The agenda was reviewed with no changes. 

There were no public comments.

Committee Chair Gatson shared Academic Highlights.  

The committee met on April 7th Big picture: excited about where they are landing with Benchmark #3, 

Benchmark #3 Student Performance - Most grade bands exceeded double AMO goals across subjects—ELA (grades 3–5 and high school), Math (K–2, 3–5, and high school), Science (elementary and high school), and Social Studies (middle and high school).

• The Academics Team and schools added Performance Training and EOC Takeover to strategies already in place at the schools to support the students’ understanding of the standards they did not master. This was in additional to Academic Progress Monitoring, Cohesive coaching and tutoring, to name a few.
• The committee had questions about testing conditions for benchmarks, tri-weeklys, Dibels - Dr. Tate shared that all tests are given as if they are in a TCAP type of environment, testing windows, blockers, etc.

Advanced Academics - 

• Currently 88% on track to graduation as of the meeting date
• Graduation Cohort Appeals process - tracking students who started with our 9th grade cohort to get a more accurate graduation cohort number
• This year, 64 students participated in dual enrollment courses: 39 in Pre-Calculus, 15 in English Comp II, and 10 in Sociology.

Prep for TN Ready - The committee discussed how the schools were preparing for TN Ready. There was some discussion in the board meeting about the 3rd grade commitment - how 3rd graders are supported and how we’re keeping families involved.

Dr. Burt shared that as of today, all schools are complete with testing and have a few makeups. He shared that he’s proud of the school leaders.
 

We’re expecting the re-take for the 3rd graders before the last day of school for those who did not pass the test the first time around (TNReady).  Dr. Tate used the final benchmark data to communicate with the families of students who were projected to not pass and we had around 60 families who received communication to register for the MSCS Summer Learning Academy. We expect to get the raw scores back from the state in May so we know who will need to complete the re-take.

Chief Carr shared highlights from the Finance Committee meeting. 

February 2026 Financial Highlights:

• Revenues exceeded expenditures by $1.2M, though this surplus is expected to decrease in May due to the absence of a TISA payment. Cash flow remains strong, with a projected 188 days of cash on hand as of June 2026 (excluding the First Horizon CD).

FY2026–27 Budget Highlights:

• The proposed budget is built on a projected enrollment of 1,002 students and reflects alignment of teacher and administrator salaries with the 2025-2026 M-SCS salary scale.  It also includes targeted retention and recruitment bonuses for SPED and ESL teachers to support staffing in high-need areas.  Additionally, the budget incorporates a planned use of $2.1 million in fund balance, primarily designated to support both operating and capital costs associated with the new elementary school.

Chief Carr also discussed the 2025-26 Adjusted Budget :

• In February, the Finance Committee and Board approved the purchase of the Cordova building.  In accordance with policy, an amended budget is now being presented for Board approval to formally ratify the financial impact of this acquisition.  The total cost of the building acquisition was $4,538,360.  $150,000 from this amount was funded through a combination of sources, including $150,000 from escrow, $2,964,653 from the liquidation of Charles Schwab investments, a $5,954 property tax credit, and $1,417,753 from cash reserves.

Chief Carr reviewed the 2026-27 Initial Budget in detail:

• Although the FY2026-27 initial budget is based on a projected enrollment of 1,002 students, Chief Phillips emphasized that KMPS intentionally sets enrollment targets above the budgeted figure.  For the upcoming school year, the goal is to secure 1,560 registered students in order to achieve a Day 1 enrollment of approximately 1,250 students and sustain that level thereafter.  This strategy reflects a proactive approach to account for expected attrition and ensure enrollment stability.
• The initial budget includes expenses associated with the new school; however, it does not assume any philanthropic revenue at this time.  We are continuing to actively pursue additional funding through grants and philanthropic support to supplement budgeted resources.
• Dr. Burt noted that many organizations, particularly those in a growth phase, typically have a dedicated development role focused exclusively on fundraising.  At present, we do not have a full-time position devoted to development.  Dr. Burt also provided an overview of several organizations and grant opportunities with which the team is currently in active discussions.
• Board Member Dorsey Hopson expressed his willingness to support the KMPS' fundraising efforts.  He also noted that the City Fund budget is expected to be approved in July and is anticipated to include funding support for KIPP Memphis.

Additional Initial Budget Highlights:

• Aligned salary to MSCS current salary scales (used 2025-26)
• We’re slightly lower than MSCS with our hard to staff stipends for ESL and SPED teachers.

Chief Williams presented the followings:

Board Recruitment: 

• The organization is actively recruiting additional board members, with a target board size of 12–15 members. A recruitment flyer will be shared soon for distribution within network.

Board Officer Nominations :

• Board Officer Nominations and voting will take place during the May Governance Committee and June 11th Board Meeting.  If you are interested in the Chair, Vice Chair, or Secretary position, please ensure you are on the nominations list by connecting with Governance Chair, Desiree Lyles Wallace!

Fundraising Update:

• As of 4/09/2026, fundraising totaled $31,965, with appreciation expressed to all contributors.
• Board Member Gatson:  Had a great time at the fundraiser - heard from the students at the fundraiser. The students spoke from the heart. Kudos to the team and the booklet/Annual report is great!

Board Training - 4 hours returning | 6 hours new (due 6/30/2026)

Chief Phillips presented and update and overview of the following:

2025–26 Enrollment: 

• As of April 9, 2026, enrollment stood at 1,006, which is 24 students below the adjusted budget. Enrollment has ranged from a high of 1,040 in mid-September to a low of 995 in early August.

Attendance & Chronic Absenteeism: 

• As of the end of March, average attendance across all three schools was 90%, while chronic absenteeism averaged 39%.

2026–27 Recruitment & Enrollment: 

• As of April 9, 941 students are registered for the 2026–27 school year (851 returning and 90 new), representing 60.3% of the 1,560 registration goal, with a target of at least 1,250 students attending on day one.
• Our anchor metric is to be less than 42% for Chronic Absenteeism.  We are currently at 972 registered students with 116 new to KIPP and still looking for and recruiting more students.

Facilities Grant Projects: 

• Completed Charter School Facilities Grant projects include camera system additions at Henry and interior lighting upgrades at Howell.
• There were some blind spots inside the Henry Campus and are now covering 3 additional hallways with security camera additions. Upgraded LED lighting in a number of hallways at the Howell Campus.

New school updates:

• Renovation Financing Estimated to be closer to May 29th.  There will have a ground breaking/sledge hammer ceremony, ribbon cutting ceremony and open houses that will be communicated once those dates are finalized.

Dr. Burt shouted out Chief Phillips for his work with the new school and applying for various grants for our current buildings.  KIPP Memphis is not hosting a Summer Learning Academy this year, allowing for work to be done on and in the buildings: Painting inside classrooms, repaving parking lots, additional blinds, etc. 

Question from Chair Johnson - has anything major popped up with the new facility.  A facilities conditioning assessment was done. Nothing major was found. 

Chair Gatson asked about tabling outcomes. Rhythm of Life Event (5 leads); Mid-South Food Truck Festival (1 lead who enrolled); Africa in April Festival (more canvassing and placing cards on cars). The team will continue to update on those events and outcomes and some it’s just exposure so that more people know about KIPP Memphis.

Currently KIPP Memphis outperforms 92% of Similar Schools with like demographics in ELA. The slide shows how other KIPP Regions performed. 91% in Math. KIPP Memphis has been on various KIPP Foundation highlights. We’re showing up in a number of areas related to student performance.

KIPP Forward - Golf with the Boss at Top Golf - took a group of over 60 students and for many of the students, it was their first time even seeing TopGolf. 

Hiring Fair - Our goal is to overstaff so we can have fully staffed teachers on day 1. Another one is planned for the month of June. Dr. Burt commended HR for their work on this. Capitalize on the closing schools’ staff.

Fundraising Update:  $31,965 raised! Thank you to all who were able to contribute (via directly or indirectly) raised link to a highlight video. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bPJAxWVh_ud_vxZ12La31UtTW-rHGNXy/view?usp=sharing

Charter School Growth Fund - Dr. Burt shared that we are going through a due diligence and interview process for possible funding for the new school with the Charter School Growth Fund.

• Everyone should be proud of the work you’ve done. It was great to be in Denver and share the KIPP Memphis data and student growth in academics. 
• Had a chance to have the Charter School Growth Fund be a part of the meeting. He spoke about how the charter school landscape is changing. People rethinking high schools. The City Fund CEO also participated in the discussion with the growth of the charter sector and growth of ESAs.  Do charter schools consider seeding micro schools as part of the development. They shared an assessment around things you should discuss as a board in growth discussions. Shavaar highlighted the new marketing with Work Hard. Be Bold. and the KIPP 5:
• Dr. Johnson made a commitment to follow up with other board chairs that he connected with at the summit.
• Dr. Johnson thanked everyone for their work with the fundraiser.  It was a collective effort, so thanks to everyone. 
• We’re still working on board recruitment.  This is an opportunity to dig into your rolodex to dig into the business community more and philanthropy, and city and local bodies.  Send those people to Roquel and Dr. Johnson. 
• Next board meeting will be in person at Varsity Spirit, with a social time to follow. We should be proud of the work that has been done.  

It is recommended that the KIPP Memphis Board of Directors approve the KIPP Memphis Public Schools 2025-26 Adjusted Budget in the amount of $24,548,756.

It is recommended that the Board of Directors ratify the CEO's decision to pay non-exempt employees for the ten unprecedented inclement weather days from January 26 - February 6, 2026 in alignment with the new Inclement Weather Work Expectations and Pay policy approved in the February 19, 2026 Board of Directors meeting. 

• 1. This was an extenuiating circumstance that affected six employees. The payroll posted prior to the meeting and there was not enough time for an emergency meeting prior to payroll processing.