Taos Municipal Schools board moves into executive session on special audit, litigation and superintendent personnel; tables telecom procurement

The Taos Municipal Schools Board of Education met in a special session on June 18, 2026, and moved into executive session to receive an update from legal counsel on a special audit, confer about potential litigation the district is considering initiating, and discuss limited personnel matters related to the superintendent’s end‑of‑year evaluation.

The board chair called the meeting to order at 4:40 p.m. and read the executive‑session notices and statutory citations, invoking provisions of the New Mexico Open Meetings Act and related New Mexico Audit Act provisions that permit private consultation with counsel for litigation and personnel matters. Doctor Layton opened the meeting with a land acknowledgment: “It is respectful to recognize the unique and enduring relationship that exists between indigenous people and their traditional territories,” the doctor said, noting the board was meeting on the historic homeland of the Red Willow people within the original territory of Taos Pueblo.

The board considered several procedural motions. A board member moved and the chair seconded a motion to table agenda item 7.1 — a planned presentation and possible approval of requested VOIP and cloud telecommunication services for the 2026–27 school year to be presented by Mariette Gentet, director of IT and communications — and the motion passed on a roll call with affirmative responses recorded.

Later the board voted to enter executive session to discuss the special audit update, threatened or pending litigation and limited personnel matters for the superintendent. After returning from executive session, the chair stated that the meeting had included an update from legal counsel on the special audit, discussion with counsel about potential litigation and discussion and preparation of the superintendent’s end‑of‑year evaluation.

A board member then moved to approve the superintendent’s end‑of‑year evaluation as discussed in executive session and said the completed evaluation would be provided to the superintendent by the district’s legal counsel. The motion received a second and a roll‑call affirmation was recorded. Shortly thereafter, the board stated it wished to table the related executive‑session item (described in the meeting as item 10.1) and voted to table that item to the board’s next regularly scheduled meeting on June 24, 2026.

During the future‑topics portion of the meeting, a board member asked the board and legal counsel to reconvene to continue work on a UNM Taos land‑lease matter and to advance planning for teacher housing, noting that teacher housing could be part of bond implementation. The chair confirmed the request and said the item would be placed on a future agenda.

The board announced its next regular meeting will be June 24, 2026, at 6 p.m. at 310 Camino De La Placita, Taos, New Mexico 87571, then adjourned.

What the board did and did not disclose: The board provided a public summary after executive session that the matters listed above were discussed with legal counsel. The board’s public remarks did not include substantive details from the executive session (which is consistent with the statutory protections the board cited).