The board Chair, BJ, read the schools' mission and vision. 

There is no public comment. 

ED, MC presented: 

SY23-24 - Chronic Absenteeism rate of 6.4%

• Student Illness 
• Attendance letters

SY24-25 - Chronic Absenteeism rate of 7.2%

• Increased student illness contributed to the increase in chronic absenteeism and may have contributed to the increase of CA. 

School-related Attendance Interventions:

• Attendance Letters 
• Auto calls from Infinite Campus 
• Electronic submission available for families to submit excuse notes 
• Attendance committee for SY25-26 

Enrollment Projections:

269 families fully registered out of the 275 projected 

ED, MC presented: 

• All internal academic testing is completed.
• 100% of our students were tested in NWEA Map and GMAS
• ED and Mr. Parks will meet with the academic board committee on Friday. 
• 11-point gain in GMAS.
• 85% staff retention for SY25-26. 
• ZEST will add staff due to natural student growth. 
• ZEST will close for one week from June 16th - 20th. 

District LEA close-out:

• FY25-26 CLIP
• Financial close-out and transitions 
• Data Collections close-out
• ZEST will have a summer tutorial for compensatory services approved by GaDOE. 

Mr. Parks, ZEST Associate Director of Academics, presented the NWEA MAP data overview:

• ZEST is identified as "High Achievement" school in Math and sits in the 55th percentile nationally according to NWEA MAP. 
• ZEST is identified as "High Achievement" school in Reading and sits in the 56th percentile nationally according to NWEA MAP.

ZEST Academic Next Steps:

• ZEST will move to a content departmentalization for grades 2-5. 
• Standards-based instruction for teachers. 
• Enhance admin-led PLC. 
• Strengthening school-wide MTTS systems. 
• Strengthening data-driven instruction. 

ED, MC presented: 

• Completed on March 5, 2025
• The school had three findings. 

Corrective Action next steps based on the finalized CFM update:

• Professional Development for staff members
• Parent Engagement and Feedback 
• Offering Parent Workshops and partnering community partners 

Board Member, Elizabeth Jackson, presented and spearheaded the recruitment process.

• ZEST board recruitment commenced in March 2025.

• Four potential board members are in attendance to present to the board.  
  • Palmer - Public Service - Serves on the Executive Leadership Team for a local school district.
  • Olugbala - Education Non-Profit - Serves 
  • Dr. Randolph - Provost - Morris Brown College
  • Williams - Behavioral Health Non-Profit 
  • Rankin - Attorney/ Fundraising 
• ZEST Prep is still looking for a finance background and submitted it to GCSA for their pool of potential candidates. 

Board Chair, ED, is sharing that the ZEST Board will meet for the FY26 calendar. 

• General Board Meeting: Third Tuesday of each month. 
• The Finance Committee meets on the fourth Monday of each Monday. 
• The Academic Committee currently meets on the fourth Friday of each month.

The ZEST Prep board will vote on the FY26 calendar at the next board meeting. 

Christine from EdTech presented:

• ZEST will end the FY25 fiscal year with a positive cash balance. 
• ZEST will have an approaching status based on the SCSC Financial Performance Indicators. 

ZEST did not receive the SCSC hardship grant. 

ZEST is still partnering with 22Beacon for potential facility renovations. 

The Finance Committee has received and met two proposals for back office providers:

1. Purpose Capital Group
2. Avolon Accounting & CFO Services

Christine from Ed Tech presented:

• ZEST's projected budget is 3.6 million minus the local 5 mil share. Based on an FTE of 275. 
• ZEST has secured funding from the Charter School Growth Fund of $175K.

Monique, ED reported:

Personnel:

• There are personnel increases in instructional staff and schools will make adjustments to other operational departments. 

ZEST is projected to be lower in cash flow and must be fiscally conservative at the beginning of the first semester. ZEST Prep will end FY26 with a positive cash flow with over 31 days' cash on hand. 

There is no public comment on the FY26 budget. 

The Affidavit was provided.