Is Sudbury's Rainbow Board sharing enough information about what happens at its meetings?

A Greater Sudbury parent wants more transparency from a local school board.

Kirk Dopson started attending Rainbow District School Board meetings eight years ago, when his children's school was under review.

He said minutes from the board meetings are posted online, but he said they don't include all of what's said at the table.

Dopson said parents would have access to more information if the board could live-stream the meetings.

Further, he said the meetings start at 5:30 p.m., which can be problematic for parents who want to attend in person. 

"For most people, it's simply a timing issue. You're either just getting off work or you've got to go home and get supper, interact with your family and kids and then have to turn around and try to get back to the meeting on time," he said.

The board said the meetings are held earlier so that trustees outside of Sudbury don't have to travel too late in the evening.

The board also said it's considering the option of live-streaming meetings when it moves to an new office location next year.

Board chair Doreen Dewar says the board looked at live-streaming a few years ago, but decided it would cost too much to implement in the current space.

She said the change is something that's being considered for the new board office, set to open next year.

"We've already said as part of the planning, 'Let's make sure this is planned for'."

Dewar added that the board posts approved meeting minutes on the website as well as links to presentations and reports.