Mr. KT Thompson presented about facilities issues.

• We held our Quarterly fire and security systems inspection in Feb - no issues to report.
• One minor device is being replaced and to be conducted the next couple of weeks
• The 5 year internal system flow and hydrostatic test inspection is scheduled at the end of this month (March)
• RTU number 6 is still experiencing issues, so the compressor and heating coils need to be replaced. The last time we experienced this with another unit, it made more sense to replace the whole unit, so we are awaiting quotes then we can make a decision on that unit.
• The compressor and heat exchanger are about $7K versus replacing the entire unit for $30K
• We are also preparing for the new roof install starting this month during the spring break period

Mr. Touchette was unavailable during the meeting. Mr. McFadden shared updates regarding Enrollment and Marketing.

• Current enrollment is 369 scholars. We currently have 192 scholars pending, but the numbers are rising. There are several factors affecting these changes such as the matriculation of the 8th grade scholars, people are simply moving, others are transitioning to homeschooling or micro-schools, which is another thing that is becoming more popular
• When you examine the source of scholar's enrollment, the majority come from Word of Mouth/Referrals, next is our website
• Additional marketing methods were discussed to increase enrollment, such as sharing printed materials (flyers, etc.) with Daycares and other places in the community. It was mentioned that not all, but some Daycares may be open to this idea based on rotating leadership. We can do outreach to local daycares and area businesses to see if they will allow us to post our information 

Dr. Sherri Grubbs discussed insights from classroom observations and instructional practices. 

• Dr. Grubbs has met with each Teacher to improve instructional practices at least once thus far this year. 
• We are using data to guide instructional decisions and go deeper into the data
• We apply a coaching in action approach and are also helping teachers with classroom management
• Mr McFadden has been collaborating with Dr. Grubbs regarding the various findings from observations and instructional practices
• The collaboration has mainly involved Dr. Grubbs providing strategies to improve educational instruction while Mr. McFadden has mainly focused on redirecting scholars to display positive behaviors. 
• Mr. McFadden is aiming to get to the point that he can do more 1:1's with those that are really in need and to provide support and enhance Culture

Teron McFadden also presented on Culture.

• We finished the Apex fundraiser, there was a Teacher Workday, and we hosted a Show What you Know Wax Museum on the 29th. We received a lot of great feedback concerning the Show What You Know Event.
• Upcoming Events include Career Day and Spring Break.
• Progress Reports were also released.
• The Upcoming PTA meeting will occur on the 19th
• Report Cards will be coming out on April 10th and then the NC Check-In 3. This will be the last check in before EOGs start
• There are concerns that the transition for some scholars from having one core teacher to switching classes and having different core teachers for every subject appears to bring out different behaviors

• We are heavily involved in the fiscal year 2027 budget development process
• The Finance Team and Financial committee met on Thursday and talked through a high-level overview of what's happening and are trying to wrap up the estimated expenses for the end of the year, so we can use that as a baseline for determining next year's projections. We recently finished updating projections for salaries as well. 
• We are now working to create a balanced budget.
• We are also reviewing staffing projections that are now drafted
• Faculty Intent forms for our current faculty did go out in February and pretty much everyone has indicated a desire to return. We have one teacher that is requesting a change in grade level, etc. so knowing this information up front gives us an opportunity to refine the staffing schedule before we release the employment contracts. We anticipate releasing those by May 1st. Although they usually go out in June, my goal this year is to sure everyone has ample time to review and return them before they go home for the summer. We will then know what positions are open going into the summer 
• For the next school year, we do anticipate other hire an EC teacher and an instructional assistant, school counselor and data manager. All of these positions are open for the new school year. There may be more after we finish the last round of review for the staffing plan.
• Most information from Epicenter has not changed. The next big reports that are due in Epicenter are coming up in April and that would be next year's policies, which are currently being reviewed and initial drafts created
• We are prioritizing interviewing for the Data Manager role because our contract with the data management wing of Chart of Success is only through June 30th, so we need someone in that position to run alongside the existing person to ensure a smooth transition
• Infinite Campus is a new system for us and the training is extensive.

Tonya Jackson presented on financial position regarding the school's budget.

• We have utilized 100% of our state funds. At this time of the year, that is not uncommon.
• Additional local funds are being expected. We are at 55% of the local funds from Durham county. This is the largest source of our local revenue, so we are anticipating an additional $1M from Durham county and we still have outstanding funds from other localities
• Overall, currently we are tracking higher revenue than expenses and are in a good cash position. Per the Board Report, our YTD activity shows the revenue is a bit more than $4.6M and the overall expenses are about $3.8M.
• With us being about 66% of the way through the school year, there are areas trending higher than that 66% spend down. Due to recent shifts with equipment and leases, specifically the shift to a new copier company, the numbers do look a little inflated as the new copier company paid out the lease for the older copier company. We actually received revenue to offset that secondary expense.
• Insurance is about 113%, due to that line item being understated on the original budget. There was an increase in the premium that was not initially accounted for during the preparing of last year's budget. We approved the budget around the same time that we finalized our insurance for the year. Most of our insurance policies are completely paid in full at this point
• The investment in technology, books, and supplies has been holding fairly steady.
• Transportation and travel are where they're going to be. We do offset field trip expenses because we collect funds to cover the field trip, so it's a money - in/money-out situation
• To align with our covenants for our bond, we have to meet the target for each spending category and we are.
• As of today, the days of cash on hand was 225 days, while we are only required to maintain 60 days of cash on hand. 
• It takes about $16k per day to maintain Kestrel
• The debt service coverage ratio requirement is 1.15 and as of the end of February, it is 1.26, so we are meeting both of those cash covenant requirements.
• In order to obtain the Durham County Funding, we are required to complete a Principles Monthly Report, which is generally completed around the 15th, then after that we complete a process called county billing, so those funds are then received on a monthly basis around the 25th or so via check

Discussion centered around committee reports and community engagement.

• A. Davis will send an email to the committee concerning our fundraiser for the new picnic tables and about food insecurity. A canva site was created to share the details. The link to donate will push you back to our website. A script will also be provided and a letter to explain more about the initiative. This information has been distributed to a few community partners
• A. Davis shared the reconnection with a former intern and an organization that has opened a Charlotte location that may want to get involved with community engagement and support our initiatives
• A. Davis has had a conversation with Mrs Kennedy, our school counselor, about interweaving the conversation about food insecurity and how we can engage and present dignifying ways around the topic of school insecurity as a community and school. There may also be a possibility to collaborate with an organization called CORA Food Bank, which is located in Chapel Hill. They serve a lot of communities that are similar to our community and they partner quite a bit with our local food bank.
• We are also aiming to share this initiative in our school newsletter. Our goal is to get all pledges in  and all donations to complete the order this summer. We want our families and students to come back with new tables.
• During career day, I will be on campus to meet people, do introductions and engage deeper with small and local businesses. Career Day is another entry-point for us to engage our community partners, potential businesses and other organizations that may want to support our development efforts.
• A. Hernandez shared that the Community Engagement committee met earlier today to discuss how we can engage parents and grandparents volunteers to support our new initiative to support our faculty and staff. We also discussed very briefly the next campus beatification day and resource fair. We are unsure if those events are still being scheduled for this school year
• C. Rhodes stated that our approach to engage the community during the Beautification Day and Resource Fair will involve setting up a info table to share the goals and recruit volunteers
• C. Rhodes also discussed how the current PTA President, Mrs. Roberson, setup a Grandparent's initiative to recruit Grandparents to join the PTA and support volunteer efforts. C. Rhodes will share the information that was collected during the Granparent's breakfast and other signup sheets to invite them to support our initiative. 
• A. Davis has pulled faulty and staff exit data from the past 10 years to analyze, this includes initial staff surveys and the follow up surveys to analyze common themes. We want to give the board a chance to review the information and make comments. 
• There are some themes that were identified. Parents and Grandparents have asked how they can help, so we plan to hold that intention.
• A. Davis and Mr. Powe held a meeting with faculty and staff on the 16th  to discus new practices and ideas and how we can integrate new patterns, new practices, and new behaviors. We encouraged the staff to imagine BIG, we split them Into groups to hold discussions around the five topic areas that arose from our Board working session which includes, but is not limited to: "What would support look like? How would we do that? How would you support each other, and what kind of support would you need from faculty, leadership, the board, so we can navigate these complexities." The approach would be to determine what the behaviors practices are and how we can get these needs met. We also brainstormed on how that evolution would look and tell the story of our new preferred narrative. Many staff members expressed interest in wanting to be a part of anything we are doing within the community to deepen ties with universities in the area. We observed that the faculty and staff began to take pride in being part of the brainstorming process.