CEO Darilek first welcomed the Principal of each school to the meeting, and remarked on their contributions to the teacher compensation proposal.  She then noted that the school year was well into the third quarter with only five weeks to Spring Break.  

CEO Darilek thanked Board members who attended the last all-staff session.  Board members in attendance provided reflections on the session, and encouraged other Board members to participate in the next session, which will be held on April 20 from 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.  CEO Darilek then informed the Board of two cross-campus feedback sessions held earlier in the week to obtain input on the school calendar, brand, and planning for next year (with a focus on family engagement).

Next, CEO Darilek provided highlights on each school:

• All three schools will have musical productions: Annie at the Elementary School, Beauty in the Beast at the Middle School, and the Wiz at the High School.
• At the Elementary School, the signature learning program continues to get stronger, with increased rigor and participation from families.
• The Middle School is preparing for a science fair. At the end of the month, eighth graders will visit with civil rights leader and Congressman John Lewis.
• The High School recently supported over 160 E.L. Haynes students, as well as about 15 parents in Summer Youth Employment Program registration. 

She then provided other key updates related to the school review and budget.  CEO Darilek reminded Board members of upcoming events, including the Black History Month celebration to be held the following week.  

Board Chair Smith provided background on the teacher compensation structure agenda item.  She noted the required Board approval of the annual budget, and indicated that teacher compensation is a key driver of overall expenses.  Accordingly, the Board would be asked to approve the proposed change in teacher salary scales.  Board Chair Smith thanked COO Carlo-Miranda and her team for their immense efforts in creating and modeling the proposal. She also remarked that the current proposal incorporates input from the Audit, Finance, and Facilities and School Performance Committees. At this time, Board Chair Smith turned to CEO Darilek to review the proposal.  

Referring to materials provided in advance of the meeting, CEO Darilek discussed the reasoning for the proposal and reviewed themes from teacher surveys and feedback sessions related to compensation. She explained that teacher feedback has affirmed the guiding principles for compensation: transparency, equity, sustainability, recognition, full picture matters, and external competitiveness.

CEO Darilek then presented the recommended teacher salary scales, discussed key factors considered, and compared the proposal to teacher salaries at DC Public Schools.   She asked Board members for questions about the recommendation and modeled financial impacts.  The Board asked numerous questions, including questions about recruitment and the competitiveness of the proposed teacher salaries, potential differentiation of compensation based on advance degrees or certifications, assumptions used to model the impact of the teacher compensation proposal, the scope and length of potential grandfathering under the proposal, potential performance-related components, and how often the new structure would be reviewed, among other topics. 

COO Carlo-Miranda then discussed sustainability of the teacher salary proposal, and reviewed assumptions used to model potential impacts.  She also described various scenarios comparing the current teacher salary structure to the proposal, and the impact under each scenario on metrics, such as days of cash on hand and debt service coverage ratio.

Board members then asked about key drivers between the most conservative and likely scenarios, as well as the strategy to mitigate potential increases in budget.  In response COO Carlo-Mirando explained that the modeled budget is based on the worst case scenario and discussed numerous items that would reduce the required budget.  

 

Committee Chair McDonough provided an update on the Annual Fund, and noted increases in certain gifts as a result of donor cultivation.    

She reminded Board members to provide their commitment level for the Toast for Transformation to Senior Development Director Callahan, as well as to contact individuals on their invite lists.  Committee Chair McDonough then noted an upcoming cultivation event that would be held in advance of the Toast for Transformation.  

Committee Chair Rawson recognized fellow Committee members Hall and Smith for their efforts to recruit and screen parent trustee candidates.   Committee Chair Rawson indicated that potential Trustee candidates would be discussed in-depth at the March meeting.   

Committee Chair Westendorf provided an overview of two topics discussed at the recent School Performance Committee meeting: 1) attendance and absenteeism and 2) middle school metrics.  He noted that although E.L. Haynes absenteeism rates are better than city-wide averages, the Committee noted additional work to be done to determine root causes and create solutions.  

Committee Chair Westendorf then referred to the materials provided in advance of the meeting, and asked Board members for questions on those materials.  Board members asked Mr. Westendorf to provide updates on the following matters at the next Board meeting: recruitment for the Middle School Principal, retention and recruiting strategies at the middle school, and information on the upcoming graduating class.