Allegiance STEAM Academy

Minutes

Regular Meeting of the Board of Directors

Date and Time

Monday October 14, 2024 at 5:00 PM

Location

ONSITE MEETING LOCATION:

5862 C Street

Chino, Ca. 91710

 

SATELLITE MEETING LOCATIONS:

7420 Locust Ave.

Fontana, Ca. 92336

 

https://zoom.us/j/94392889096 

 

 

 

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PRESENTATIONS TO THE BOARD BY PARENTS AND CITIZENS
 

Allegiance STEAM Academy- Thrive charter school (“Allegiance STEAM Academy”), also known as ASA Thrive, is a direct-funded, independent, public charter school operated by the Allegiance STEAM Academy nonprofit public benefit corporation and governed by Allegiance STEAM Academy, Incorporated corporate Board of Directors (“Board”). The purpose of a public meeting of the Board, is to conduct the affairs of Allegiance STEAM Academy in public. We are pleased that you are in attendance and hope you will visit these meetings often. Your participation assures us of continuing community interest in our school.


 

1. Agendas are available to all audience members at the meeting. Note that the order of business on this agenda may be changed without prior notice. For more information on this agenda, please contact Allegiance at: info@asathrive.org


 

2. “Request to Speak” forms are available to all audience members who wish to speak on any agenda items or under the general category of “Public Comments.”


 

3. “Public Comments” are set aside for members of the audience to comment. However, due to public meeting laws, the Board can only listen to your issue, not take action. The public is invited to address the Board regarding items listed on the agenda. Comments on an agenda item will be accepted during consideration of that item, or prior to consideration of the item in the case of a closed session item. Please turn in comment cards to the Board Secretary prior to the item you wish to speak on. These presentations are limited to three (3) minutes.


 

4. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and upon request, Allegiance STEAM Academy may furnish reasonable auxiliary aids and services to qualified individuals with disabilities. Individuals who require appropriate alternative modification of the agenda in order to participate in Board meetings are invited to contact Allegiance STEAM Academy

Directors Present

M. Jones, S. Bhojani, S. Odo, S. Thompson, T. Stevens

Directors Absent

None

Guests Present

C. Moreno, C. Valenta, E. Lee, J. Dizon, J. Williams, K. Holt, S. Lazo, S. Lopez

I. Opening Items

A.

Call the Meeting to Order

T. Stevens called a meeting of the board of directors of Allegiance STEAM Academy to order on Monday Oct 14, 2024 at 5:08 PM.

B.

Record Attendance

C.

Pledge of Allegiance

D.

Student Celebrations

Ms. Lopez. - ELOP Coordinator, Mrs. Chavez - Tutoring: Wolf Pack Scholars, Coach Alex - ELOP Coordinator Sports share about the programs.

 

Students: Share about their sport and the impact on their lives. 

Ventura Moreno - Cross-Country

Nicholas Moran - Cross-Country

Hendrix Galan - Cross-Country

London Acosta - Volleyball 

Emmalyn Okamoto - Volleyball

Brandon Odo - Volleyball

Jensen Gernes - Volleyball

Ethan Lopez - Volleyball

 

Girl Scouts: Ventura Moreno & Aaralyn Sloan: Request to donate books to help create a library in Africa.

 

Toy Rockets: Live launches from Selah Gonzales and Feliziano Rodriguez

E.

Principal Reports

ASA Chino:

  • A huge Thank You to Ms. Lopez and Coach Alex for organizing the Cross-Town ShowDown. The students and families had such an amazing time. 
  • Big Thank You to Painted Dough for coming to support our families. 
  • 6th Grade Camp was wonderful. The students had a wonderful time. 
  • The ELAC committee has been elected.
  • Howling with the Community - the importance of STEAM. Great hands-on activities. 
  • 10/22/24 - Navigating the Digital World, 5pm in the Den. 
  • PLN - Instructional Partners are taking a deeper dive into the curriculum.
  • PBL - Adapting projects from their project library and learning the gold ribbon standard for PBL.
  • Looking forward to the Fall Festival. Thank you for the PACK and all the volunteers.  

ASA Fontana:

  • Thank you Chino campus Carmen and Alex for hosting The Cross-Town ShowDown. Great organized event.  Looking forward to seeing how Fontana can host on our Fontana campus. Shout out to our wolves and coaches. 
  • Fight Song-Looking forward to singing it at the board meeting.  
  • Unity Day-Leadership planning activities for this Thursday.
  • Leadership-Greeting our new students and providing them with tours on their first day.
  • A lot of great things are coming from our Instructional Partners partnership. Appreciate Callie and Carmen’s collaboration for our Wednesday’s PLN.  
  • Veterans Day Assemblies-2nd Annual Thursday Nov 7th
  • Preparing for the Fontana Christmas Parade
  • Appreciate the parent volunteers that have been coming to help in the classrooms, lunchtime and STEAM Lab.
  • 6th Grade Camp was a success. Enjoyed spending the afternoon there with Mrs Lazo and seeing all the students. 
  • Thank you for the special dedication to Mrs. Harmer. Mrs. Harmer and her family continue to make an impact on our students and in the community. Continuing strong communication with the Harmer family and their desire to help enrich students' lives. 

F.

PACK Reports

ASA Chino PACK President: Melissa Dye

Fund Raisers: Chucky Cheese

Catalog fundraiser for Fall

Fall Festival planning in full effect.

Room Parent Planning Sessions

 

G.

CEO Report

CEO Report:

  • A big congratulation to all student presenters. Unleashing students’ potential: pushing yourself, trying a new sport; multiple iterations of a rocket to get a launch; through ELOP,  projects, engineering design - by design. Great job!
  • Enrollment Update: We continue to see steady growth with enrollment at ASA Chino reaching 954 (5 in process); and ASA Fontana at 249 (5 offers, 7 in process)
  • Open Enrollment: now through December 31, 2024. Chino: maintain enrollment of 960 Fontana: expansion due to new facility, then will no longer be co-located; space to fully operate our program
  • Enrollment Projections:
    • Chino: maintain 960 (capacity)
    • Fontana: reach 440 students; conservative forecast of 335 (28%) minimum enrollment from 25-26 (while Inland Empire is projected to decrease 6% public school enrollment, our sector is growing but at a slower pace [from 9% down to 2%])
  • The revised MOU with Think Together will now offer free childcare for 2024-25 at both schools. 
  • Supervisor Training Follow-up: We held our follow-up Radical Candor training on September 16, focusing on feedback culture and HR updates. We introduced a 45-day Radical Candor challenge to promote continuous improvement in leadership.
  • SPARK Attuned Survey - October 24, 2024
  • Student Survey - End of October; input on survey from SSC
  • ELOP celebrations. Our programs continue to shine.
  • Oct 22 - Tech, Social Media Impact on our Students.
  • Partnerships with Varsity Tutors - free online 24/7 tutoring and more
  • Partnerships with Playlab: High School Helper
  • Website rollover is underway and on pace for Feb, 2025.

 


 

II. Public Announcement for Reason for Closed Session

A.

Public Comments On Closed Session Items

No Public Comments on Closed Session Items

B.

Closed Session For Discussion / Possible Action

Board moved to closed session at 6:00pm.

III. Open Session

A.

Report from Closed Session

Board Opens Session at 7:51pm

B.

Public Comments - Items Not On the Agenda

Public Comments

Speaker: Callie Moreno 

Her heartfelt and emotional words beautifully conveyed the supportive and enriching environment Allegiance STEAM Academy provides for her and her daughter. 

 

 

IV. Items Scheduled for Consent

A.

Approve Minutes

S. Odo made a motion to approve the minutes from Special Board Meeting of the Board of Directors on 09-23-24.
M. Jones seconded the motion.

Passes 5 - 0

The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Odo
Aye
M. Jones
Aye
S. Bhojani
Aye
S. Thompson
Aye
T. Stevens
Aye

B.

Approve Check Registrar

S. Bhojani made a motion to Approve Check Registrar.
S. Odo seconded the motion.

Passes 5 - 0

The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
M. Jones
Aye
T. Stevens
Aye
S. Odo
Aye
S. Bhojani
Aye
S. Thompson
Aye

V. Items Scheduled for Discussion or Action

A.

Think Together MOU FY 24-25 (Chino)

S. Odo made a motion to Think Together MOU FY 24-25 (Chino).
M. Jones seconded the motion.

Passes: 4- 0 with 1 Abstain

The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
T. Stevens
Aye
S. Bhojani
Abstain
S. Thompson
Aye
S. Odo
Aye
M. Jones
Aye

VI. Finance

A.

FY24 Budget - ASA Chino

S. Thompson made a motion to FY24 Budget - ASA Chino.
S. Odo seconded the motion.

Passes 5 - 0 

The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Thompson
Aye
T. Stevens
Aye
M. Jones
Aye
S. Odo
Aye
S. Bhojani
Aye

B.

FY24 Budget - ASA Fontana

S. Thompson made a motion to FY24 Budget - ASA Fontana.
M. Jones seconded the motion.

Passes: 5 -0

The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
T. Stevens
Aye
M. Jones
Aye
S. Odo
Aye
S. Thompson
Aye
S. Bhojani
Aye

VII. Governance

A.

Governance

No Governance items.

VIII. Other Business

A.

Other Business

No Other Business items.

IX. Communications

A.

Communications - Comments from the CEO

Comments from the CEO:

Special Thank You: 

  • Student presenters! Amazing job!
  • Families for choosing ASA - we are part of expanding school choice, consistent with our belief that parents are the primary stakeholders in their children's education.
  • Staff - Principals - aligning
  • Central office team and supervisors - HR overhauls, onboarding, performance monitoring, talent philosophy - attracting and retaining high quality staff

 

B.

Communications - Comments from the Board of Directors

Comments from the Board of Directors:

 

S. Thompson - Thankful for the exciting students' celebrations. Loved hearing about all the ELOP and club activities. Happy about the growth in enrollment in Fontana and getting excited about the new campus.

 

S. Odo - LOVED the rockets! Fills her heart and makes her so happy! Wonderful to hear from the student athletes, seeing their growth and ownership. Love seeing all the staff involvement. Encourages more staff to participate. Excited about the upcoming Fall Festival. 

 

S. Bhojani - Big thanks to the staff and our organization, for educating the whole child. Likes seeing and hearing about the panel and resources being shared with our families and the community. It really does take a village when raising children. Acknowledged all the partnerships taking place across the organization. Keep up the great work! Thank you!

 

M. Jones - Thanks students, teachers, and staff. Encourages parents to push their kids outside their comfort zone to try new things; it will only help them grow. Loves the Girl Scout book donation. Encouraged and happy to see the increase in enrollment. Thank you for our amazing PACK. Excited about the Fall Festival. Presenting CSDC Conference, please come join her. 

 

T. Stevens - Would like to see about adding the sporting events to our public events calendars. Highlighted the positive feedback received through various channels, emphasizing the impact of our collective efforts. Acknowledged the contributions of our community partnerships and dedicated staff. Happy to see improvements with dress code. Kudos to Mrs. Lazo, Mrs. Valenta, and their teams. Keep up the great work! Thank you to all the student presenters. A special acknowledgment to our PE coaches and teachers! Our students adore their coaches and teachers. The PE coaches and teachers' dedication is awesome. Wants their dedication to grow and hopes it is contagious across the organization! This will help us with continued growth. 

 

 

 

 

X. Closing Items

A.

Adjourn Meeting

S. Thompson made a motion to Adjourn Meeting.
S. Odo seconded the motion.

Passes: 5 - 0

Adjourns 8:25pm

 

The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
M. Jones
Aye
S. Odo
Aye
S. Bhojani
Aye
S. Thompson
Aye
T. Stevens
Aye
There being no further business to be transacted, and upon motion duly made, seconded and approved, the meeting was adjourned at 8:25 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
E. Lee
Documents used during the meeting
  • August 2024 -ASA-Board Summary (2).pdf
  • Allegiance_STEAM_EXLP_FY25.docx
  • August 2024 -ASA-Board Summary (2).pdf
  • August 2024 -ASA-Board Summary (2).pdf