Ryan, Jennifer and Allysha will be ending terms at end of school year. 

2 non-voting members (Ganesh and Jenette) were present to introduce themselves in the interest of deepening their roles. 

Jeannette: Senior Paralegal with experience negotiating corporate contracts. Has 1 son (Austin) at HVM. Also experienced in corporate training programs.

Ganesh: Background in pharmaceuticals finance and accounting. Daughter was a former student at HVM. 

Niamh rolled out a draft of the prospective calendar for the 2025-2026 school year. The biggest change was a large reduction in the number of half days (about 1 per month). Also less time off Thanksgiving week. Need to wait on Haverhill Public for their schedule around Christmas for bus purposes, but calendar should otherwise be set. As written last day of school would be June 11-18 depending on snow days.

Jeff Landry said that things have been going smoothly. He has been running payroll for about a month. Changes made with DESE as needed. ED emails going to Jeff. Ginger has a full inbox, but things have been going well for her as well. Jeff will be attending a workforce diversity conference to keep the school eligible for some grants. 

Paul: Interviews for new ED are ongoing. 2 candidates will be removed from process, 2 are still under consideration (committee would like to meet with them again). There are at least 2 more candidates yet to be interviewed. We are not in a position where we need to rush or settle. Will likely repost role with emphasis on fundraising, community presence. Ideally wish to start new ED at start of new fiscal July 1

Discussion about contract renewals (May) and development of pay scales in near future. Also need to address any concerns with student loan and other arrangements. 

Spirit and morale appears to be high amongst staff in first week of interim leadership.

Farewell luncheon for Phil prior to break

Dance this upcoming Sunday 3-5

Allysha presented on STAR math data findings from accountability meeting. Interventionists had been present at that meeting and had a discussion about the topic.

Proposal to split reporting on Dibles and Star data month to month rather than both at the same time. Time is needed to build up so that results can be presented fully and properly.

Star Math Data showed that 3rd graders in 3rd year of program are showing the most growth. Increase is higher in upper el than lower el. They feel this is due to more time dedicated to math. Middle school is now offering accelerated math (algebra) for the first time.

Recommendations: More regular math time instruction for lower elementary students. The new coaching culture will also continue to improve instruction and thus results. In our school environment, it is more difficult to measure how much math instruction is happening as it is often broken up throughout the day rather than single blocks of time like traditional schools. 

Winter Dibels are being analyzed now and we are seeing growth from start of the school year overall. Suggestion: Parent night to educate on understanding of data. 

Talk about rolling out new staff survey soon. Because of changes, may be scaled down this year. Definitely want to do parent survey in coming months.

No development meeting this month

$100k revenue bump due to increase in tuition.

Finances in good shape overall, but will be $170k over budget in salaries. Still in the "green" budgetarily, but this should be addressed in next budget. Concern about lack of commitment to budget and ability to stay within it in the past, a strong pledge to change this going forward and also a desire to have a dedicated reserve fund. Need more predictability in budget.  Jeff L spoke to a change in fiscal practices with future contracts. Obligated to honor current contracts and agreements.

Capital improvements: legal requirements to have funds available when projects are sent to bid. Members of board and foundation involved in speaking with potential banks and finance partners to evaluate options. We learned that we will not lose initial investments if we don't make improvements this summer. 

Discussion about a potential board policy dedicating a portion of budget to capital improvement account. 

Next draft of budget expected to be presented at next board meeting.