The Anchor School
Minutes
Board of Directors Meeting
Monthly BOD Meeting
Date and Time
Wednesday January 24, 2024 at 7:00 PM
Location
The Anchor School
2460 Wesley Chapel Rd
Decatur,Georgia 30035
Directors Present
D. Gregory, D. Grissom, E. Desprez Isbell, J. Anfield-El, J. Burton, J. Whittington, L. Stephens, N. LeBlanc, V. Thompson
Directors Absent
T. Ramsey
I. Opening Items
A.
Record Attendance
B.
Call the Meeting to Order
D. Gregory called a meeting of the board of directors of The Anchor School to order on Wednesday Jan 24, 2024 at 7:08 PM.
C.
Approve Minutes
V. Thompson made a motion to approve the minutes from Board of Directors Meeting on 11-29-23.
L. Stephens seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
D.
Public Comment
II. Academic & Operational Updates
A.
Academic Performance
- Student showcase in December 2023 was a success - will happen twice a year
- Actively hiring for 2024-2025 school year expansion
- More than 95% of families have participated in at least one Micro Village meeting
- 100% of scholars have completed one semester-long project
- Seeing growth in Math and Reading
B.
Operational Updates
- Dr. Pinto-Taylor is recommending we update a few board policies based on feedback from the SCSC
- Corrective Actions Plans are due to the authorizer by February 20th, which requires a meeting to review and approve.
- Dr. Pinto-Taylor recommends that we move up our February board meeting to align on these updates. We can also host a special meeting to accommodate.
E. Desprez Isbell made a motion to Reschedule our February Board Meeting to Monday, February 12th.
J. Anfield-El seconded the motion.
- The Nos preferred to have a special meeting to decide on these policy updates instead of moving the board meeting.
| Roll Call | |
|---|---|
| J. Burton |
Aye
|
| L. Stephens |
Aye
|
| D. Gregory |
Aye
|
| J. Anfield-El |
Aye
|
| J. Whittington |
Aye
|
| T. Ramsey |
Absent
|
| E. Desprez Isbell |
Aye
|
| D. Grissom |
Aye
|
| V. Thompson |
No
|
| N. LeBlanc |
No
|
C.
Enrollment Updates
- 80 students currently enrolled
- Currently accepting new students
- Received 86 new student applications; 43 re-enrollment applications
- Derrick asked if we can obtain data for the reasons students are not planning to re-enroll
- Dr. Gregory suggested an incentive for early re-enrollment
- The board produced numerous ideas around increasing sentiment for the school and marketing the school positively
III. Facility Updates
A.
Facility Financing and Renovation Plans
- $300-400K estimated budget needs to improve 5 classrooms and 3 flex spaces
- Dr. Pinto-Taylor suggested three ideas:
- Fundraise every dollar through grants and private philanthropy
- Obtain a short-term construction loan (most feasible)
- Buy access to future QBE funds from a lending agency for a fee
B.
Facility Financing Vote
E. Desprez Isbell made a motion to vote on a selected financing option for Phase 2 facilities build-out.
J. Burton seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
D. Grissom made a motion to vote for Option 2, securing a short-term construction loan as our financing option for Phase 2 facilities build-out.
J. Anfield-El seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
IV. Finance
A.
CFO Financial Reports
December financial summary:
- Mid-year adjustments drive $1K net operating income decrease
- Ended December with $450K, projected to end FY24 with $39K
- We should have year-end fiscal reports by late July/August 2024
- Completed CSP application
- Work on obtaining line of credit, continue planning for next year
B.
Bonus Retention - The Board voted to approve a one-time bonus retention payment.
C.
Executive Committee Meeting Summary
- The Executive Committee met previously to discuss using funds from our Special Projects budget to close the gap on staff retention bonuses for the 2023-2024 school year.
N. LeBlanc made a motion to to use funds from our Special Projects budget to close the gap on staff retention bonuses for the 2023-2024 school year.
D. Grissom seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
D.
Overall Fundraising
- 88 online payments made from start of school year to now
- $12,363.55 fundraised in total
- $4,000 from Board contributions
- $21,000 remains achieve board contribution goal
V. Governance
A.
Compliance & Training Review
- The Board needs to complete mandatory training from the state this fiscal year
- Last state-hosted training will be on Wednesday, April 17, 2024. Free to attend for the Board (8 hours)
- Part two of the training is virtual for 6 hours. Deadline to complete online training is April 20, 2024. You can start virtual training before the in-person training.
- Worst-case scenario: Board members who do not wish to participate in online training hosted by the state can complete training at approved locations in Georgia.
VI. Community Engagement
A.
Community Events & Activities.
- Jasmine is working with Ms. Griffith to better understand the school's calendar
- Jasmine will create a forum to help the Board catalogue partnership ideas
- Board retreat is this Sunday, January 28, 2024
B.
Public Comment
VII. Closing Items
A.
Summary of Commitments
The Board
- Commits to supporting enrollment and re-enrollment efforts
- The Board should send training completion certificates to Dr. Gregory and Nicole for record
Other
- Dr. Pinto-Taylor and Dr. Gregory are reviewing and policy revisions for February deadline
- Dr. Pinto-Taylor will give the Board at least one week to review all lender options for the Phase 2 facilities build-out
- Moving forward, Jamaal will share financial reports with the Board at least one day before the board meeting
- Jasmine will create a forum to help the Board catalogue partnership ideas, and is working with Ms. Griffith to better understand the school's calendar
B.
Adjourn Meeting
D. Grissom made a motion to adjourn meeting.
J. Burton seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
There being no further business to be transacted, and upon motion duly made, seconded and approved, the meeting was adjourned at 7:59 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
N. LeBlanc