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Simple Vue Academy

Minutes

SVA Governing Board Meeting

Date and Time

Thursday May 29, 2025 at 7:45 PM

Location

Douglasville First United Methodist Church

6167 Prestley Mill Rd

Douglasville, GA 30134

Trustees Present

C. Henderson, C. Thorbes, E. Estrada-Olufade, M. Wills Brown

Trustees Absent

A. Helton

Trustees who arrived after the meeting opened

M. Wills Brown

Guests Present

M. Felts, N. Edouard

I. Opening Items

A.

Record Attendance

B.

Call the Meeting to Order

C. Thorbes called a meeting of the board of trustees of Simple Vue Academy to order on Thursday May 29, 2025 at 7:09 PM.
M. Wills Brown arrived at 7:15 PM.

C.

Approval of Minutes from April 16, 2025 Board Meeting

E. Estrada-Olufade made a motion to approve the minutes from The Simple Vue Academy Governing Board Meeting on 04-16-25.
C. Henderson seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
Roll Call
M. Wills Brown
Absent
C. Henderson
Aye
C. Thorbes
Aye
E. Estrada-Olufade
Aye
A. Helton
Absent

D.

Approval of Minutes from April 28, 2025 Special Called Meeting

E. Estrada-Olufade made a motion to approve the minutes from SVA Special Called Board Meeting on 04-28-25.
C. Henderson seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
Roll Call
C. Henderson
Aye
A. Helton
Absent
E. Estrada-Olufade
Aye
M. Wills Brown
Absent
C. Thorbes
Aye

E.

Approval of Minutes from May 7, 2025 Public Budget Hearing

E. Estrada-Olufade made a motion to approve the minutes from SVA Public Budget Public Hearing on 05-07-25.
C. Henderson seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
Roll Call
C. Henderson
Aye
A. Helton
Absent
E. Estrada-Olufade
Aye
C. Thorbes
Aye
M. Wills Brown
Absent

F.

Adoption of Agenda

E. Estrada-Olufade made a motion to adopt the May 29, 2025 board meeting agenda.
C. Henderson seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
Roll Call
A. Helton
Absent
M. Wills Brown
Absent
C. Thorbes
Aye
E. Estrada-Olufade
Aye
C. Henderson
Aye

G.

Amend the Agenda

The board would like to

  • Move the Public Comment section up on the agenda to address the FY26 budget.
  • Add nominating new board members to the agenda.
E. Estrada-Olufade made a motion to amend the agenda for the May 29 board meeting.
C. Henderson seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
Roll Call
M. Wills Brown
Absent
C. Thorbes
Aye
C. Henderson
Aye
A. Helton
Absent
E. Estrada-Olufade
Aye

II. Committee Reports

A.

Governance Committee

The board interviewed five people for the open seats on the board.

There are three candidates that the board would like to nominate: Anthony Giles, Lavette Curry, and Dr. Ray Brown. 

All three candidates demonstrated potential dedication to the board position. They presented a breadth of experience, including charter authorization and compliance experience.

B.

Academic Committee

The Academic Committee does not have anything to report.

III. Unfinished Business Matters

A.

Amended Personnel Handbook

The Personnel Handbook is currently under review by the attorneys for legal compliance.

IV. New Business Matters

A.

The Simple Vue Academy FY26 Budget

The Board reviewed the FY26 budget and requested public comment/feedback. No public comment/feedback was offered. 

C. Henderson made a motion to adopt the Simple Vue Academy FY26 budget.
E. Estrada-Olufade seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
Roll Call
C. Henderson
Aye
A. Helton
Absent
C. Thorbes
Aye
M. Wills Brown
Absent
E. Estrada-Olufade
Aye

B.

Interim Board Chair

C. Henderson made a motion to table the discussion on the Interim Board Chair.
M. Wills Brown seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

C.

Governance Consultant

M. Wills Brown made a motion to approve the 21 Cobalt Governance Proposal.
E. Estrada-Olufade seconded the motion.

Based on the recommendation by the executive director, the board will move forward with the proposal from 21 Cobalt for our governance support

The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

D.

Academic Design & Coaching

M. Wills Brown made a motion to approve the proposal Academic Design & Coaching proposal from Simply Great Schools.
E. Estrada-Olufade seconded the motion.

Based on the recommendation from the executive director, the board will proceed with the proposal from Simply Great Schools for Academic Design & Coaching support.

The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

E.

Facility Spend

M. Wills Brown made a motion to approve the facility spend of $34,950.00.
E. Estrada-Olufade seconded the motion.

The necessary improvements and renovations include fencing, plumbing, and other facility repairs. CSP will cover the majority of the costs, but some expenses may be incurred out of pocket and will be returned as rent credits at a later time. 

The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

F.

Technology Spend

M. Wills Brown made a motion to approve on the technology spend of $125,000.
E. Estrada-Olufade seconded the motion.

CSP funding allocates $125,000 for staff devices, student devices, smartboards, charging carts, and a copier. As it stands, we will only need to spend $110,468 on the technology, but the board would like to approve the entire allocation. 

The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

G.

Furniture Spend

M. Wills Brown made a motion to approve the furniture spend of $150,000.
C. Henderson seconded the motion.

CSP allocates $150,000 for furniture spending. As it stands, we will only be spending $93,000 on furniture, but the board would like to approve the entire allocation.

The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

V. Executive Session

A.

Personnel Contract

M. Wills Brown made a motion to move to Executive Session to discuss a personnel contract.
E. Estrada-Olufade seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
M. Wills Brown made a motion to approve the updated Executive Director's contract for SY26.
C. Henderson seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

VI. 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 7:35 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
M. Wills Brown