David Taylor, Board President, introduced Ralph Woodard as a potential candidate for the Reach Cyber Charter School Board of Trustees. 

Marcella Arline, Trustee, shared that she had worked with Mr. Woodard and that she highly recommends him for the position. 

Mr. Woodard shared his appreciation for being nominated. 

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. There were no changes needed at
this time.

Jane Swan, CEO, reviewed the current enrollment numbers for the school noting trends in
enrollment. Current enrollment stands at 6,475 students.

Mrs. Swan provided an update on the Auditor General's audit of cyber charter schools. The Auditor General has sent seven requests for additional information which the school has provided. 

Mrs. Swan additionally shared that the Cognia Accreditation process is going well.

Michael Garman, Director of Human Resources, reviewed current staffing levels with the
Board highlighting the authorized complement of 919 and the 880 current staff members
of which 83% are 10-month staff. There have been 126 new hires and 41 departures
since the beginning of the school year.

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.

Matt Ryan asked if we could be expected to continue to see the efficiencies moving forward that we currently see as a result from leaving Pearson. Ms. Yeselavage advised that it was hard to predict future technology costs, but generally speaking the efficiencies should continue.

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 March 20, 2024, board minutes
• Approval of Staffing Report
• Approval to Renew MOU with Sigma Resources
• Approval to Renew Agreement with Pennsylvania Free Enterprise Week
• Approval to Renew MOU with Moore College of Art and Design
• Approval to Continue Agreement with Flexpoint
• Approval to Continue Agreement with Edmentum
• Approval to Continue Agreement with Brainpop
• Approval of Special Education Policies
• Approval of Audit Report

Lee Ann Ritchie, Chief Academic Officer, presented an affiliation agreement with Stroudsburg University for the University to send teacher candidates to work at Reach.

JD Smith, Director of EDIB and Career Readiness, presented a proposal to partner with Penn State LaunchBox for a Career Mentoring Program that promotes entrepreneurial skills for students. 

Mr. Garman requested approval for an agreement with Bayada Staffing to provide nurses for certain state testing sites. 

Mr. Garman requested approval to implement two changes to the salary structures and pay ranges of the current compensation system. 

Scott, Stuccio, Director of Outreach, requested approval of an updated marketing campaign for the 2024-25 school year. The new campaign will feature students and their parents sharing how Reach has made them successful as students as well as Administrators and Educators sharing how Reach has created a curriculum and culture for student success. 

 

Brandie Karpew, Board and Legislative Liaison, provided a government affairs updated specifically highlighting the Governor's proposed budget cut for cyber charter schools. She additionally shared the school's efforts at grassroots advocacy. 

Dr. Kelly McConnell shared that state testing for students in scheduled to begin next Monday, April 22, 2024. Reach will be testing at 40 locations across Pennsylvania to ensure that all students have a location within an hour of driving time from their homes.

The Board entered into an Executive Session at 9:52 a.m. 

The Board entered into an Executive Session 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, Paul Donecker, Marcella Arline, Matt Ryan, and Ralph Woodard.Guests present at the request of the Board were:  Jane Swan and Mike Garman. All others left the meeting at this time.

Board Resolution: Salary adjustments and Pay ranges.

Be it resolved that the Reach Cyber Charter School Board of Trustees delegates to the CEO, the authority to analyze and adjust salary ranges, according to market data, with approval by the Board, from this date, April 17, 2024, forward.