Melisa Lemire, Board Vice Chair, overviewed the process of inducting new Board members into the City on a Hill Board of Trustees. Lemire shared that a job description was posted on City on a Hill's portal for the role of  COAH Board of Trustee. Once candidates apply, they are interviewed by a member of the Governance Committee and the Executive Director. The candidate then shadows a Board of Trustees meeting and if the individual is still interested in joining COAH's Board, are voted onto the Board at the next meeting.

Lemire shared that there were two potential Board candidates shadowing the meeting today. The candidates discussed their background and what interests them in joining the City on a Hill Board of Trustees.  

With no questions from the Board, Lemire moved to the section of the agenda. 

Jordan Pina, Chief of Staff, introduced City on a Hill's new team member, Michael McGean, to the Board. Pina shared that McGean will serve as COAH's Teacher Development and Compliance Director this school year. 

McGean introduced himself to the Board of Trustees and shared more about his background and experience. 

Sonya Pratt, Executive Director, opened discussion regarding Quarter 4 and Summer School student academic data from City on a Hill. Pratt discussed trends in the data, which included but weren't limited to, 9th and 10th graders performing above projection and 11th and 12th grade performing below projections. Pratt shared that the low attendance percentages of 11th and 12th graders closely align with their academic performance.

The Board asked management about the metrics in the graph shown. Pratt shared that the numbers in the graph refer to percentages by grade level.

Pratt then overviewed several sections of the Academic Action Plan that City on a Hill will use to drive academic success this school year. Pratt shared that one section of the plan is to give students the opportunity to enroll in dual level classes. These classes are designated for students that have failed a class needed for matriculation, and would allow these students to cover two years of a course in one year.

Pratt shared that City on a Hill has historically offered these courses in the past, although they have not been offered for several years. The three dual level courses offered this year will include English 1 and English 2, Algebra and Geometry and Algebra and Geometry. 

The Board sought clarity on the curriculum used to host these courses. Pratt shared that in the absence of pre-packaged curriculum for courses of this nature, the COAH Leadership Team spent time examining the current Scope and Sequence documents for each course to find overlaps and create a combined Scope and Sequence for dual level courses. 

The Board asked management about communications and messaging to parents and families regarding these courses. Pratt shared that the course was communicated as a unique opportunity to address failure of a course required by the state of Massachusetts in order to matriculate. Pratt shared that families and students were contacted on a nomination basis, based on students who had the skills that set them up to master a dual level course. 

Pratt also shared that a one-pager with more information about the nature of dual level courses at City on a Hill was shared with nominated students before enrolling them in the course. All dual level courses at COAH are currently fully enrolled.

Pratt then discussed another section of the Academic Action Plan that refers to building a culture of perseverance at City on a Hill. COAH Leadership has already begun work on this section by re-launching 9th Grade Academy, a two week long program to acclimate new students to high school life at City on a Hill, instilling 11th and 12th grade peer mentors for each new student, and hiring an additional college counselor and English as a Second Language teacher. 

Pratt then discussed the final section of the Action Plan that she presented, the COAH Climb program. Pratt shared that COAH Climb is a program designed to give students the extra support they might need to address the loss of in-person learning due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.  Pratt shared that School Year 2021-2022 will act as a pilot year for this program, and will allow for COAH students to have an allocated amount of funds to apply to outside support in learning. 

Pratt shared that outside support programs include ACT prep for all 11th graders through KAPLAN, outside tutorial services for all 9th and 10th graders through Stride K12, as well as dual credit courses offered to all students through APEX.

The Board asked for more details about the outside tutorial program through Stride K12, specifically when the program could be accessed. Pratt said that because 9th and 10th grade students have a tutorial class scheduled during the school bell schedule, this tutorial program will be offered outside of school hours. The Leadership team at COAH designed a Google form that allows students to self identify, teachers to identify a student, or family to identify a student who might benefit from additional tutoring. Pratt shared that these tutoring sessions will be offered to students in five session packages as a layered support for individuals who may need additional resources outside of school hours. 

The Board asked for more details regarding the Kaplan courses for ACT prep offered to 11th and 12th graders. Pratt shared that all 11th graders will be enrolled in this ACT prep course and will have to complete it in order to pass their Junior Seminar class, a college preparatory course offered to 11th graders at City on a Hill. 11th graders will also have to take the ACT at least once to earn a passing grade in addition to completing the course. Kaplan ACT preparation courses will also be offered to any 12th graders who are seeking additional ACT support. 

The Board asked management to identify the acronyms for ACT and SAT, which stand for American Collegiate Test and Scholastic Aptitude Test. 

The Board asked management if Kaplan had been used historically for ACT preparation courses. Pratt discussed that Kaplan has been used at COAH in the past, but not for several years. Pratt shared that these courses will be held with two options including an evening course or a Sunday afternoon course. The Board discussed directing the attention of the Development Committee to these efforts in the coming school year.

With no further questions, the Board moved to the next section of the agenda.

Melisa Lemire, Board Vice Chair, overviewed the documents attached to the Board packet which include the contract for Sonya Pratt, Executive Director, the Executive Director job description, as well as the Conflict of Interest Forms for Pratt and Kevin T. Taylor, Chief Executive Officer.

Lemire confirmed with the Board that each member had reviewed the documents. With no further questions, Lemire called for a vote to approve each document. 

The Board asked Management for an update around the hiring of a Director of Development, a City on a Hill Foundation based role.

Jordan Pina, Chief of Staff, shared that with shifts in management, COAH does not have an individual who is designated to work on Development efforts. This role was created by the COAH Foundation in order to take ownership of development efforts for City on a Hill. 

Pina shared that the job description has been posted for three weeks and has had one applicant. The Board asked for details regarding where the posting was located. Pina shared that the posting is located on City on a Hill's website and LinkedIn and is ready to be shared with networks. 

Pina concluded discussion by sharing that the Foundation Board will meet in early September 2021 to discuss more ways to publish this posting to a broader network.