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Miles Ahead Charter School

Minutes

MACS June 2023 Board Meeting

The June 17th monthly board meeting will be held at the school at 9:00am.

Date and Time

Saturday June 17, 2023 at 9:00 AM

Location

4665 Macland Rd, Powder Springs, GA

June 17th, 2023 Meeting Presentation:  https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1YnRaNV4p4D6-rU-CCpHhomfUCnS9pcvUO4VEz9IouvM/edit#slide=id.p1

Directors Present

A. Smith, D. Laguerre II, E. Miller, E. Quackenbush, H. Lust, J. Browning, J. Toussaint (remote), M. Hamilton, T. Maclin (remote), T. Reese

Directors Absent

A. Lee, A. Turner, C. Browne-Roberts, C. Menifee, U. Sayers

Guests Present

Chasity McCrary (MACS Director of Exceptional Children)

I. Opening Items

A.

Record Attendance

B.

Call the Meeting to Order

A. Smith called a meeting of the board of directors of Miles Ahead Charter School to order on Saturday Jun 17, 2023 at 9:00 AM.

C.

Confirm amount of people who signed up in advance for Public Forum

No one signed up. 

D.

Approve Minutes

H. Lust made a motion to approve the minutes from May 2023 Board Meeting May 2023 Board Meeting on 05-18-23.
M. Hamilton seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

II. Treasurer's Report

A.

Monthly Treasurer's Report/ Review of Monthly Forecasts Presented by Dorian

Dorian gave an update on the Summary of Financial Activity for May 2023 and a Breakdown of Income and Expenses for June 2023 (see meeting presentation)

 

III. Committee Shareouts

A.

Committee Shareouts

The board reviewed and inquired about updated committee items from the month of June 2023.

  • Aarica asked a clarifying question to the Academic Committee (Justin)
  • The board corrected the date for MACS Founders Day to July 8th 
  • Aarica clarified the number of open staff positions (2 paraprofessionals) currently

IV. Monthly Pre-opening Tracker Check-in

A.

Upcoming Pre-opening Tracker Items Presented by Milton

Milton shared out the upcoming items due by July 1st:

Ensure all staff is hired by July 1st

Establish accounts with TRS

Develop a Strategic Plan

Register the school leader to attend the GaDOE  Data Collections Conference (July 15th)

 

Ed asked about the status of working towards each item, Aarica, Milton, Justin, and Chasity provided updates.

V. Kolts Korner

A.

Kolt's Korner Presented by Aarica

Presented on Kolt's behalf by Aarica:

  • Applications by the Numbers (June 2023)- currently over enrolled with a waitlist. Ed asked for clarification regarding enrollment for Column A and B, Chasity provided clarity on the two columns.
  • Charter School Growth Fund- we received the grant which will be $810,000 over the course of the next three years.
  • Staffing Updates- Exploring taking the two part-time operational roles and hiring one full-time operational staff member. Aarica asked Chasity for clarity, Aarica will follow-up with Kolt on the exact request for additional operational personnel. 
  • Leadership Team Training Update- Leadership team is working to get required state trainings. Ashlee will follow-up with EL Education on the purchase order.
  • Requests/ Questions for the Board (Board Engagement)- Please make sure you are checking your MACS email. 

VI. Meeting Discussion Topics

A.

Employee Manual Presented by Erin

E. Quackenbush made a motion to Approve the Employee Handbook.
E. Miller seconded the motion.

Erin asked if their were any questions about the Employee Handbook.

The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

B.

Leadership Team Offer Letter Presented by Erin

E. Quackenbush made a motion to Approve the Offer Letter template with the changes/ updates noted and mentioned below in the discussion portion.
E. Miller seconded the motion.
  • Henry commented that the name "Principal" should be changed to Executive Director when referencing Kolt. Erin stated that she will make the adjustment.
  • Tracy commented that the letter is stating that it is both an offer letter and intent to offer; Erin stated that she will change the language to offer letter. 
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

C.

Fiscal Policies Presented by Dorian

D. Laguerre II made a motion to Approve to the Fiscal Policies for fiscal year 2023-2024.
M. Hamilton seconded the motion.

Dorian updated the board on changes made to the Fiscal Policy by the Finance Committee:

  • The board discussed the wording around approving checks that are  greater than $10,000.
  • They agreed to approval can be left to the Executive Director, Treasurer, and Board Chair.
  • Ed added that the Finance Committee added that for reimbursements the we will need the original receipt and/or the itemized invoice.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

D.

Federal Procurement Policies -Presented by Henry

E. Miller made a motion to Approve the Federal Procurement Policies for MACS.
T. Reese seconded the motion.

Henry discussed the high level components of the Federal Procurement Policies to the board. 

The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

E.

Board on Track Updates Presented by Aarica

  • Ashlee has a list of board members who have already signed up to meet with Board on Track for onboarding. Ashlee will reach out to board members who have not signed up for additional support. 
  • We will shift to solely to using Board on Track for all Board and Committee meetings moving forward after July 1st.
  • Justin asked about accessing his Board on Track account-Ashlee will reachout.

F.

Board Member Updates & Term End Transitions

A. Smith made a motion to Approve Tracy Reese as the new MACS Vice Chair.
M. Hamilton seconded the motion.
  • Tracy Reese has elected to serve as the new MACS Board Vice Chair.
  • Aarica shared that she will continue to work with Henry and Milton with Tracy as well as Tiffany with Dorian to ensure a smooth board leadership transition (Tiffany, Aarica, and Milton's term will end on June 30th).
  • Aarica shared that in order to remove old board members from the Truist Bank account the board must vote to remove them.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
A. Smith made a motion to Vote to remove Aarica Smith (old board chair), Kolt Bloxson-Pitt (executive director) and Holly Raindrop (old board treasurer) from the MACS Truist Bank account and add Dorian Laguerre (new board treasurer) and Henry Lust (new board chair) to the account.
T. Reese seconded the motion.

-Kolt is being removed since she will only use the MACS credit card.

The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

G.

Continued Discussion of Shift to Operating Board

  • The Board discussed the tools and resources to govern MACS.
  • Discussed Ideas of How to Use as Governing Board
    1. Meeting Structure 
      1. Milton suggested keeping the meeting structure the same for Year 1. 
      2. Justin suggested creating more guidance for Kolt's Korner or possibly a Academic Dashboard. Justin also asked about a parent component of the meeting, Aarica suggested a Parent Liaison, PTA or Parent Committee (volunteers). 
      3. Chasity shared that the Leadership Team will create a Parent Advisory Council for MACS where they will serve as an engagement committee for existing and potential MACS families. Aarica suggested adjusting the name and allowing for the parent group to have a section in the board meeting to share out updates. 
    2. Committees
      1. Aarica asked the board which committees would they like to dissolve since MACS is transitioning to a open school this fall.
        1. Tracy suggested dissolving the Community Engagement Committee but transitioning the MACS volunteers to a different committee that center's around engagement.
        2. Erin suggested that the HR Committee be dissolved since all documents have been established to begin the school year. Erin suggested that she serve as a guidance and support for Kolt and leadership with HR matters.
        3. Justin suggested that the Academic committee stay the as is to monitor progress towards the CPF. He then stated that He and Ashlee could serve as advisors once the committee is no longer needed as frequently. 
    3. CPF - Academic, Financial & Operational
      1. Aarica went through each portion with the board to gain clarification and understanding of the CPF and what we will be measured on in Academic, Finance, and Operations. 
      2. The Finance Committee suggested looking at the CPF with the CFO quarterly to ensure compliance.

H.

Upcoming Board Meetings - July & Board Retreat

H. Lust made a motion to The board will meet virtually July 20th, 2023, 7:30pm-9:00pm with most of the meeting content being from MACS leadership to support them in opening.
T. Reese seconded the motion.

The board decided to have a July meeting.

The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
  • Topics for MACS board retreat:
    • Strategic Plan
    • Supporting board members through the transition of board members 
    • Cadence and restructuring of board meetings
    • Scheduling of board meetings
    • Re-engagement of board members/ Potential new board member look-fors
    • Different types of fundraisers-annual or signature fundraising event to establish partnerships and community engagement 
  • The board retreat will be Saturday, September 9th, 2023 at MACS in-person.

VII. Closing Items

A.

Public Forum - Opportunity for Submitted Questions from Public

B.

Announcements

-MACS Founders Day- Saturday, July 8th from 9am-3pm

-MACS board members will wear their black shirts with jeans.

C.

Adjourn Meeting

There being no further business to be transacted, and upon motion duly made, seconded and approved, the meeting was adjourned at 10:49 AM.

Respectfully Submitted,
A. Smith
Documents used during the meeting
None