Harmony Public Schools
Minutes
April 27, 2024 HPS Board Meeting
Date and Time
Saturday April 27, 2024 at 8:30 AM
Location
9321 W. Sam Houston Pkwy S,
Houston, TX 77099
3rd Floor El Paso Meeting Room
**We will serve breakfast at 8:00 AM in the fourth floor meeting room.
Directors Present
H. Koc, H. Sherwood (remote), K. House, L. Gonzalez, M. Argin, O. Celepcikay, S. Koch
Directors Absent
None
Guests Present
Allen Keller (remote), C. Lambert, Drew Masterson, E. Akyildiz, E. Altun, E. Cavusoglu, F. Ay, Grace Cruz, Guvanch Yazgeldi, Jennifer Sabin, N. Bayhan, Selcuk Bakir, U. Alpaslan
I. Opening Items
A.
Call the Meeting to Order
II. Public Comments
A.
Public Comments
III. Consent Agenda
A.
Consider Approval of Previous Board Meeting Minutes of March 23, 2024
B.
Consider Approval/Ratification of the Minutes and of the Actions of the Finance Committee Meeting on April 12, 2024.
C.
Consider Approval/Ratification of the Minutes and of the Actions of the Academic Committee Meeting on April 12, 2024.
IV. Review and Consider Approval of Resolution Authorizing
A.
Review and Consider Approval of Resolution Authorizing a Borrowing from the Arlington Higher Education Finance Corporation to Finance Educational Facilities, Approving the Issuance of Bonds, Delegating Authority to Approve the Terms of the Bonds, Effect the Sale, Issuance and Delivery of Bonds and Authorizing the Execution and Delivery of the Documents Related Thereto, and Containing Other Matters Related Thereto.
Mrs. Ebru Akyildiz, Chief Finance Officer request from the board the approval of the upcoming bond issuance as presented in the April 12th Finance Committee Meeting to finance our upcoming campus buildings. Ms. Akyildiz introduces harmony's financial advisor Mr. Drew Masterson to discuss the details with the board members. Mr. Masterson informs the board the multi-phased capital financing approach will begin with an early summer 2024 financing to pay off the existing Line of Credit and finance upcoming projects including 4 new campuses to open for 2024-25 school year and 3 new sites for the 2025-26 school year. Mr. Masterson states the lowest long-term cost of capital can be achieved through bond issuances backed by Texas’ PSF Bond Guarantee Program. PSF capacity was assured in February 2023 and has ample capacity for charters and ISD’s. Harmony received preliminary approval for the PSF program for up to $280 million to finance its 2024 capital improvement plan; based on current project estimates this total is approximately $201 million. Mr. Masterson reviews the presentation with the board members as presented in the Finance Committee Meeting.
V. Consider Approval of a One-Time Appreciation Bonus to our Employees.
A.
Consider Approval of a One-Time Appreciation Bonus to our Employees.
Dr. Celepcikay recuses himself from voting on this item to avoid a potential conflict of interest.
Dr. Argin also recuses himself from voting on this item to avoid potential conflict of interest.
Mr. Emre Altun, Chief Human Resource Officer presents Consider Approval of a One-Time Appreciation Bonus to our Employees. Mr. Altun informs the board during the Covid-19 pandemic Harmony used a portion of the ESSER funds towards employee compensation. Specifically, we introduced a two thousand dollar acceleration fund for all of our employees. With the sunset of the ESSER funds we have studied our options to make sure none of our employees experiences a loss in their salary. Harmony Public Schools is pleased to offer a one-time retention bonus to all eligible employees for their continued service to our students and community. Full-time exempt employees will receive a bonus up to 6% of their 2023-2024 annual salary. Full-time hourly employees will receive a flat amount of $1,000, and temporary workers will receive $300. These bonus payments will be disbursed in Fall 2024 to those who return to Harmony for the 24-25 school year. Substitutes are not eligible for this retention bonus.
| Roll Call | |
|---|---|
| O. Celepcikay |
Abstain
|
| S. Koch |
Aye
|
| L. Gonzalez |
Aye
|
| H. Koc |
Aye
|
| H. Sherwood |
Aye
|
| K. House |
Aye
|
| M. Argin |
Abstain
|
VI. Fall 2023 - Campus Safety Report Presentation (closed session)
A.
Fall 2023 - Campus Safety Report Presentation (closed session)
Dr. Celepcikay announces that the board members will be going into closed session as permitted by Texas Open Meetings Act Chapters 551.076 and 551.082.
Closed Session begins 8:58 AM.
Dr. Celepcikay starts regular session at 10.25 AM. Dr. Celepcikay states in closed session the board had discussion with legal counsel and no action was taken.
VII. Discussion of District-Wide Intruder Detection Audit Report Findings (closed session)
A.
Discussion of District-Wide Intruder Detection Audit Report Findings (closed session)
Dr. Celepcikay announces that the board members will be going into closed session as permitted by Texas Open Meetings Act Chapters 551.076 and 551.082.
Closed Session begins 8:58 AM.
Dr. Celepcikay starts regular session at 10.25 AM. Dr. Celepcikay states in closed session the board had discussion with legal counsel and no action was taken.
Dr. Celepcikay states a top priority of Harmony Public Schools and the State of Texas is keeping students and staff safe every day. The Texas Education Agency recently conducted an Intruder Detection Audit at one or more of our campuses. The audit tested whether a campus is accessible to an unauthorized individual. This audit seeks to help districts identify how campuses can improve safety for students, such as ensuring exterior doors are locked and provides an opportunity to create a safer learning environment for our students and staff. We are working closely with our School Safety & Security Committee to ensure that we are training all our staff and securing our doors for the protection of everyone on our campuses. The support from the state in conducting the Intruder Detection Audit is just one of the many actions we are taking to ensure our schools are safe. We know that this work does not end, and we appreciate the support of our Board and staff members. We were very happy to hear all of the actions the campuses took regarding this item. We acknowledge that parents and community members are interested in the details of the audit results; however, it is in the best interest of the students that we do not share this information to the broader public as it could lead to compromising important campus security information. Specific details of the Intruder Detection Audit were discussed in the executive session and with the Safety and Security Committee. Harmony Public Schools is committed to providing a safe and secure learning environment for our students and staff.
VIII. Consideration of Student Expulsion Appeal from Harmony School of Innovation – Fort Worth.
A.
Consideration of Student Expulsion Appeal from Harmony School of Innovation – Fort Worth.
Dr. Celepcikay announces that the board members will be going into closed session as permitted by Texas Open Meetings Act Chapters 551.076 and 551.082.
Closed Session begins 8:58 AM.
Dr. Celepcikay starts regular session at 10.25 AM. Dr. Celepcikay states in closed session the board had discussion with legal counsel and no action was taken.
None.