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New Heights Charter School Board of Trustees

Minutes

May Board Meeting

Date and Time

Tuesday May 28, 2024 at 5:00 PM

Location

Zoom 

 

OR
 

1105 W Chestnut St

Brockton, MA 02301

New Heights Board of Trustees

Starting Time: 5:00pm

Location: 1105 W Chestnut Street 

Brockton, MA 02301

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ZOOM Meeting:

Description:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8981912806?pwd=WHJ2dE1sTHNYVlVmNUsvTkxEaW1JZz09


 

Trustees Present

G. Bengen (remote), G. Phillips, G. Swaby, J. Charnel (remote), M. Sullivan (remote), S. Bernard (remote), S. Jackson (remote), V. Marturano, W. Lyttle

Trustees Absent

G. Gibson Sheffield, J. Radzevich, N. Christ

Trustees who arrived after the meeting opened

G. Swaby, S. Jackson

Ex Officio Members Present

O. Walker

Non Voting Members Present

O. Walker

Guests Present

J. Geier, K. Kendrick, M. Fernandes, N. Jones, R. Lewis (remote), S. Graham (remote), T. Chin (remote), W. Libby (remote)

I. Opening Items

A.

Call the Meeting to Order

M. Sullivan called a meeting of the board of trustees of New Heights Charter School Board of Trustees to order on Tuesday May 28, 2024 at 5:01 PM.

B.

Approved Board Members List

C.

Roll Call

D.

Reading and Approval of Minutes

S. Bernard made a motion to approve the minutes from May 7th (formerly the April Mtg) Board Meeting on 05-07-24.
G. Phillips seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

II. Executive Director's Report

A.

Enrollment/Lottery Report

  • Lourdes presented the enrollment as of today
    • 724 students enrolled
  • The projected enrollment for 24-25 is 735
    • There have been 600 applicants for next school year since December 2023
  • Is the 724 enrolled the same number reported as last month?
    • No, we've had three students transfer recently
    • Can we include a column that says changes from the last report? 
      • Yes we can. 
S. Jackson arrived at 5:07 PM.

B.

Senate Ways & Means Budget

  • Maria presented an update on the Senate Ways and Means budget recommendations, focusing on the increase to early college programs. https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1mvlFYs8Njezj29c4-n8G6LCbz-3xFuvhVnIec0kmRWk/edit?usp=sharing
  • Does the Ways and Means committee receive recommendations from the public to advocate for more funds or is it something taken care of by the Charter Association? Is there anything we should be doing as a board member to advocate? 
    • Lourdes heads up New Heights advocacy but there is a week where the MCPSA focuses on advocacy to the State to ensure they know the issues before they begin setting the budget. NHCSB sent over 200 postcards to the State this year. 

C.

Massasoit Community College Partnership Update

  • Maria presented the following presentation as an update on our Massasoit partnership: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1h802FV8YEuQVmoaxGXQqOReF9Oib5vIaa62TVUcWCqI/edit?usp=sharing
    • Has been the best year in terms of the partnership to work through system challenges. 
    • Judge Phillips pointed out the number of Female vs Male graduates at the MCC  as something to note moving forward. 
      • The number of Associate's graduates are nearly an even split, the ceremony was optional so it was just who came to the event.
G. Swaby arrived at 5:24 PM.

D.

College Transition and Career Development Update

  • Paula presented the following presentation to provide updates on the College Transition and Career Development programs: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1A_Sn8vI0Gr5s3icKphtq2IVPjCafWOOWAhwmgDJfSLA/edit?usp=sharing
    • Is the career immersion limited to a certain age group? 
      • Most certification is for dual enrollment seniors. The entrepreneurship course was offered to dual enrollment juniors as well. Some sites have age limits as well that limit who is allowed to sit for certification and receive job placement. 

E.

Upcoming Events

  • Tim presented the upcoming events through the end of the school year: 
    • May 31 - Senior BBQ at NHCSB, 4-7pm
    • June 3 - Senior Awards Night, 5-7pm
    • June 6 - Graduation at BSU Rondileau Student Union Auditorium, 6-8pm
      • Board members should arrive by 5:30pm
    • June 7 - Heights vs. Heroes Basketball game at NHCSB, 6-8pm
    • June 18 - 8th grade Step Up ceremony, 6-9pm

F.

May 2024 Board Spotlights

  • The following presentation was given on spotlights for the month: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1LW9oX24l6dsfgZXsvmfOuhC0Y9Q9tbAlbRIzgyUl9JQ/edit#slide=id.g28da6fd4db1_0_0
J. Charnel made a motion to approve the Executive Director's report as presented.
G. Bengen seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

III. Old Business

A.

2024 Scholarship Updates

  • Maria presented an update on the scholarship funds and disbursement: 
    • The Board has raised $7,065
    • The Founders have raised $6,501
    • In total, the Foundation has raised $24,566, the majority of which will be presented to seniors as scholarships awarded at Senior Night. 

IV. New Business

A.

Staff Handbook Updates

  • Dr. Jones presented some changes for the staff handbook, with the understanding that they will be passed through our legal counsel to ensure they meet all requirements. 
    • Grievance policy - adding in steps of how to use grievance leave so staff know who to approach if they need it. 
    • Personal relationships - adding in language regarding personal relationships creating substantial disruptions in the environment as an inappropriate relationship.
      • Is there language related to relationships with direct reports? 
        • There is currently and when this has happened in the past we have changed the reporting structure in order to avoid possible issues. This policy is geared towards relationships not between supervisor and direct report but in regards to relationships that cause disruption in the school. 
    • Not in the staff handbook but want to bring back a uniform for students with different colors for each grade level. 
      • Question about when we removed the uniform
        • We removed the uniforms this year and parents have requested that we bring them back. 
  • Hoping the board will vote on it and if nothing material comes from legal review the policies will stand. Any material changes will be reported to the board. 
G. Phillips made a motion to approve the policies as presented.
G. Bengen seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

V. Academic Excellence Committee

A.

Progress Updates

  • Renee, Kandice, and Shana presented the attached Academic Excellence Committee presentation to provide an update on Instructional Priorities. 
  • What impact does the acceleration of student learning have on the stress level for teachers? 
    • We don't think that it impacts the stress level because part of being a teacher here is signing onto the mission and part of the work of the Professional Development and Support is helping teachers to meet the high expectations to help scholars accelerate. 

B.

Teacher Licensure Conditions

  • Dr. Jones presented the attached new sample letter for staff who are being renewed with conditions. These conditions are for teachers who aren't certified to ensure they register for the MTEL and training to complete at least one missing test by October 13, 2024. Support will be provided for these teachers to pass the tests. This will help ensure that we have certified teachers on staff. The expectation is that teachers meet these conditions by the end of December of they will receive a 10% reduction in their salary. 
    • What do we have prior to this? 
      • Prior to Covid a teacher would have until the next school year to get certified or we have to notify all parents that we have an uncertified teacher on staff. Typically we would non-renew teachers who couldn't receive certification before the next school year. During Covid the State came out with Emergency Licenses that were recognized as full licenses and easier to get. These were extended through next school year but that will be the last time. We have a lot of teachers on the Emergency License currently. This is an aggressive way to mandate that teachers get this training. We offered it last year and teachers didn't take advantage of it. The expectation is that teachers show they're making progress towards getting their license. The hope is to not have to let teachers go at the end of the year as they will have passed the MTEL. 
      • Do they have to show progress or be certified by the date? 
        • They have to show progress. We have specific dates to show progress as that is the main thing we aren't seeing. The hope is that teachers will pass it by the end of the year.   
    • Is this part of the standard Dr. Jones talked about? 
      • Yes, Renee and Dr. Jones will be in charge of ensuring these conditions are met. 
    • How often will reports be made to the Board on the progress? 
      • We will use the dates on the condition to report.
    • How many teachers are on Emergency Licenses and how many teachers would be implicated by this condition? 
      • 5 staff are currently on Emergency Licenses, 3 have let those licenses lapse. This is out of approximately 60 teachers. 
G. Bengen made a motion to approve the teacher licensure conditions as presented.
J. Charnel seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

VI. Finance Committee

A.

YTD Finances

  • Shelly presented the finances to date. 
    • Some additional revenue has come in from Massasoit and grant funding, about 3% different from the approved budget. Personnel costs are running behind due to bonuses that will be paid out in the next month or so. Administrative costs are running over because of expenses that have come through that will even out through the rest of the year. Instructional and Occupancy costs are inline with what we have budgeted. Overall the budget is operating in the black. 
    • $1 million has been moved from the operating account to the money market and CD accounts that were opened. 
    • Overall the budget and accounts are inline for what we are expecting this year. 
J. Charnel made a motion to accept the report as presented.
V. Marturano seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

VII. Governance Committee

A.

ED Evaluation

  • The deadline for the ED's evaluation is extended to Friday, when it will close. Currently at about 50% participation. 

VIII. Good of the Order

A.

June Board Meeting - Change in Date

  • Proposed change to Monday, June 24th due to travel for a conference conflicting with June 25th time. 
  • No objections to the change, an updated calendar invite will be sent out reflecting the new date. 

B.

Interact Club

  • Last Thursday, 12 students went to the Thorny Lea Golf Course to attend the Rotary meeting as representatives of the Interact Club sponsored by the Rotary. These students received certificates and the rotary donated $500 to the Interact Club. Next year the goal is to earmark a scholarship for the Club.

IX. Closing Items

A.

Adjourn Meeting

G. Phillips made a motion to adjourn the meeting.
V. Marturano seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
There being no further business to be transacted, and upon motion duly made, seconded and approved, the meeting was adjourned at 7:04 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
M. Sullivan
Documents used during the meeting
  • BOT Senate Ways and Means Update.pdf
  • Academic Excellence Committee Presentation.pdf
  • Sample Re-Appointment Letter with new conditions 24-25 NHCSB (1).pdf
  • Board April Financial Reports.pdf