Magnolia Public Schools

Minutes

Regular Board Meeting

Date and Time

Thursday July 18, 2019 at 6:00 PM

Location

MPS Home Office: 250 E. 1st St. Ste. 1500 Los Angeles, CA 90012 (15th Floor)
Board Members who participated remotely joined from the following locations:
• MSA-SA 2840 W. 1st., Santa Ana, CA 92703 (Mr. Shohrat Geldiyev)
• 1363 Ridgecrest Rd Pinole, CA 94564 (Mr. Serdar Orazov)

Board Members:
Dr. Saken Sherkhanov, Chair
Mr. Haim Beliak, Vice-Chair
Dr. Umit Yapanel
Mr. Serdar Orazov
Dr. Salih Dikbas
Ms. Diane Gonzalez
Ms. Charlotte Brimmer
Ms. Sandra Covarrubias
Mr. Shohrat Geldiyev

CEO & Superintendent:
Mr. Alfredo Rubalcava

Directors Present

C. Brimmer, D. Gonzalez, H. Beliak, S. Covarrubias, S. Geldiyev (remote), S. Orazov (remote), S. Sherkhanov, U. Yapanel

Directors Absent

S. Dikbas

Directors who left before the meeting adjourned

S. Orazov

I. Opening Items

A.

Call the Meeting to Order

S. Sherkhanov called a meeting of the board of directors of Magnolia Public Schools to order on Thursday Jul 18, 2019 at 6:30 PM.

B.

Record Attendance and Guests

Refer to attendance information stated above. 

C.

Pledge of Allegiance

B. Torres, MPS Board Secretary, led the Pledge of Allegiance. 

D.

Approval of Agenda

H. Beliak made a motion to approve the agenda as presented.
C. Brimmer seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
U. Yapanel, S. Covarrubias were absent for this vote. 

E.

Public Comments

C. Brimmer, MPS Board Member, announced that she will be recognized as Democrat of the Year. She also informed the board of her participation in the National Charter School Conference. No other public comments were made.

F.

Communications: Board/Superintendent

A. Rubalcava, MPS CEO & Superintendent updated the Board on Assembly Bill 1505 and 1507 as they relate to charter schools. Board Members had questions which were addressed. There were no other communications in this section.  

G.

Approval of June 13, 2019 Regular Board Meeting Minutes

C. Brimmer made a motion to approve minutes from the Regular Board Meeting on 06-13-19 Regular Board Meeting on 06-13-19.
H. Beliak seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Geldiyev
Aye
S. Sherkhanov
Aye
S. Dikbas
Absent
S. Orazov
Aye
C. Brimmer
Aye
U. Yapanel
Absent
H. Beliak
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Abstain
D. Gonzalez
Aye

H.

Approval of June 17, 2019 Special AdHoc Committee Board Meeting Minutes

C. Brimmer made a motion to approve minutes from the Special Ad-Hoc and Facility Committee Meeting on 06-17-19 Special Ad-Hoc and Facility Committee Meeting on 06-17-19.
H. Beliak seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Dikbas
Absent
H. Beliak
Aye
S. Sherkhanov
Aye
S. Geldiyev
Aye
C. Brimmer
Aye
U. Yapanel
Absent
D. Gonzalez
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Abstain

I.

Approval of June 24, 2019 AdHoc Committee Board Meeting Minutes

C. Brimmer made a motion to approve minutes from the Special Ad-Hoc (Facility) Committee Meeting on 06-24-19 Special Ad-Hoc (Facility) Committee Meeting on 06-24-19.
H. Beliak seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Sherkhanov
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Abstain
U. Yapanel
Absent
S. Orazov
Aye
H. Beliak
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye
S. Dikbas
Absent
S. Geldiyev
Aye
C. Brimmer
Aye

J.

Approval of June 28, 2019 Special Board Meeting Minutes

C. Brimmer made a motion to approve minutes from the Special Board Meeting on 06-28-19 Special Board Meeting on 06-28-19.
H. Beliak seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
U. Yapanel
Absent
H. Beliak
Aye
S. Orazov
Aye
S. Sherkhanov
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye
S. Geldiyev
Aye
C. Brimmer
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Abstain
S. Dikbas
Absent

II. Closed Session Items

A.

Public Announcement of Closed Session

S. Sherkhanov, MPS Board Chair, announced that the board would be going into Closed Session to discuss three matters as stated on the agenda. 

B.

REINSTATEMENT OF PUPIL Case No. 2018001

The board discussed this item in Closed Session.

C.

Update on Pupil Discipline Matter

The board discussed this item in Closed Session.

D.

Conference with Legal Counsel-Potential Litigation- Three Matters

The board discussed this item in Closed Session.

E.

Report Out From Closed Session

S. Sherkhanov, MPS Board Chair, announced that the board had discussed the Closed Session items but had no actions to report out. 

III. Action Items

A.

Approval of the Winning Bid for the Human Capital Management System (HCMS)

S. Acar, MPS Chief Operations Officer, presented this item to the Board. He explained the RFP and evaluation process and addressed all questions. S. Orazov, MPS Board Member, gave his feedback on the vendors he was familiar with. This item was previously presented in the June Board meeting, all questions were addressed. 
S. Sherkhanov made a motion to approve Paycom and the Human Capital Management System (HCMS) of MPS for up to 5 fiscal years, unless contract is terminated, starting from July 1st 2019.
C. Brimmer seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
Roll Call
C. Brimmer
Aye
S. Geldiyev
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Aye
S. Sherkhanov
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye
H. Beliak
Aye
U. Yapanel
Aye
S. Orazov
Aye
S. Dikbas
Absent

B.

Approval of MSA-San Diego 6th Grade Camp Agreement

S. Orazov left.
E. Acar, MPS Chief Academic Officer, explained the camp agreement between MSA-San Diego (MSA-SD) and San Diego County of Education (SDCOE). He briefly stated what the camp consists of and stated that MSA-SD has been in this collaboration for five years. All questions were addressed. 
S. Sherkhanov made a motion to grant approval to Alfredo Rubalcava, CEO & Superintendent, to sign the 6th grade camp agreement between MSA- San Diego and San Diego County of Education.
C. Brimmer seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Dikbas
Absent
S. Sherkhanov
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye
C. Brimmer
Aye
S. Geldiyev
Aye
H. Beliak
Aye
U. Yapanel
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Aye
S. Orazov
Absent

C.

Approval of Master Contract for a Non Public School Placement for MSA- San Diego

E. Acar, MPS Chief Academic Officer, presented this item to the Board. He briefly explained the need for the agreement and addressed all questions. 
U. Yapanel made a motion to approve $45,784.20 for the purpose of funding a Non–Public Placement for a student at MSA- San Diego.
H. Beliak seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Orazov
Absent
S. Sherkhanov
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye
S. Dikbas
Absent
H. Beliak
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Abstain
U. Yapanel
Aye
C. Brimmer
Aye
S. Geldiyev
Aye

D.

Approval of Intra-Organizational Loan to MSA-San Diego

N. Montijo, MPS Chief Financial Officer, presented the intra-organizational loan item to the Board and explained that it would be used on an as-needed basis. All questions were addressed.
U. Yapanel made a motion to authorize a temporary intra-organizational loan not to exceed $300,000 (or less, as needed) to meet the cash requirement for MSA-San Diego (MSA-SD) to fund payroll and other operating expenses.
H. Beliak seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
C. Brimmer
Aye
S. Orazov
Absent
S. Dikbas
Absent
S. Sherkhanov
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye
S. Geldiyev
Aye
U. Yapanel
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Abstain
H. Beliak
Aye

E.

Approval to Use Reserves to Pay Chromebooks for MSA-1,4,5,8 and Santa Ana

N. Montijo, MPS Chief Financial Officer, informed the Board about the Chromebooks purchase from 2918-19 that had to be paid out of reserves. She went over standard accounting practices on late shipments and explained the budget implications. All questions were addressed. 
H. Beliak made a motion to the use of long-term reserve funds (MSA 1, MSA 4, MSA 5, MSA 8, MSA SA) to pay for Chromebooks ordered in June and received in July, 2019.
S. Covarrubias seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Dikbas
Absent
S. Sherkhanov
Aye
S. Orazov
Absent
C. Brimmer
Aye
H. Beliak
Aye
S. Geldiyev
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye
U. Yapanel
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Aye

IV. Information/Discussion Items

A.

Oversight Authorizer Reports & Update on LAUSD Actions,Plans,Steps & Timeline for Fiscal Benchmarks

D. Yilmaz, MPS Chief Accountability Officer, reported out on authorizer oversight reports to the Board. He went over the LAUSD visit ratings for designated schools and talked about possible improvements. N. Montijo, MPS Chief Financial Officer, gave the Board an update on the fiscal benchmarks and how those have been addressed. The Board congratulated staff for their good scores and comments on the oversight reports. All questions were addressed. 

B.

Academic Update

E. Acar, Chief Academic Officer, gave an in-depth presentation to the Board regarding academic programs, activities and events. He informed them about the progress toward school and organization wide goals, preliminary state testing results and end of year summary of activities. 

C.

Enrollment Update

A. Rubalcava, MPS CEO & Superintendent, gave a brief enrollment update to the Board. 

D.

2018-19 Larson Communications End of Year Report

A. Rubalcava, MPS CEO & Superintendent, gave the Board an overview of Larson Communication's role with Magnolia, he told them to refer to the written report for more details. 

E.

Financial Update- May 2019

N. Montijo, MPS Chief Financial Officer, briefly went over the updated financials and addressed all questions. 

F.

Facilities Updates

P. Ontiveros, MPS General Counsel and Facilities Director, gave an update on the ongoing facility projects. 

G.

Update on Senate Bill 126 as it Relates to Magnolia Public Schools

B. Torres, MPS Board Secretary, updated the Board on the details behind Senate Bill 126 and explained how Magnolia Public Schools would have to adjust some of their practices due to the new regulations. She stated that more updates would follow in future Board meetings before the bill takes affect. 

V. 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 10:24 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
S. Sherkhanov