The Anchor School
Minutes
Board of Directors Meeting
Date and Time
Wednesday November 19, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Location
Virtual
Directors Present
A. Pressey (remote), E. Desprez Isbell (remote), J. Burton (remote), J. Jordan (remote), J. Whittington (remote), K. Sargeant (remote), N. LeBlanc (remote), S. Kollu (remote), S. Stewart (remote), T. Winston (remote), V. Thompson (remote)
Directors Absent
C. Humphrey, K. James
Ex Officio Members Present
J. Pinto Taylor (remote)
Non Voting Members Present
J. Pinto Taylor (remote)
I. Opening Items
A.
Record Attendance
B.
Call the Meeting to Order
S. Stewart called a meeting of the board of directors of The Anchor School to order on Wednesday Nov 19, 2025 at 7:06 PM.
C.
Approve Minutes
S. Stewart made a motion to approve the minutes from Board of Directors Meeting on 10-22-25.
N. LeBlanc seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
II. Public Comment
A.
M. Wingfield request
III. Executive Director Report
A.
Executive Director Report
Pinto Taylor walked through page one of his report.
- November 20th - Family luncheon to celebrate thanksgiving every hour starting at 2pm.
- December 17th, 5:30-7:30pm - Showcase night . Food trucks and student work display.
- December 18th, 2:30pm - Winter dance recital with students performing dances from 70s, 80s, 90s, 2000s
Nicole inquired about progress on increasing enrollment. Dr. PT explained transportation is a barrier for student enrollment for the following reasons:
- Sometimes families move. The school has no control over this.
- TAS has one bus, and it has a waitlist. Dr. PT would like to add another bus as a strategy to increase enrollment area. Bus currently runs north through DeKalb county only; would like to explore other areas (ie Fulton County). Consider purchasing a smaller shuttle bus compared to a full bus.
- Parents' shifting work schedules / inability to pick-up children before TAS aftercare ends. Consider staffing implications increase aftercare availability.
- Dr. PT is working with agency to increase marketing efforts.
Action items:
- Explore budget to afford another bus / bus route (Governance to discuss in JAN26)
IV. Academic Achievement
A.
Academic Dashboard Review
Changes in ELA standards likely led to TAS' lower ELA performance scores.
Vanecia curious abut how TAS fair against comparable schools.
B.
Item for Action: Diploma Offering and Minimum Credit Requirement
Dr. PT recommends adopting Diploma requirement document.
E. Desprez Isbell made a motion to approve diploma offerings and minimum credit requirements.
J. Whittington seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
C.
8th Grade Promotion Standard Operating Procedure
Once approved, Dr. PT to communicate these standards via grade reports to consistently show scholars' status against criteria
E. Desprez Isbell made a motion to approve 8th grade standard promotion operation procedures.
N. LeBlanc seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
V. Community Engagement & Advancement (Ad-hoc)
A.
Committee Updates
- The Donovan Group to market TAS to help with enrollment, fundraising/in-kind donations.
- ALL board members: Sunday, Jan 11th the required internal 6-hour training with Morgan / 21Cobalt. If you miss this training, you can attend the SCSC training in Atlanta on Feb. 10th.
- NEW board members (less than 2 years tenure): Discussions are underway for an additional 4-hour session with 21Cobalt. Nicole has submitted this request for 21Cobalt to host this training internally to the SCSC. If not approved, attend SCSC training on Feb 11th from 12-5pm.
- Fundraising campaign for Giving Tuesday, Dec 2. Goal: $100000. Resources provided to share with networks.
VI. Finance
A.
October 2025 Financial Summary
Jamaal reviewed OCT financial update.
- Team considering a line of credit.
- SCSC is updated their finance template for November.
B.
Facility Team Updates - Item for Action: Facility Resource Center General Contractor Recommendation
J. Whittington made a motion to approve engaging BuildSmart as our contraction manager of new school based on recommendation from FRC.
V. Thompson seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
VII. Governance
A.
Item for Action: Acceptable Use of Technology Policy
N. LeBlanc made a motion to adopt the Acceptable Use of Technology Policy.
E. Desprez Isbell seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
B.
Item for Action: FY26 CSP SE Grant Monitoring
- TAS is monitored by SCSC as CSP grant recipients to show we're operating within the strict guidelines of recipients, including documentation needs.
- Provided updated enrollment policy for CSP requirements.
- Communicated the outcomes of bids procurement in corrective action plan.
- The board has reviewed and approved the corrected action plan and policy revisions made within the corrective action plan.
E. Desprez Isbell made a motion to approve the CSP cap response that addresses the concerns marked in the policy language.
N. LeBlanc seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
C.
Item for Action: Social Media Policy
Action Items:
- Board to review this policy and share feedback to Academic/Governance committee by DEC25 for implementation in JAN26.
D.
Item for Action: Policy for Prohibiting Bullying Harassment and Intimidation
Language added to clarify cyber bullying.
N. LeBlanc made a motion to adopt policy for bullying, harassment, and intimidation.
E. Desprez Isbell seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
E.
Item for Information: AI Policy Framework DRAFT – SY26-27
Action Items:
- Board to share knowledge/resources to help Dr. PT refine this initial version of the AI Policy Framework.
VIII. Closing Items
A.
Adjourn Meeting
There being no further business to be transacted, and upon motion duly made, seconded and approved, the meeting was adjourned at 8:39 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
E. Desprez Isbell
Publicize the first open house for prospective families on December 10th at 6pm to social media and community networks. Dr. PT to send official flyer to share out.