Memphis Merit Academy Charter School
Minutes
MMA January Board of Directors Meeting
Date and Time
Thursday January 25, 2024 at 5:30 PM
Location
Memphis Merit Academy (4775 American Way, Memphis, TN 38118)
PUBLIC COMMENT AT MEMPHIS MERIT ACADEMY BOARD MEETINGS - An opportunity for the public to address the Board will be provided at the conclusion of the agenda. Members of the public who wish to speak on
any item are requested to identify themselves and indicate on which agenda item they wish to speak. The Board will provide an opportunity for the public to speak for a maximum of three (3) minutes, unless granted
additional time at the discretion of the Board. Testimony shall be limited in content to matters pertaining to Memphis Merit Academy. The Board may not take any action on matters discussed during the public testimony
period that are not listed on the agenda.
Directors Present
Angelia Allen, Aurelia Mcbride, Joseph McKinney, Melisa Moore, Talunja Prophet, Timorie Belk, Tressa Johnson
Directors Absent
Dimika Cavalier, Lashawn Lester, Stacey Richards
I. Opening Items
A.
Record Attendance
B.
Call the Meeting to Order
C.
Approve Minutes
Nov. minutes
D.
Approve Agenda
II. Monthly Financials
A.
Monthly Financials - Edtec
| Roll Call | |
|---|---|
| Lashawn Lester |
Absent
|
| Dimika Cavalier |
Absent
|
| Joseph McKinney |
Aye
|
| Talunja Prophet |
Aye
|
| Melisa Moore |
Aye
|
| Timorie Belk |
Aye
|
| Angelia Allen |
Aye
|
| Tressa Johnson |
Aye
|
| Stacey Richards |
Absent
|
| Aurelia Mcbride |
Aye
|
III. Committee Reports
A.
Development Committee Report
Awaiting word from BlueCross BlueShield of Louisiana.
Porter Leath exploring moving in to the Kroger shopping center, which could serve as a great childcare option for babies/toddlers in the community, until they're of age to begin kindergarten at MMA.
$480K awarded to MMARE from Blue Hub - impressed by the Kroger "adaptive reuse" project where the new facility is located.
Next meeting is Feb. 1st at 12 noon.
B.
Governance Committee Report
Have resumes for consideration for new board members.
Next meeting is Feb 7th.
C.
Finance Committee Report
No meeting in January, but met in December to review fiscal policies for MMA. Reviewed policy questions/changes as a group.
Marked-up fiscal policies will be shared with the Board via email for individual review.
Joseph recommended making sure other designees are included for access to online banking services. Also, managing credit cards.
Feb 21st next meeting.
D.
Academic Achievement Committee
January meeting postponed due to weather. Lakenna working on her portion of HOS evaluation.
IV. Other Business
A.
CEO/HOS Update
MSCS five-year audit on Feb 6. Focus group with the board will tentatively be 11-11:30 AM at MMA. Highly recommended to have board members in person. Zoom will also be an option.
Accomplishments highlights: Finished audit and no findings - covered MMA and MMARE. Annual report feature with Blue Hub upcoming. Construction of new facility ahead of schedule - will be finished in March.
Goals highlights: finish budget for board review in March. Hiring for next year. Grant identification in spring. Advising on a new high school seeking charter in Memphis.
Next steps: finalize strategic plan for literacy. Planning for summer school. Submit letter of support for charter feeder high school.
Problem solving highlights: Director of Operations succession planning; Director of Lower School departing in Feb 2024 - new Director of Lower School already appointed (internal promotion). Mr. Alvarez continuing to focus on recruitment. Truancy and chronic absenteeism ongoing.
Academic progress highlights: Attendance rate slightly up from last year; chronic absenteeism significantly improved from last year; perfect attendance rate significantly up from last year
76 firm applications for enrollment next year of 180 open seats.
Great performance of kindergarteners! First year with new curriculum - all performing on grade level.
Reviewed renderings of new facility.
Presented by Ben. Costs savings from two positions not being refilled for the remainder of this year: Special Education position and Operations + Finance Director. MMA is restructuring to move some of the functions of that role to other existing positions, and will hire for a facilities lead. Consultancy filling in for this function for now.
Budget approval due by June 30. MMA and Edtec looking at staffing/contracts for next year.