LYNN — Six School Committee members have an affiliation, or potential conflict of interest, with the finalists for their next secretary.
Each of the members has filed either a request for ethics opinion regarding an affiliation with the city solicitor’s office, or additionally, a “disclosure of appearance of conflict of interest” form with the city clerk’s office.
Earlier this month, committee members selected three finalists for the secretary position — City Election Coordinator Mary Jules, Lynn Public Schools storekeeper Joseph Martin, and Frances Martinez, president and founder of the North Shore Latino Business Association — after interviewing eight candidates.
The candidates are vying to replace Thomas Iarrobino, who retired earlier this month after 21 years. Iarrobino brought private sector management experience to the secretary’s job, when he served as a liaison between members and school administration.
According to the committee members interviewed and disclosures filed with the city, which The Item obtained, the two conflicts in play are with Jules and Martinez.
Jules, along with three other committee members — Mayor Thomas M. McGee, chairman of the board; Lorraine Gately and John Ford — is a member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH).
Committee members Jared Nicholson and Michael Satterwhite are on the board of directors for the North Shore Latino Business Association and also members, while Brian Castellanos and McGee are general members, sharing an affiliation with Martinez.
All committee members interviewed say they plan to vote on the next secretary, scheduled for Oct. 11, and that their affiliation, or conflict, will not affect their decision.
“Anyone who has a shared affiliation with a candidate should have sent a letter,” Nicholson said. “(The city solicitor’s) opinion was we file this disclosure with an appearance of conflict of interest.”
In his disclosure, Nicholson said neither he nor Martinez receive compensation from the North Shore Latino Business Association. He said her appointment as president and executive director predates his joining the board of directors.
Similarly, Satterwhite said his involvement with the association is an unpaid volunteer position. He was appointed by the membership of the association and not by Martinez alone.
McGee filed two disclosures regarding his membership with the North Shore Latino Business Association and with the AOH. He declined an interview with The Item through a spokeswoman, but said in his disclosures that he receives no compensation for either role. In addition, he said Jules is related to a personal friend of his. His affiliations, he wrote, could be perceived as a conflict of interest.
Castellanos said he has plans to file an ethics inquiry with the city solicitor’s office and then a disclosure as well. As a member of the association, he said he doesn’t receive any compensation.
“As a committee, if we make a selection, we want to make sure it’s based off the best candidate,” he said. “We want to check the ethics concerns. We want to make sure the process is transparent.”
Ford said he filed an ethics opinion regarding his affiliation with Jules through AOH, but doesn’t plan on filing a disclosure.
Gately said she’s been a member of AOH for several years, but has known Jules since the 1980s through their involvement in the Lynn Softball Association. She said she was taken aback that she had a conflict under the state’s general laws because she thought they only pertained to family members and close friends.
School Committee vice-chair Donna Coppola said she has not filed anything because she does not have a conflict with any of the finalists. She is a member of the North Shore Labor Council, but Martin, one of the finalists, is no longer vice president of the organization.
Martin served as vice president of the North Shore Labor Council from 1997 to 2007. If he was still an officer, additional committee members would likely have had to file a disclosure, because North Shore Labor endorses candidates each year.
The School Committee was scheduled to vote on their next secretary last week, but delayed the vote due to what McGee said was “out of an abundance of caution, due to shared affiliations between members (and) applicants.”
The delay was to allow the committee to seek the opinion of the city solicitor on appropriate next steps. The board did vote on setting a salary of $75,000 to $80,000 for the position.
The potential conflicts between committee members and candidates didn’t come up until after the second round of interviews, following a vote to move forward three finalists.
Satterwhite said he requested the table and inquiry last week following the interviews. After the three interviews, he said he felt like the candidates were familiar to all committee members and he wanted transparency.