Laureate Academy Charter School Board of Directors
Minutes
Board Meeting
Date and Time
Wednesday May 24, 2023 at 5:30 PM
Location
Laureate Academy Charter School
The matters listed are those reasonably anticipated by the Chair to be discussed at the meeting. Not all items listed may, in fact, be discussed. Other items not listed may be brought up for discussion to the extent permitted by law. All agenda items are informational unless otherwise denoted, though all committee reports require a vote for acceptance. Unless otherwise stated due to COVDI-19 precautions, the meeting will be held on the campus of the school (2115 Oakmere Drive Harvey, LA 70058)
Directors Present
Caitlyn Scales, Dr. Jahquille Ross, Jaime Behen, Jake Krupa (remote), Jordan Whittenburg, Nicholas Aucoin, Toyane Faulkner
Directors Absent
None
I. Opening Items
A.
Record Attendance
B.
Call the Meeting to Order
Nicholas Aucoin called a meeting of the board of directors of Laureate Academy Charter School Board of Directors to order on Wednesday May 24, 2023 at 5:44 PM.
C.
Approve Minutes
Jaime Behen made a motion to approve the minutes from Board Meeting on 04-26-23.
Caitlyn Scales seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
II. 2023-2024 School Year Votes
A.
Vote: 23-24 Budget
- Fourth sector joined our meeting to explain the budget they've been working on with Mrs. Heckerman-Whitehead.
- There was a recommendation to bring Fourth Sector in to also assist with Payroll.
- Nick Aucoin made a motion to add the recommendation for Fourth Sector to take on Payroll worth $19,800, which is added into their consultation line within the budget, to the budget. Motion was seconded by Jaime Behen.
- Nick Aucoin moved to put the budget up for approval.
Nicholas Aucoin made a motion to approve the budget.
Jaime Behen seconded the motion.
No opposing votes.
B.
VOTE: 23-24 Board Calendar
- There was a recommendation to move the February meeting to January to avoid Mardi Gras. There is a January 6th opportunity for a board retreat and cancelling the February meeting. The board retreat will be January 6th from 9am-1pm at a location to be determined.
- Finance meeting will be every other month and will be scheduled with Fourth Sector.
- For June 2023 & December 2023, Governance meetings needed to be moved to align with General Board Meetings. December meeting was moved to November.
- Academic committee meeting in November was moved to December to reflect testing timelines.
Nicholas Aucoin made a motion to approve the board calendar with the amendments listed in the notes.
Jordan Whittenburg seconded the motion.
There was no opposition.
III. Board Specific Items
A.
Recruiting New Board Members
- There is a perspective board member interest that are speaking to current board members.
- As for other seats, there are some other pieces where we could use more support from perspective board members like legal.
- While Mrs. Heckerman-Whitehead is out, Kerinn Tillman will be the go-to.
B.
Succession Planning
- There is a maternity leave plan coming for Mrs. Heckerman-Whitehead's leave.
- Beginning to think about what long-term development looks like for others in the building. NSNO has a succession planning tool.
C.
Reminder about Annual Financial Disclosure
Past due.
IV. Finance Committee Update
A.
General Financial Update
- Covered in budget discussion.
- Coming up at the end of year so that will be the next thing we'll look at.
V. Other Business
A.
Head of School Update
- There has been a lot of school based discussion around strategic planning built around MAP testing.
- Operations transition is going well with the addition of Fourth Sector and feels much more user friendly. It positions staff to help determine more intimately how their budget is set.
- As for end of year closing items, there will be various handbook updates and hiring will still continue on into the summer.
- Mrs. Heckerman-Whitehead proposed the board take a more pro-active approach to checking in with the in-term school leader during her leave.
VI. Closing Items
A.
Adjourn Meeting
There being no further business to be transacted, and upon motion duly made, seconded and approved, the meeting was adjourned at 6:39 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
Jaime Behen