Lara Zelski led us through a brain smart start

There were no public comments. 

See PTCA report in packet.
Budget for membership is $11,000. Tracking a little behind in memberships compared to last year. First grant cycle concluded Friday night. Want to talk with teachers on tips for getting approved. More than 200 people participated in Kickball tournament on 9/15, which is expected to net $2k, a little less than yard sale, but we will make up for it with a dine out on Oct. 2nd at Woods Chapel BBQ. (recently added to calendar)

Elementary Campus has completed first six weeks, students are getting heavy in academics. Parent teacher conferences started yesterday. Tkes conferences are being held as well. Curriculum Conversation on literacy on Sept 25 after morning meeting. 

Middle Campus - Update on sports teams and clubs, which have started. In morning meeting kids and teachers will do some sharing for Hispanic Heritage month. Monthly MYP meetings for IB.  

Aarti Sharma attended the meeting on behalf of Elisa Falco from GCSA to discuss the Charter Renewal Consultant proposal put forth by Elisa. The Board has the option to hire a charter renewal consultant (GCSA) to oversee the renewal process or not. Chuck Meadows recommends that we hire GCSA and the board agreed. This does not require a board vote. 

Ms. Sharma shared a basic timeline for charter renewal. The Board requested more detail from GCSA on the process, timeline, and specific deliverables included in the contract. The Educational Excellence Committee will oversee the renewal process and determine the school committee.  

To comply with Georgia Open Meetings law, we will be posting a physical piece of paper at each campus with the date/time/location of all 2019-2020 Board meetings, including committee meetings. Committee chairs should send Meeghan Fortson (Secretary) committee meeting schedules. 

Draft of the updated strategic plan was given to the board at the retreat. Eric Teusink is looking into whether our bylaws require a vote to adopt this updated version of our strategic plan, which will take us through the charter renewal. It will be revised again after charter renewal.

Sabrina Sexton reported there is ongoing work on overall communications strategies.

See ED report in packet.
Chuck Meadows shared that the Atlanta Board of Education decided not to renew the contract of the current superintendent. We are unsure of how this will impact ANCS. 

2019 MAP testing window was closed. Results show that our scores are higher than the national normal and overall, students this year had a slight up-tick compared to 2018 fall scores.  

Mr. Meadows shared a proposed checklist for "Board in the Building", an effort to help board members stay connected with teachers, staff, and what's happening in the classrooms/on campus throughout the year. This is especially helpful for Board members who are not parents or do not have students at the Middle campus. Board members should contact principals if interested in classroom visit. Hanah Goldberg suggested that coordination and reminders from Chuck would be helpful.   

See Business & Operations report in packet.
Kari Lovell shared that ANCS received Golden Radish award.
Jordache gave an update on bids for new Intercom system, which will come before the board for a vote soon.
Jordache updated the Board on the HVAC unit that went out. It wasn't one of the original six that needed to be replaced. Discussed how to handle future emergency situations that may occur. This did not require a board vote as per the purchasing policy. Laura reported that there is a discrepancy between the purchasing/receiving policy and the annual financial resolution on the amount that requires a board vote. The committee will re-examine the purchasing policy and align these as part of our overall policy review.  Once aligned, the board will vote on the proposal to add a board member as a check signer to the annual financial resolution. 

See Fund Development report in packet.
Gather & Grow Fund solicitations have not gone out yet, but we've received gifts from monthly, recurring donors.
Successful major donor party last week (donors who gave $1,000 and up last year).
We're in the second year of a unified corporate sponsorship program that supports operating budget and the PTCA, and so far $30,000 has been raised, a strong total for early in the year. Nearly all of last year's sponsors have renewed their support. Board to encourage support from anyone they know who owns their own business. Meeghan Fortson will send sponsorship info to the Board. 

See Educational Excellence report in packet. Jason Rhodes and Hanah Goldberg will serve as liaisons during charter renewal. Working with Eric Teusink to invite members of the leadership team to Board meetings, so everyone can be kept abreast of key initiatives occurring at the school. 

Chuck Meadows and Howard Franklin both attended RedefineEd event. 
Mr. Franklin attended APS Career Academy (a new initiative that will kick off at the start of 20/21 school year to train students that may not be looking at college).
Waiting on results of today's special election for school board District 2. 
Working on grant funding and lobbying for CREATE, because funding is being cut. 

See Governance report in packet. Kristi Malloy and Kristen Frenzel met with Lia Santos to talk with ED evaluation process.
We received report back from law firm reviewing our board policies.