There was no public comment.

Ms. Foy-Watson set up four board member interviews that took place earlier in the day on August 11: Dalia Wimberly, Robin Clement, Serja Goram, and Tekka Lewis.  Three of the four interviews were recorded and shared with interviews (Ms. Wimberly's interview was not recorded by Zoom).  These candidates have previously served on boards and a broad range of professional experiences.  

Ms. Foy-Watson also noted that there were two additional candidates who have applied to join Kestrel Heights Board of Directors.

Ms. Wimberly was in attendance at the meeting, and she shared her details of her background and leadership experience in education. The board members asked questions of her as well.

Ms. Foy-Watson shared that Ms. Clement has a background in construction, marketing and advertising.  Ms. Goram has a background in education and is new to NC and wanted to engage in her new community.  Mr. Featherstone shared that Ms. Lewis has a background in education as a teacher.

Mr. Featherstone will take care of onboarding the new Board members including gathering contact information, bios and asking Dr. Miller about orientation.

Dr. Tracy provided a brief update on the changes since the July meeting.  The enrollment is down to 455 students and the waitlists for most of the grades (except K, 1 and 2) have been exhausted.  Kestrel did send out exit surveys for those families who decided not to return to Kestrel, but the information has not yet been reviewed.

The school did not receive the chromebooks that were ordered, and there are now shortages of available chromebooks.  The Board requested that the school send out messages to ClassDojo to get the messages out about the shortage and about being able to use personal devices if they have them.

The staff handbook policy was reviewed and language that should have been added related to equal opportunity policy was discussed.  Board members asked questions about the US Supreme Court ruling around equal opportunity employment.  

Dr. Tracy noted that Kestrel Heights has paid the fee for the accreditation process and is waiting to hear back about how the process will be conducted during the pandemic.  He noted that he does not anticipate a time-consuming process given that the current administration was in place when the last accreditation took place. 

Dr. Tracy presented the monthly budget report for July 2020. July's budget is usually inaccurate because it's based on enrollment that hasn't yet taken place and does not include adjustments for staff benefit choices and related decisions.  The budget will continue to evolve over the next two months as enrollment is solidified.

Dr. Tracy discussed the professional development that is taking place to help teachers with virtual learning.  There will be trainings all week to help staff and the professional development will continue on Fridays throughout the virtual learning period.

Mr. Featherstone asked about the return to school proposal and any concerns that teachers or other staff may have.  Dr. Tracy answered that there is a general concern about why teachers need to be in building if school is completely virtual.  He has heard that teachers who are parents of younger children have expressed concerns about safety as well.  The frequency of cleaning is a concern that has been expressed as well. There is flexibility being built into plan, so the school can make changes as needed.  Board members and Dr. Tracy discussed the plan and shared their perspectives on enhanced flexibility for staff based on information and data that board members have received on how other educational institutions have fared in the past 3 weeks.

The Board asked that Dr. Tracy and the administration have an intentional check in with staff on how they are feeling about working in the building and listening and responding to the concerns that staff have expressed.  The Board also requested that Dr. Tracy and the administration consider if they need to offer other options for these staff that do not feel safe working in-person.    

Mr. Paris presented information on behalf of the Facilities Committee of the Board, and the Board discussed the information presented. 

Attorney Bowens updated the Board on a pending legal issue.

Dr. Tracy presented information on a new hire.