeting of the Middlebury Library Board and said that the library board voted to recommend candidates to their board from a list provided by the school board. On Monday, she had also attended the Elkhart County Commissioners meeting to address the same issue, explaining there the issue which she also presented to the Middlebury School Board regarding what she determined to be an improper delegation of authority.
“Knowing this action violated the statute, I emailed you — the MCS board members — cited the Indiana Code which assigns the authority to appoint three library board members exclusively to the school board. While state law explicitly allows some school board duties to be delegated, this is not one of them. This responsibility cannot be transferred or shared and the applicable legal maxim is ‘a delegated power cannot be further delegated.’” Hajicek, of Goshen, argued that by requesting the library board recommend candidates, the board violated its statutory limits and the two candidates would be improperly recommended and could be lawfully considered. Hajicek asked the board to remove both candidates recommended by the library board and told school board members that if they chose to proceed with the appointment, the result would be immediate efforts to have those appointments reversed.
“If you are being advised that Indiana law permits further delegation of this duty, I recommend requesting from this advisor a signed notarized affidavit made under penalty of perjury affirming that such delegation is legally authorized,” she added, claiming that if the advice is correct, there should be no issue providing such affidavit. “My goal was to resolve this before today’s meeting, before today’s vote, but having received no response from either the board or the administration, I’m left with no choice but to serve notice and provide instruction here on the record and in public.”
The incident is by no stretch the library’s first perceived slight against Purple for Parents.
Back in January, the Middlebury Library Board, school board and county officials received 524 letters supporting the removal of explicit materials from the library, or removing the library board appointees who allegedly allow them.
Specifically, residents allegedly of Middlebury, York, and Jefferson townships , requested the restriction of access for minors to content including “graphic descriptions of sexual acts that include masturbation, pedophilia, adultery, rape, incest, fellatio, sodomy, as well as books that claim gender is independent of biological sex,” without a parent or guardian present. Hajicek brought to several boards in the weeks preceding the January library board meeting, a related resolution, that she hoped the board would sign, showing the resolution to all governing bodies that hold seats on the library board.
The library board not only did not sign the resolution, but refused to give the matter a vote at all. Library Board President Carolyn Manley instead explained that six of the eight clauses in the resolution were already in the board’s policy. Many people attended the Middlebury Public Library Board meeting, and also subsequent commissioners and county council meetings, expressing varied opinions on the matter.
At the county council meeting where the resolution was initially discussed, Pam Keyser also accused the Middlebury library board treasurer of not having a bond since 2023, claiming she was unable to find them herself but could find records of older ones. She was able to find that bond and later contacted The Goshen News to confirm that the bond existed, but was not filed in the Elkhart County Recorder’s Office. In the weeks to follow, the treasurer responded to a request for comment, stating that she was surprised to hear the accusation in the first place because the library staff does such a good job remaining in compliance. She said she takes her responsibility as a board member seriously and tries to be mindful of all constituents, but has concerns about misinformation and what it does to the community.
Back at the Middlebury School Board meeting on Tuesday, Tim Shelly, board attorney, responded to Hajicek’s recent comments and previous related issues. Hajicek and Keyser have had a history of being outspoken at numerous municipal meetings, speaking out against what they view as a lack of transparency, hidden agendas and generally controversial topics within Elkhart County.
Shelly claimed that “tens of thousands of dollars and untold hours have been expended by Middlebury Community Schools, responding to your voluminous vexatious records requests, your numerous questions and your endless tilting at windmills.”
Shelly said it’s money- and person- power that would have been better spent for the benefit of students.
“These board members here have politely sat and repeatedly listened to your name calling and fabrications,” he said. “That is unfair to them and the entire community.”
Shelly, alternative to Hajicek’s claim, stated that the board performed their duties “admirably, diligently, with integrity and legally,” and said the same of the administrators.
He said that when the board points out that statements are inaccurate or intentionally false, they’re not acknowledged nor is an apology rendered.
“I do not in any sense pretend to be perfect,” he concluded. “If your lawyer — your lawyer, not you — believes that this board committed an unlawful act, please have him or her contact me and that conduct will be promptly and appropriately addressed.”
Shelly also said if he doesn’t receive notice from an attorney, he will view the commentary as “continued attempt on (their) part to create internet clickbait.”
Keyser, although sometimes approaching local boards with contentious topics, at this meeting, commented to the board that she noticed the previous board meeting had around 360 views on YouTube, and questioned how many people would attend the meeting if it were moved back from 4 p.m. to a later time of day.
“To me, this large number of views is a strong indicator that people really do want to see what’s going on at our school board meetings,” she said. ”All of the other schools in Elkhart County meet in the evening and I just thought that might be something that you would consider.”
Following the contentious public comment period of the meeting, the school board voted to appoint the two Middlebury Library Board members as indicated on the agenda..
The Middlebury Community School’s Board met as legally permissible, “in executive session, to make an initial exclusion of prospective appointees,” according to Middlebury School Board President Kate Hummel.
The library board then chose from the remaining candidates a nonbinding recommendation that the board reappoint Carolyn Manley, who is currently president of the library board. The board also voted similarly, for the library board’s recommendation of Betsy Alwine to the board.
Board Member Cindy Nisley opposed the motion for Manley and abstained from the vote for Alwine, but as all four other board members voted in favor of both motions, the motions passed. Nisley said she’s been attending library board meetings for about a year and a half and said library board members aren’t listening to Middlebury residents.
“That’s why I am voting the way I am voting,” she said. “I’m thankful for the 11 citizens that submitted applications. I think that was very bold of them to step forward and want to give their time and I appreciate that. I knew 10 of them, but I didn’t know Betsy and I still don’t know Betsy.”
Despite the board’s attorney already reading his statement, Hummel also took the opportunity at the end of the meeting to again bring to the spotlight the contentious group.
“We appreciate and welcome community engagement, especially when it’s grounded in facts, informed by law, and offered in good faith,” she said. “Unfortunately, what we’ve witnessed over time is a consistent pattern of misinformation, personal attacks and frankly, disrespect for the process and the community that our board members and educators are committed to serving. Even if we assume positive intent, it’s hard to ignore the disorganized and, at times, dishonest nature, of these efforts.”
Hummel presented an example wherein early in the year the group presented the board with a petition against the Middlebury Public Library. Hummel said the board actually looked at the box of signatures presented.
“What we discovered was appalling,” she said. “We verified that the petition contained purported signatures of children, signatures of several people who do not reside in the public library’s district and, to our surprise, a signature and address of an individual who died four years ago. The petition exemplifies the group’s dishonesty and lack of integrity, further undermining their own credibility.”
Hummel called it “manufactured outrage.” “We remain focused on facts, on students and on the legal and ethical responsibilities of this board’s work in supporting public education,” she said. “I encourage everyone here and those watching to consider whether their contributions are helping students or simply creating noise that distracts from the wonderful and amazing work that is happening every day in our schools.”
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