Paramount Schools of Excellence

Minutes

Paramount Board of Directors Public Meeting

Date and Time

Tuesday December 13, 2022 at 5:30 PM

Location

Paramount Online Academy Training Room

1203 E. St. Clair Street

Indianapolis, IN 46202

*Enter through Door 8

Directors Present

A. Bekele (remote), B. Eldridge, E. Mendez (remote), J. Amu (remote), J. Hazzard, Jr., M. Bishop (remote), P. Blackard (remote), T. Rude

Directors Absent

None

Ex Officio Members Present

T. Reddicks

Non Voting Members Present

T. Reddicks

Guests Present

Amanda Webb (remote), Anthony Moore (remote), Asia Loukine (remote), Brent Eskridge (remote), Case Calvert (remote), Cory Iwaszewski (remote), D. Taylor (remote), Dr. Brandalyn Hayes (remote), Hanan Abdelmasseh (remote), Heather Brooks (remote), J. Hurley (remote), Justin Braun (remote), K. Beauchamp, K. Sherrow (remote), Keeane Gomez (remote), Keith Thomas Jr. (remote), Lisa Hopman (remote), M. Miller, Megan Bouckley (remote), Megan Kafantaris (remote), Rebecca Norman (remote), S. Kuhn (remote), Samantha Arjon (remote), Stefanie Hanes (remote), T. Gustin, T. Palacios (remote), Taelor Garrett (remote), V. Hereens (remote)

I. Opening Items

A.

Record Attendance and Guests

B.

Call the Meeting to Order

T. Rude called a meeting of the board of directors of Paramount Schools of Excellence to order on Tuesday Dec 13, 2022 at 5:31 PM.

II. Public Comments

A.

Public Comments

No members of the public were present.

III. Consent Agenda Review and Approval

A.

Review and Approve Minutes

T. Rude made a motion to approve the consent agenda (minutes, financials, vouchers) from the Paramount Board of Directors Public Meeting on 10-18-22.
J. Hazzard, Jr. seconded the motion.

Each consent agenda includes minutes from the prior meeting and the monthly financial packet, including monthly vouchers.

The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
A. Bekele
Aye
J. Hazzard, Jr.
Aye
M. Bishop
Aye
E. Mendez
Aye
J. Amu
Abstain
P. Blackard
Abstain
T. Rude
Aye
B. Eldridge
Abstain
T. Rude made a motion to approve the consent agenda (minutes, financials, vouchers) from the Paramount Board of Directors Public Meeting on 11-15-22.
J. Hazzard, Jr. seconded the motion.

Each consent agenda includes minutes from the prior meeting and the monthly financial packet, including monthly vouchers.

The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
T. Rude
Aye
B. Eldridge
Abstain
A. Bekele
Aye
J. Hazzard, Jr.
Aye
P. Blackard
Abstain
E. Mendez
Aye
J. Amu
Abstain
M. Bishop
Aye

B.

Voucher Approval

IV. New Business

A.

Calendar Approval

T. Rude made a motion to approve the proposed calendars for the 2023-2024 school year.
M. Bishop seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
T. Rude
Aye
J. Amu
Aye
A. Bekele
Aye
J. Hazzard, Jr.
Aye
B. Eldridge
Abstain
E. Mendez
Aye
M. Bishop
Aye
P. Blackard
Aye

B.

PSOE Historical Student Data

Kyle Beauchamp presented on the Academic Coordinators' review and compilation of the legacy data. This looks at how students academically progress in our system.

C.

Quarter 1 Financial Review

Marcus Miller shared that we are doing better than our Quarter 1 projection anticipated. The Quarter 2 budget to actuals will reflect a large donation. Contribution income is up significantly due to the $400,000 grant from the Mind Trust.

D.

Closing IPS Student Priority

P. Blackard made a motion to adopt the new policy on student priority access.
J. Hazzard, Jr. seconded the motion.

Tommy Reddicks addressed the closing of some IPS schools and the proposed policy for enrollment priority within our network.

The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
B. Eldridge
Aye
E. Mendez
Aye
J. Hazzard, Jr.
Aye
J. Amu
Aye
P. Blackard
Aye
A. Bekele
Aye
M. Bishop
Aye
T. Rude
Aye

E.

McKinney-Vento Policy

T. Rude made a motion to approve the proposed Mckinney Vento policy.
B. Eldridge seconded the motion.

Tara Gustin requested approval of the policy as distributed to get this posted on our website for compliance purposes. The changes to the documents are to ensure they align with the most recent state and federal McKinney Vento documentation.

The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
J. Hazzard, Jr.
Aye
M. Bishop
Aye
T. Rude
Aye
P. Blackard
Aye
A. Bekele
Aye
B. Eldridge
Aye
J. Amu
Aye
E. Mendez
Aye

V. Operations Reports

A.

Navigation Team

PSOE was awarded a $50k grant from the Glick Foundation and CICF for marketing. That will be paid to Paramount in two $25k payments.

B.

Principal Report

Dr. Hayes and Samantha Arjon presented on Paramount Online Academy's student testing data in ELA and math. Supports to improve student outcomes include bi-weekly data meetings, teachers receiving regular observation and feedback, and monthly visits from Trine. Paramount Online Academy is proud to have been the top-performing online school in Indiana last school year.

VI. 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 6:19 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
T. Rude

B.

Next Meeting

January 13th @ 9 a.m. https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83211301912


 

C.

Executive Session