Magnolia Public Schools

Minutes

Regular Board Meeting

Date and Time

Thursday January 18, 2024 at 7:20 PM

Location

Home Office: 250 E. 1st Street, Suite 1500, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Board Members:
Mr. Mekan Muhammedov, Chair

Ms. Sandra Covarrubias, Vice-Chair

Dr. Umit Yapanel
Dr. Salih Dikbas
Ms. Diane Gonzalez

Mrs. Esra Eldem Tunc

 

Student Board Member:

Melissa De La Rosa Aparicio

CEO & Superintendent:
Mr. Alfredo Rubalcava

Directors Present

D. Gonzalez, M. Muhammedov, S. Covarrubias, S. Dikbas (remote), U. Yapanel

Directors Absent

E. Eldem Tunc

Guests Present

J. Lara

I. Opening Items

A.

Call the Meeting to Order

M. Muhammedov called a meeting of the board of directors of Magnolia Public Schools to order on Thursday Jan 18, 2024 at 7:30 PM.

B.

Pledge of Allegiance

Board, staff and guests conducted the pledge of allegiance.

C.

Record Attendance and Guests

M. De La Rosa, Student Board Member, was marked present for this meeting, joining remote. Refer to attendance information recorded above. 

D.

Approval of Agenda

S. Covarrubias made a motion to approve the agenda as presented.
U. Yapanel seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Dikbas
Aye
U. Yapanel
Aye
M. Muhammedov
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye
E. Eldem Tunc
Absent
S. Covarrubias
Aye

E.

Public Comments

Staff members at Sunny Brae Elementary School came before the Board to express their concerns of accommodating rooms that stem from MPS' request of utilizing classrooms on their campus. They shared the current usage of those classrooms to serve their current student population.

G.Serce, Regional Director & Principal at MSA-San Diego, shared that they hosted their first Community Resource Fair providing food and other resources to the Community. He also shared that with the grant received from Schools In Action, they were able to meet their fundraising goal to have shade structures at their school and to build a community hub.

B.Olandes, Director of Advancement, shared that MPS was awarded a $750,000 grant from the California Department of Healthcare Services to develop two regional family treatment centers in Reseda and Santa Ana to provide support to Magnolia families. He reported that more development are to follow and this grant was in collaboration with the Academic Department.

F.

Announcements

U.Yapanel, Board Member, announced that Board Members visited multiple school sites. He reported that the visits went well and they were able to meet and speak to staff and thanked the staff at the school sites for their continued work for the students. He did an interactive activity with students in a couple of classrooms. S.Covarrubias, Vice-Chair, echoed that Board Members greatly benefit from visiting school sites.

M.De La Rosa, Student Board Member, announced that MSA-5 will be hosting an event on February 6th which will involve student lead booths. She invited all to attend and to support. She also shared that she has been working alongside J.Hernandez, Director of Student Services, to create a forum to connect with other student leaders from other MPS school sites to share promising practices and discuss ways to improve the student experience. Date of the forum will be announced soon and added that at future Board Meetings she will update the Board.

G.

Approval of Minutes from MPS Regular Board Meeting - December 14, 2023

D. Gonzalez made a motion to approve the minutes from Regular Board Meeting on 12-14-23.
U. Yapanel seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
U. Yapanel
Aye
E. Eldem Tunc
Absent
M. Muhammedov
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Aye
S. Dikbas
Aye

II. Consent Items

A.

Approval of School Accountability Report Cards (SARC) for All MPS

U. Yapanel made a motion to approve the School Accountability Report Cards (SARC) for all MPS.
D. Gonzalez seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
U. Yapanel
Aye
S. Dikbas
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Aye
M. Muhammedov
Aye
E. Eldem Tunc
Absent
D. Gonzalez
Aye

III. Information/Discussion Items

A.

Data Presentation: 2023-24 MPS Demographics

D.Yilmaz, Chief Accountability Officer, shared with the Board that MPS is in the process of submitting the official data to the state. He added the importance to track demographic data and to present to the Board and public to show trends and any academic and financial implications. 

L. Woods, Director of School Office Data and Accountability, presented the detailed data to the Board from all MPS schools sites. She went over multiple data sets which include; CALPADS Fall 1 Data, enrollment including census day enrollment trends from this year to previous years, enrollment by ethnicity, enrollment by gender, EL student rates, EL students with disability rates, free/reduced meals rates, unduplicated pupil counts, GATE student rates, foster youth rates and counts, students with disabilities, homeless student rates and immigrant student rates for each school site and as a collective whole. All of the Board Members questions were addressed by staff. 

B.

Glows, Grows & Priorities Presentation

M.Avsar, Principal at MSA-4, and E.Veloz, Assistant Principal at MSA-4, presented their updated Glows, Grows & Priorities presentation for 2023-24 as an update of progress to the Board. They went over their Glows which includes several aspects. A few include; reaching their enrollment goal as of census day 2023, growth in SBAC scores in ELA, growth in NWEA MAP in math and ELA, and academic supports and interventions for their students. For their Grows a few they presented to need improvement include; enrollment, academic rigor, teacher retention, SBAC proficiency levels, ADA improvement, high school student retention, improved middle school program, character education and after-school club student participation. As for their priorities as a school, they presented that they are focused on enhancing student outcomes on SBAC, enrollment and community engagement, school climate and culture and successful WASC and school renewal preparation. Board Members asked questions regarding what was presented and next steps on some of the items. 

IV. Action Items

A.

Approval of 2022-23 Annual Audit Report for all Magnolia Science Academy Schools and the Home Office

Previously presented at the Audit & Facilities Committee Meeting which the Committee did recommend for their recommended approval. M.Muhammedov, Chair, reported for what was discussed at the Committee Meeting. S.Budhraja, Chief Financial Officer, detailed the auditor's report. He went over the data and financial information for all school sites and the Home Office. He reported that there were no adjustments to the unaudited actual financial report. He also reported that there was an issue with attendance data being off for two school sites which he said there was no costs associated, but once identified, it lead to MPS strengthening their process and a corrective action plan to be placed. E.Acar, Chief Academic Officer, went over the issue of reporting and filing. A.Milteer, ELOP Coordinator, was involved to reach out to the CDE to file a report to rectify the situation so it would not affect the ASES grant. Staff came together with the school sites to develop trackers for reporting and are monitoring it monthly. Moving forward they will be reviewing the reports submitted. Also, with the Committee, it was also asked to have trainings for all school sites. Jonathan Clement from Eide Bailly added additional context to the report. Board Members questions and next steps were addressed by staff. 

M. Muhammedov made a motion to approve the 2022-23 Annual Audit Report for all Magnolia Science Academy (MSA) schools and the Home Office (MERF).
U. Yapanel seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Dikbas
Aye
S. Covarrubias
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye
U. Yapanel
Aye
M. Muhammedov
Aye
E. Eldem Tunc
Absent

B.

Approval of Revised Teacher Assignment Option: Ed Code 44258.3 Procedure and Process

F.Del Carpio, Chief People Officer, presented revised Ed Code 44258.3 procedure and process. The current procedure and process was approved by the Board back in August 2021, it required that all submitted petitions was to be Board approved. Since then staff received further guidance by one of the authorizing agency, Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE) that the petition with Ed Code 44258.3 no longer required board approval. After the academic panel approves the petition, the educator becomes eligible to teach that specific subject. She reported that moving forward a report will be presented to the Board with the approved assignments by the end of the school calendar year to inform the Board of the decisions. Board Members questions were addressed by the staff. 

D. Gonzalez made a motion to approve the revised teacher assignment option: Ed Code 44258.3 procedure and process that will provide a greater flexibility in local teacher assignments in grades K-12.
U. Yapanel seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Covarrubias
Aye
S. Dikbas
Aye
E. Eldem Tunc
Absent
U. Yapanel
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye
M. Muhammedov
Aye

C.

Approval of Interorganizational Loan Agreement Between MERF & MSA-Orange County

A. Rubalcava, CEO & Superintendent, updated the Board that the petition for MSA-Orange County (MSA-OC) will be submitted by the end of January. This is with the goal to expand in Orange County following the success of MSA-Santa Ana. B.Olandes, Director of Advancement, detailed the grants that were applied to that would assist financially to launch the school such as the Charter Schools Program (CSP) federal grant that was submitted for six (6) other schools including MSA-OC. The Public Charter Schools Grant Program (PCSGP) state grant, was not eligible for MSA-OC since the petition has not yet been submitted but can be eligible for future round of funding. Staff is actively pursuing additional routes to pursue additional funding efforts. A.Rubalcava, reported that the Board will receive periodic updates. S. Budhraja, Chief Financial Officer, went over the loan that will be in place if there is a need to borrow money for the new school. Board Members questions were addressed by staff.

M. Muhammedov made a motion to approve the loan agreement between the Magnolia Education and Research Foundation (MERF) and the proposed MSA-Orange County (MSA-OC), ensuring financial support for the new school during the first two years of its operation beginning in the 2024-25 fiscal year.
S. Covarrubias seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
Roll Call
S. Covarrubias
Aye
S. Dikbas
Aye
E. Eldem Tunc
Absent
M. Muhammedov
Aye
U. Yapanel
Aye
D. Gonzalez
Aye

V. Closed Session

A.

Public Announcement of Closed Session

M.Muhammedov, Chair, announced that the Board will be going into closed session to discuss confidential student discipline matter for consideration of potential expulsion for case number: 20231202 and would report out any actions that may be taken.

B.

Confidential Student Discipline Matter – Consideration of Potential Expulsion - Case No.: 20231201

This item was discussed in Closed Session.

C.

Report Out of Closed Session

M.Muhammedov announced in Open Session at 10:18pm that the Board voted to approve the stipulated expulsion with suspended enforcement regarding case number 20231202. 

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 10:19 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
M. Muhammedov