Escuela Avancemos! Academy
Minutes
Escuela Avancemos Board Meeting (Virtual)
Date and Time
Tuesday November 17, 2020 at 6:30 PM
Location
MISSION STATEMENT: Prepare, educate, and inspire every child, every day to be lifelong leaders and learners in our 21st-century world.
Directors Present
A. Bordeianu (remote), C. Stamatin (remote), L. Chittum (remote), M. Barbour (remote), M. Gonzalez (remote)
Directors Absent
None
Directors who arrived after the meeting opened
A. Bordeianu
Guests Present
A. Ulloa (remote), Dahime Gordon (remote), J. Joubert (remote), L. Coggins (remote), L. McClintic (remote), S. Johnson (remote)
I. Opening Items
A.
Record Attendance and Guests
B.
Call the Meeting to Order
C. Stamatin called a meeting of the board of directors of Escuela Avancemos! Academy to order on Tuesday Nov 17, 2020 at 6:36 PM.
II. Approval of Agenda
A.
Approval of Agenda
M. Barbour made a motion to approve Tuesday, November 17, 2020 board meeting agenda.
M. Gonzalez seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call | |
---|---|
C. Stamatin |
Aye
|
A. Bordeianu |
Absent
|
M. Barbour |
Aye
|
M. Gonzalez |
Aye
|
L. Chittum |
Aye
|
III. Consent Agenda Item
A.
Approval of Prior Meeting Minutes
L. Chittum made a motion to approve the minutes from Board Meeting (Virtual) on 10-27-20.
M. Gonzalez seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call | |
---|---|
M. Gonzalez |
Aye
|
A. Bordeianu |
Absent
|
L. Chittum |
Aye
|
C. Stamatin |
Aye
|
M. Barbour |
Aye
|
IV. New Business
A.
Monthly Extended COVID-19 Learning Plans (“ECLP”) Actions Resolution. Any public comment on the Extended COVID Learning Report?
M. Barbour made a motion to approve the Monthly Extended COVID-19 Learning Plans ("ECLP") as previously presented to the Academy's board with no reported change on the Academy’s delivery mode of instruction (continuing full remote), the recent spike in the positivity rate for COVID-19 cases has caused the academy to pause students’ access to in-person learning labs. All students will connect from home using academy provided devices and hotspots, as needed. Those staff who were monitoring the in-person labs will be repurposed to support virtual instruction.
L. Chittum seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call | |
---|---|
M. Barbour |
Aye
|
M. Gonzalez |
Aye
|
C. Stamatin |
Aye
|
L. Chittum |
Aye
|
A. Bordeianu |
Absent
|
B.
2020-2021 School Calendar Amendment Resolution
M. Barbour made a motion to approve the revised 2020-2021 School Calendar that reflects Friday, February 12, 2021, and Friday, April 30, 2021, as regular days of instruction.
L. Chittum seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call | |
---|---|
A. Bordeianu |
Absent
|
M. Gonzalez |
Aye
|
M. Barbour |
Aye
|
L. Chittum |
Aye
|
C. Stamatin |
Aye
|
V. Reports
A.
21st Century Community Learning Centers Monthly Report
Dahime Gordon presented the 21st Century Community Learning Centers monthly programming and budget report to the Board of Directors.
B.
Charter Schools Program Grant Monthly Report
Dr. Lorilyn Coggins presented the Charter School Program Grant current month and cumulative amounts with the Board of Directors as required to be presented monthly at each board meeting.
C.
OCTOBER FINANCIALS
October 2020 financial reports were presented by Dr. Lorilyn Coggins highlighting cash on hand, year-to-date revenues, year-to-date expenditures, and the current fund balance in a summarized format. The financials are in order.
A. Bordeianu arrived.
D.
Sanga Monthly Management Report
The Sanga Management monthly report was presented by Ms. Lyndsey McClintic and Ms. Ana Ulloa. The Academy's instructional leadership team is continuing to look for opportunities to increase student engagement during virtual lessons. The Dean of Curriculum and Instruction delivered a recent successful professional development to instructional staff around additional resources teachers can use to boost student engagement. Also, the instructional leadership team led a Professional Development around reframing the focus and purpose of grade-level planning time. A comparative analysis of the NWEA's Projected Proficiency Reports from Fall 2020-2021 for both Math and Reading were presented to the Board of Directors by Lyndsey McClintic. Howerer, there is a slight dip in proficiency for grades 2-7 as K-2 has seen an above-average yearly growth for the school. Madam Vice President Andreea Bordeianu informed the instructional leadership team to not make assumptions that students received assistance from older siblings or parents unless there's proof.
As a strategy to help foster bilingualism in homeroom classes, last month the Academy celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month. The use of the home language in school promotes children's cognitive development, self-esteem, second language acquisition, and academic preparation. Teachers took the time to explore and educate students on Hispanic culture and heritage and finished the month with a student project. Special Education student services are still ongoing.
The Academy has been selected to participate in a case study regarding truancy in urban schools. Every School Day Counts Detroit and Attendance Works is conducting interviews with school staff from five schools to document the efforts that are being used to reduce chronic absence rates. The schools were chosen to represent diverse grade levels and each has demonstrated early signs of success implementing effective attendance strategies. Ms. Ana Ulloa was pleased to announce that the Academy is getting recognition for its point of pride best practices to make transporting students part of the core values of Esculea Avancemos. Madam President Cristina Stamatin congratulated the team.
The Academy's Family Engagement Team, under the leadership of Ms. Ana Ulloa, is starting to research and document the immigrant experience of families. The purpose of this study is to get a better understanding of the families and to better connect with them.
One point that is of great pride to Escuela Academy is the Extended COVID-19 Learning Plan ("ECLP") that was submitted by Lyndsey McClinctic and Stephanie Yassine. Sanga Management is grateful for the work that the above-mentioned leaders do every day.
As a strategy to help foster bilingualism in homeroom classes, last month the Academy celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month. The use of the home language in school promotes children's cognitive development, self-esteem, second language acquisition, and academic preparation. Teachers took the time to explore and educate students on Hispanic culture and heritage and finished the month with a student project. Special Education student services are still ongoing.
The Academy has been selected to participate in a case study regarding truancy in urban schools. Every School Day Counts Detroit and Attendance Works is conducting interviews with school staff from five schools to document the efforts that are being used to reduce chronic absence rates. The schools were chosen to represent diverse grade levels and each has demonstrated early signs of success implementing effective attendance strategies. Ms. Ana Ulloa was pleased to announce that the Academy is getting recognition for its point of pride best practices to make transporting students part of the core values of Esculea Avancemos. Madam President Cristina Stamatin congratulated the team.
The Academy's Family Engagement Team, under the leadership of Ms. Ana Ulloa, is starting to research and document the immigrant experience of families. The purpose of this study is to get a better understanding of the families and to better connect with them.
One point that is of great pride to Escuela Academy is the Extended COVID-19 Learning Plan ("ECLP") that was submitted by Lyndsey McClinctic and Stephanie Yassine. Sanga Management is grateful for the work that the above-mentioned leaders do every day.
VI. Extended Public Comment:
A.
This public comment section is reserved for all remaining comments.
No extended public comments at this time.
VII. Board Comments
A.
Authorizer Comments
The Governor John Engler Center for Charter Schools Central Michigan University Field Operations School Lead, Jennifer Joubert thanked the entire team for their great work. Upcoming Round-Table sessions details will be forth-coming.
B.
Escuela Avancemos! Academy Board of Directors Comments
The Academy's Board of Directors expressed sincere thanks and gratitude to Sanga Management, Instructional Team, and Dr. Lorilyn Coggins for all there efforts to uphold the core values of the Academy's mission statement.
VIII. Closing Items
A.
Reconfirmation of Next Board Meeting
Tuesday, December 15, 2020, at 6:30 pm at Escuela Avancemos Academy; Zoom meeting,
B.
Adjourn Meeting
L. Chittum made a motion to adjourn the meeting.
M. Gonzalez seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call | |
---|---|
L. Chittum |
Aye
|
A. Bordeianu |
Aye
|
C. Stamatin |
Aye
|
M. Gonzalez |
Aye
|
M. Barbour |
Aye
|
There being no further business to be transacted, and upon motion duly made, seconded and approved, the meeting was adjourned at 7:45 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
S. Johnson