There were no comments from the public at this time.

David Taylor, Board President, asked the board to review the agenda distributed prior to
the meeting and asked if any changes were needed. Two additional items were added to the agenda. 

• A proposal to reserve a certain amount of fund balance
• An executive session at the end of the meeting

Mrs. Swan reviewed the current enrollment numbers for the school noting trends in
enrollment. Current enrollment stands at 6,207 students with the highest concentration of students coming from the Southeast portion of the state.

Staffing Report: Michael Garman, Director of Human Resources, reviewed current staffing levels with the Board highlighting the authorized complement of 919 positions and the 861 current staff members of which 83% are 10-month staff.

There are 12 new hires scheduled to start by January 2024.

Karen Yeselavage, Director of Finance, reviewed the school’s financial statements with the Board. She reviewed the revenue and expense statements, advising on changes since the previous months’ statements. Ms. Yeselavage further reviewed with the Board the school’s balance sheet and current forecast. 

During this time, Ms. Yeslevage shared a proposal to place $22 million in budgetary reserves. These funds would be reserved for a future buliding purchase and for STEM and Career Readiness programs.

Rachel Graver, COO, presented this item to the Board. Mrs. Graver shared the plans for the school community outreach for this upcoming holiday season. 

Mr. Taylor asked if there were any items from the Consent Items that should be moved to Action Items for discussion or tabled. No changes were noted.

• Approval of Minutes from the October 18, 2023, Board Meeting
• Approval of Staffing Report
• Approval of Statement of Work for Employee Pulse Survey Delivery Services

The Outreach team including Scott Stuccio, Director of Outreach, Doug Miedel, Manager of External Outreach, Christin Sankey, Manager of School Outreach, and Jessica Rice, Supervisor of Social Media, shared details of a proposal to create the Reach Ambassador Program. This program will be designed to reward our families for helping to increase our school's enrollment. 

The Ambassador Program will: 

• Refer prospective families for enrollment 
• Utilize enrolled Learning Coaches to promote upcoming Virtual Information Sessions 
• Provide resources and answer questions for prospective families to have questions answered
• Attend Outreach tabling events as a spokesperson for the organization 
• Connect with other Learning Coaches for networking and build community
   

The Outreach Team proposed a series of agreements to engage Salesforce as our customer relationship management system for the purpose of lead tracking and marketing. 

Katherine Rutkowski, Director of MLTSS, proposed an agreement with UFLI (University of Florida Literacy Institute) Foundations. UFLI is an explicit and systematic program that teaches students the foundational skills necessary for proficient reading.  The program will be utilized in the elementary school to supplement the Canvas curriculum.  

A designee from the Board was requested to work with our state testing team to review and approve an agreement for computer-based state testing needs, including hardware, set-up, internet access, site survey, and equipment delivery. 

Marcella Arline recommended Matt Ryan as the designee. 

JD Smith, Director of Career Readiness, proposed a MOU with ArtsQuest’s Education & Outreach Program:. 

The ArtSmart Outreach includes: 

• 8 week virtual art program: Visual arts program courses include ceramics, painting, drawing, photography, mosaics, printmaking, and fiber arts. Other program disciplines include music, poetry, and literacy.
• Kit provided with art materials
• Cost: $706 for entire program, plus shipping for kits – minimum 10 students

Scott Shedd proposed an agreement with Bitsight, an external attack surface management (EASM) solution providing full visibility into the attack surface so Reach can understand where exposure exists today and monitor for the future. 

Josh Hicks, Manager of Federal Programs, proposed a virtual tutoring program aimed at enhancing the academic performance of students at Reach Cyber Charter School for the remainder of the 2023-24 school year.

Karen Yeselavage, Director of Finance, requested a total proposed reservation of fund balance of $22 Million. 

1) $20 million- 2 years of staff salaries and benefits for positions currently funded with ARP ESSER federal funding; this federal program will end 9/30/24

2) $1 million- Career Readiness initiatives

3) $1 million- Future building purchase

Ellen Min, Manager of Organizational Effectiveness & Belonging, provided an update on the diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts of our DEI Council. 

The update included: 

• A look at the DEI Council History
• An introduction to the DEI Council Members
• 2020-2023 Accomplishment Highlights
• 2023-2024 DEI Council Goals

Dr. Kelley McConnell provided a quarterly update on progress made on Reach's Charter School Improvement Plan. 

Brandie Karpew, Board and Legislative Liaison, shared an update on recent government
affairs, specifically highlighting the recent Basic Education Funding Commission hearings, legislator visits to our school, and David Taylor's role as speaker at the upcoming National School Choice Week rally in January.

The Board entered into an Executive Session at 10:16 a.m. upon a motion being made, seconded and confirmed via roll call vote of all Board members present.

The Board cited the following for entering into the Executive Session: Pursuant to 65 Pa.
C.S. §§ 708(a)
(1) – to discuss any matter involving the employment, appointment, termination of
employment, terms and conditions of employment, evaluation of performance, promotion
or disciplining of any specific prospective public officer or employee or current public
officer or employee and 65 Pa. C.S. §§ 708(a)(5) – To review and discuss agency
business which, if conducted in public, would violate a lawful privilege or lead to the
disclosure of information or confidentiality protected by law.

Board members present were: David Taylor, Marcella Arline, Matt
Ryan, Gail Hawkins Bush, and Anthony Alexander.

Guests present at the request of the Board were: Jane Swan, Mike Garman, Pat Hennessey, and Chris Barrett. All others left the meeting at this time.

No action was taken during Executive Session.

There being no further discussion and upon a motion being made, seconded and
confirmed via roll call vote of all Board members present, the Board resumed open
Session at 10:42 a.m.