E.L. Haynes Public Charter School
Minutes
October 2022 Board of Trustees Meeting
Date and Time
Tuesday October 4, 2022 at 6:15 PM
Location
E.L. Haynes Public Charter School
4501 Kansas Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20011
High School Think Tank
Trustees Present
F. Sutton, G. Navidi-Kasmai (remote), J. Edelman, J. Hanna, L. Carlton Waller, M. Hall (remote), N. Greene, R. Laine, R. Payes, T. Gibian (remote)
Trustees Absent
E. Westendorf, M. Kovner
Guests Present
Alvin Greene, B. Wagner-Friel (remote), Basil Chawkat, DiAnte McGriff, Electra Bolotas (remote), Emily Hueber-Stoetzer (remote), Gwyn Prater, H. Darilek, J. Callahan, J. Rydstrom, K. Wynne, K. Yochum, Kailah Covington, Matan Karasov, Myles Bradshaw, R. Hunt Taylor, Tashiyra Freeman
I. Opening Items
A.
Record Attendance
B.
Call the Meeting to Order
J. Edelman called a meeting of the board of trustees of E.L. Haynes Public Charter School to order on Tuesday Oct 4, 2022 at 6:17 PM.
C.
Approve Minutes
J. Edelman made a motion to approve the minutes from 08-25-2022 August 2022 Board Meeting on 08-25-22.
R. Laine seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
D.
Public Comment
II. CEO Update
A.
CEO Update
- Reflecting on public comment: every voice is valuable at this time; in no way did I intend to signal that the conversation needed to stop and I will reflect on that; I want to find ways for us to have more conversations about these topics this year; regarding the survey, we had more staff respond than before; regarding masks, input from the survey is only one factor that will affect masking - we're looking at how other schools are responded, city and E.L. Haynes case rate data, community vaccination rates - and I will be the final decision-maker; regarding intersession - we're going to launch family and staff engagement focus groups beginning next year; we have an all-staff meeting on October 21 (board members are invited to join) - we will share back the data and engage all staff members in a conversation around calendars; we will then hold more focus groups; I am committed to engaging you in ways that are most convenient for you, so if it's email, then it's email.
- Now we're in week #7, learning is happening, sports art happening, we are preparing for Hispanic Heritage Month. There is lots of learning and joy.
- Next school year we will complete our five-year with the DC Public Charter School Board. Part of their analysis is a qualitative site review, we are preparing for that now and are working to prepare our community. That will take place in January.
- Tomorrow is Enrollment Count Day. It's the day we lock in the number we report to the city for budgeting. In May you approved 1,160; today we counted 1,166. This was slightly under our expectation at ES, same as MS, and higher at the HS (especially at 9th grade). We saw a slight increase in our ELL (especially secondary) students, and an increase in at-risk students. We did see an increase in students with a level 4 IEP.
- There is a big "no immunizations, no school" campaign from the city. As of today we have 27 non-compliant PK - 5th graders who are on an exclusionary list starting next year. When we include students who have an appointment scheduled, there are only 4 who could be excluded. The deadline for 6th - 12th graders, we currently have 68 students who are on the exclusion list.
III. Governance
A.
Recruitment Update and Next Steps
- M. Hall recapped that there are some strong candidates for Board membership.
- J. Callahan provided an overview of current opening, upcoming openings including potential vacancies. There are two candidates being considered, we hope to bring one to the November meeting for a full vote. There is a second candidate that we voted to elect someone in May, they deferred, and they may be able to now join.
- J. Callahan closed with an invitation for members to refer any potential leads.
IV. School Performance
A.
SY 2022-2023 Organizational Dashboard
- R. Hunt-Taylor, we've been discussing PARCC scores and holding Parent Teacher Conferences, and our dashboard.
- R. Hunt-Taylor provided a high-level overview of new metrics, like family and staff engagement, HR and professional development, and other student wellness information.
- R. Hunt-Taylor talked about how the survey question about intersession wasn't necessarily "do we continue intersession," it's about how we can use time to most effectively drive student learning. Intersession is a strategy that we could continue to use. The Core Leadership team will also have input in the decision, and I am doing best practice research from around the country. I will make a recommendation to the Chiefs that will then be provided to the board for a final decision.
- R. Laine applauded the School Performance Committee for not shying away from data and engaging in hard conversations about how we serve students better.
- G. Navidi-Kasmai asked about how the efforts last year to explore teacher and schedule flexibility have moved forward. R. Hunt-Taylor said that each campus has its own pilot programs that will launch. R. Hunt-Taylor also emphasized that part of the conversation is also about how we craft the work day so teachers have planning time.
V. Audit, Finance, and Facilities
A.
FY22 Budget Update
- N. Greene provided an overview of the most recent Audit, Finance, and Facilities Committee Meeting. This year we have new members and we are excited to wrestle with questions of fiscal sustainability.
- J. Rydstrom provided an overview of the committee's goals for SY22-23, a quick fiscal overview of SY21-22: generally, we spent within our means and managed money smartly; we ended the school year with a greater fiscal cushion that most schools have.
B.
FY23 Early Budget Updates
- J. Rydstrom noted that our budget is currently on track, with higher than expected enrollment and increased staffing costs due to implementation of the new teacher salary scale - mostly for new teachers coming in higher on the salary scale.
C.
FY22 Audit Update
- J. Rydstrom noted that they are on-track to provide the SY21-22 fiscal audit.
- N. Greene reflected on the quality of our fiscal management.
- R. Laine talked about the necessity to ease the drop in funding to make sure we don't cut funding for academic supports.
VI. Community Relations Committee
A.
Annual Fund Update
- We are on-track for our individual giving line, the primary drive of individual giving is our EOY campaign.
- We are waiting to hear from OSSE about Government funding opportunities.
B.
FY23 EOY Giving Plan and FY23 Development Plan
- Our FY23 goal is to become less reliant on government grant - build up foundation, corporate, and individual (EOY and events); we will also focus on activating lapsed donors.
- J. Callahan provided an overview of our FY23 development goals and anticipated revenue by funding source (individual, government, foundation, corporate).
C.
Three-Year Event Strategy
- J. Callahan will share more about the three-year event strategy with board members via email.
- F. Sutton added that we are looking to increase our city-wide advocacy and community relations, especially how to include non-Board members, staff members, and neighbors in that work.
- J. Callahan invited members to all the all-staff meeting and Hispanic Heritage Night celebration.
D.
Motion to Move Into Closed Session
R. Laine made a motion to Move into closed session.
F. Sutton seconded the motion.
The board VOTED to approve the motion.
VII. 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 8:00 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
J. Edelman
M. Bradshaw
G. Prater
K. Covington
M. Karasov
E. Bolotas
A. Greene