The August 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 3 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”

Governance update covering three areas of charter renewal preparation:

Strategic Plan: Board retreat moved to September for full in-person attendance. Scheduling options are in the board survey linked in Closing. Draft plan returns to the board in November for discussion, with a vote in January. The school is re-engaging an external strategic planning partner to facilitate this work.

Charter Renewal: The board voted in July to seek a five-year renewal. The SCSC site visit window opens in September–October; scheduling is to be determined and board members may be interviewed. The renewal application is released in early November and due in early January, with a Commission vote in late February.

Community Voice: Family advisory structure targeted for September. Three or more community listening sessions by November, including families, scholars, staff, and board, will feed the strategic plan draft.

Committee meeting times: Governance, Academics, and Partnerships to confirm FY27 meeting times offline - this will be in our closing steps.

Finance update covering FY26 close and the FY27 outlook:

FY26 close: The school finished within $3,096 of the approved budget. Net income was a loss of $329,071 against a budgeted loss of $325,975. Expenses came in $128,365 favorable. Personnel was $308,685 over budget, driven by additional staffing to meet special education needs. All FY26 grants were drawn down by June 30.

SCSC financial performance framework: DBA projects 90 of 100 points for FY26, which meets financial performance standards. Full credit on current ratio, unrestricted days cash, timely debt repayment, and enrollment variance. Partial credit on annual debt-to-income, efficiency margin, and debt-to-asset ratio. Measures dependent on the independent audit and SCSC monitoring remain projections.

FY27 outlook: The awarded CSGF grant and higher-than-estimated charter supplement actuals bring projected FY27 net income to $1,135,568, an increase of $956,263 over the board-approved budget.

Proposed investment of additional resources: Board discussion of a proposed $425,000 investment — playground, part-time operations support, student computers, strategic planning, and website update — with $531,263 retained for future capital needs. Discussion only; no action requested at this meeting.

See slides here. 

Board working session on tax credit fundraising.

Overview of the PEACH Education Tax Credit, which allows Georgia taxpayers to redirect state income tax owed to DBA on a dollar-for-dollar basis at no net cost to the donor. Review of the application process, designation to DBA, and contribution limits by filing status and entity type.

Board members will complete their own PEACH applications during the meeting and identify one additional Georgia taxpayer in their network.

Brief orientation to the federal scholarship tax credit taking effect January 1, 2027, and what remains unknown pending U.S. Treasury guidance.

Board working session on composition and recruitment.

Review of current committee composition across Governance, Finance, Academics, and Partnerships, and the board's own assessment that recruitment is off track.

Review of the term horizon: four of nine board members complete their first term at the end of FY27 and are eligible for a second term. Confirmation of intent requested by September 15.

Open seats: one on Academics and two on Partnerships, with priority on candidates who can advance fundraising. Chair succession planning to begin this year.

Each board member to name one prospective candidate.

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.

Closing & next steps

Apply for PEACH: Complete your application at gfpe.org and designate DBA this fall.

Confirm term intent: FY27-expiring members confirm second-term intent by September 15.

Name a candidate; One prospective board member with fundraising capacity.

Confirm committee times: Governance, Academics, and Partnerships send times to Mike & Jocelyn

Schedule September retreat: Complete board survey here - https://forms.gle/mwKcZtsJJ3poehfc9 

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.