HOOKSETT — One school board member is calling for the body's chairman to consider stepping down following last month's vote to permanently implement the district's Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) policy.

David Pearl said the vote, initiated by Chairman Dana Argo, came as a surprise at the last meeting and did not give the public a chance to weigh in on the program, which allows students to bring personal electronic items such as laptops, smartphones and tablets into the classroom for educational purposes.

“I just don't think he's doing a very good job of representing the board, as far as the operations and the way he's conducting business,” Pearl said. “It's nothing personal.”

The agenda for the June 20 meeting had called for discussion of a public forum on BYOD, which the school board had previously voted to commit to scheduling before voting on the implementation.

A forum date had not been chosen when Argo moved for a vote on BYOD, and the forum remains unscheduled. The forum had been initially proposed by Pearl, who maintains that the intent of his initial motion was to hear from community members before a vote took place.

“As a member of the board, I just thought I should speak up on that,” Pearl said. “Looking at it from a public standpoint, I just don't think the board is representing the public well,” Pearl said.

Pearl said he emailed Argo, asking him to consider resigning as chairman but received no response.

Argo, however, said that Pearl did not send him a personal message, but rather a copy of a public post Pearl had made on an online forum for town issues, which Pearl runs.

“I'm sure he considers that direct, but it's not direct in my opinion,” Argo said.

Pearl, an outspoken opponent of BYOD, voted against the policy, along with board member Mike Dubisz, who said he supported BYOD but could not vote for it in light of the way the vote took place. Argo, with board members Cheryl Akstin and Trisha Korkosz, voted in favor of BYOD for a 3-2 decision.

Pearl said his request was not based on the results of the vote, but the way in which the decision was made.

“Whichever way you feel about BYOD, frankly I think it's silly to say we're going to have a public forum after we vote for something,” Pearl said. “To me it just goes against common sense. That's what brought me to the point to say he should consider stepping down as chair.”

Argo said the forum will still occur, regardless of the board's decision to put BYOD in place.

“I am still in favor of it, as I said at the last meeting when we spoke of it,” Argo said. “We can always change and alter programs, but the plan was to get it in place for the next school year.”

Argo said that the only negative responses to the program he's heard have come from Pearl, but that he and the board remain opened to adjusting the policies should issues arise.

The school board is scheduled to discuss development of the BYOD policy at its next meeting on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.

klannan@newstote.com