One City Schools
Minutes
One City Regular Board Meeting
Date and Time
Tuesday February 24, 2026 at 4:00 PM
Location
3rd Floor Conference Room
1707 W. Broadway
Madison, WI 53713
This meeting of the One City Board of Directors will take place in-person, at the Pleasant T. Rowland Leadership Campus. For those outside of Madison, or who are traveling, please use the following link:
https://onecityschools.zoom.us/j/87275142442?pwd=VGU5c1BFLy83QnAzekZXY2IxOWJjUT09
Passcode for the meeting is OneCity
Directors Present
G. Ladson-Billings (remote), J. Johnson (remote), J. Parisi (remote), S. Campagna, S. Stroman (remote), T. Pedracine (remote)
Directors Absent
B. Curley-Prestine, D. Aguayo, G. Derzon, J. Howard, J. Krupp
Ex Officio Members Present
K. Caire
Non Voting Members Present
K. Caire
Guests Present
B. Pickett, C. Hampton, G. Wiseman, K. Key, M. Dyslin, M. Ruffin, N. Navarro-Albaladejo, S. Haumersen, V. Ramakrishnan (remote)
I. Opening Items
A.
Record Attendance
B.
Call the Meeting to Order
C.
Approve Minutes from the January 27, 2026 Board Meeting
II. Review and Approval of January 2026 Financials
A.
Review and Approve January Financials
An anonymous donor has offered a $2.5 million matching gift. To date, nearly half of the required match has been raised.
Meeting fundraising goals by the close of the school/fiscal year remains a priority.
The FCI loan is to be transferred to Summit Credit Union by the beginning of March in order to secure a more favorable interest rate.
The Single Audit is on track for completion before the end of March.
III. Enrollment Update
A.
Update on Enrollment for the 2026-27 School Year
IV. Partnerships Update
A.
Update on Partnerships with UFLI and Project Read AI
One City Schools recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the University of Florida Literacy Institute (UFLI), designating One City as UFLI's training hub for the Upper Midwest. UFLI, led by Dr. Holly Lane, focuses on improving literacy outcomes through reader and teacher development. To date, very few schools in Wisconsin have received UFLI training.
Board member J. Johnson attended a recent UFLI training at One City and reported very positively on the experience, encouraging others to attend a training.
One City continues its partnership with Project Read AI, co-founded by CEO Vivek Ramakrishnan, which provides tools for phonics, fluency, and comprehension rooted in the Science of Reading.
Project Read AI was developed and beta tested at One City Schools and partners with UFLI on its reading tutor program — connecting both partnerships into a cohesive literacy strategy. Project Read AI is now in use in over 240,000 classrooms across more than 115 countries.
V. Advocacy Update
A.
Update on One City Schools Advocacy Efforts
C. Hampton provided an update on advocacy efforts to date. Assembly Bill 818, which proposes designation of a demonstration public school, received a public hearing before the Assembly Committee on Colleges and Universities on January 28th.
On February 10th, the committee passed the bill and it has advanced to the full Assembly for further consideration.
A hearing on the companion Senate bill is anticipated for March 4th before the Senate Committee on Universities and Technical Colleges. Staff and supporters are preparing testimony.
VI. Department Reports
A.
Department Updates
Staff provided department updates and written reports were provided to members of the board of directors.
M. Ruffin reported on current enrollment figures and upcoming marketing initiatives.
Enrolled families are being encouraged to submit their intent to return by March 15th.
Outreach efforts underway include mailing enrollment postcards, canvassing area neighborhoods, attending community events, and sharing posts on social media.