The January meeting of the DeKalb Brilliance Academy Governing Board is called to order at [TIME].

Anyone that is here for public comment, please indicate by signing up on the clipboard in the back OR in the chat in zoom by X:10 PM if you would like to make a comment. We will have two minutes for each speaker, in the order in which we receive the request to comment.

Our mission: With unwavering commitment to exceptional academics, leadership development, and community collaboration, DeKalb Brilliance Academy prepares all Kindergarten-8th grade students to thrive in high school and college, have fulfilling careers, and become impactful leaders in our communities.

Our vision: Each child will know and leverage their unique brilliance to critically analyze the world around them and to design a better and more equitable future.

• Build excellence: We know that an excellent school starts with an excellent founding team. We come to our time together well-prepared, fulfill our commitments, and generate new ideas to accomplish our goals.
• Stay engaged: We stay engaged by “remaining morally, emotionally, intellectually, and socially involved in the dialogue.”
• Embrace disagreement: We value disagreement and agree to bring issues into the open. It is through dialogue, even when uncomfortable, that we grow as a team to best serve our students.
• Take responsibility for intent and impact: We assume best intent, and also take responsibility for the impact of our actions.
• Process, not the people: We know that everyone is working hard for the team, and look first at how to change the process, policies, or plans when we don’t reach our goals.

If people sign up:

• Transparency: Board meetings are a public forum to provide transparency into the governance of the school. Engagement from the community is strongly encouraged and vital to that governance. We value and appreciate the input from our community members. As we proceed with public comments, we would like to remind everyone of the following guidelines:
• Time Limit: A total of 30 minutes shall be set aside for public comment.  Each speaker will have a maximum of 2 minutes to speak.  A speaker may not sign up to speak more than once during the same public comment period
• Board Action: The board cannot respond to public comment in the meeting, and in general needs to listen, and then follow up after the board meeting, this is because the board acts through policies and votes as a governing body, not through individuals, so we cannot respond until the board has the information to respond as a group (as opposed to individually), as applicable. We understand this can feel awkward, but please know that we are taking careful notes and take all feedback to the board seriously. The board will direct an appropriate committee or the Head of Schools to engage in responding at a later time as necessary and appropriate.
• Scope of discussion: Please be aware that certain topics cannot be discussed during the public comment period. These include, but are not limited to, pending investigations or legal matters, personnel matters, confidential student information and matters, and issues that are subject to ongoing grievance or complaint procedures. Any attempt to discuss these topics during public comment will not be permitted.
• Discourse: Speakers are encouraged to maintain decorum and present their comments in a civil manner.  The Governing Board reserves the right to request any speaker engaging in defamatory comments to cease. We appreciate your cooperation and understanding in adhering to these guidelines.
• Any disruptive members of the public will be asked to cease their disruption to allow the Board meeting to continue. If the disruption continues, the disruptive member will be asked to leave the meeting.
• Start public comment: “the order we have for public comment is XYZ”

If people do not sign up: “seeing no requests for public comment, we will move to the next section of our agenda”

Finance Committee Update

• December financial (presentation + details).
• Days cash on hand in strong position

24-25 Comprehensive Performance Framework: Finance

• 24-25 Comprehensive Performance Framework misses the mark by 5 points. 
• Currently appealing 15 points. 
• Will continue to work with EdTec to align structures to prevent any future audit issues (the one, small issue in the FY25 audit cost the school 20 points on CPF because the indicator is all-or-none).
• 25-26 Financial indicators on CPF tracking to be in the green 

Q2 Academic Dashboard and Response Plan

• Strategic staffing adjustments aligned to the RIF rubric to strengthen instructional leadership
• Corrected scope and sequence misalignments in upper elementary to ensure alignment to assessed standards
• Implemented weekly quizzes and schoolwide data analysis cycles to monitor mastery and adjust instruction in real time

Full academic dashboard available here. 

24-25 Comprehensive Performance Framework: Academics

Outperformed  by 10 or more points in all grade bands served on all measures

• Vetting grants for school to apply to (LeKenya)
• Sourcing fundraisers to recruit to the board (Joseph)
• Supporting annual campaign board work (Curtis)
  • All board members have an annual give/get commitment of $1,500 by June 30th.Thank you for the fundraising work you do for our school - it is crucial to reach our goals for our students. 
  • If you are a new board member, please go to our fundraising page and click "start a fundraiser". Follow the prompts to create your fundraising page. 
  • If you are a returning board member, because this year's fundraiser is focused on the same goal (we're halfway to our playground fundraising goal), you do *not* need to make new fundraising pages. Instead, please:
    • 1. Go to your fundraising page and click "edit page"
    • 2) increase your amount to include the $1,500 goal for this year (e.g. increase from $1,500 to $3,000). 
  • 3) Reach out to your previous donors (list here) and ask - "Last year you helped get us to the halfway point on the money we need for a playground. Can I count on you to give again this year to get us to the finish line?"

Both - use our marketing kit to help you craft emails and/or posts to get the link to your fundraising page out to your audience. 

See slides here. 

Align shutouts to board agreements:

• Build excellence: We know that an excellent school starts with an excellent founding team. We come to our time together well-prepared, fulfill our commitments, and generate new ideas to accomplish our goals.
• Stay engaged: We stay engaged by “remaining morally, emotionally, intellectually, and socially involved in the dialogue.”
• Embrace disagreement: We value disagreement and agree to bring issues into the open. It is through dialogue, even when uncomfortable, that we grow as a team to best serve our students.
• Take responsibility for intent and impact: We assume best intent, and also take responsibility for the impact of our actions.
• Process, not the people: We know that everyone is working hard for the team, and look first at how to change the process, policies, or plans when we don’t reach our goals.

• Save the Dates:
  • February 11–12: Required SCSC training 
    • Joseph, Quentin, Mesha & Curtis required to attend 1 day
    • Sharicka, Jenea, & LaKenya required to attend 1.5 days
  • February Board Meeting: Monday, February 23, 2026  

Now we will adjourn our board business. 

As a reminder, we don’t need a motion to close - I will just ask if there is any further business, and if there is none, we can adjourn board business. Do we have any further board business to discuss? 

<Pause> 

Seeing none, I adjourn official board business.