None.

Mr. Merrick Wadsworth, attorney at Procopio, conducted the annually required training, covering the Brown Act and conflicts of interest. The Brown Act is a California transparency "open meetings" law for local public agencies. He defined "meetings" and recommended avoiding one-on-one agenda briefings, conversations about whether to call a meeting, and information-only updates received by the entire Board are okay. Board retreats, strategic planning sessions, board study sessions are meetings. 

Under SB 126, DVLA Board meetings must be held in the county where the greatest number of DVLA students reside. Also under SB 126, Board meetings must include two-way teleconference at all sites and resource centers. Board members may use teleconferencing only if the agenda identifies teleconference locations (where Board members are dialing-in from), quorum is within the jurisdiction, the agenda is posted at teleconference locations in same timelines (72 or 24 hours in advance of the meeting, teleconference locations are accessible to the public, and roll call votes are required.

Executive Order N-08-21, dated June 11, 2021, stands because of the pandemic. Virtual meetings can continue through September 30. As of October 1, all the traditional ground rules are in place unless the Executive Order is extended again. As of now, October 1 is when virtual meetings are scheduled to end.

Locations must be accessible to the public. Agendas must be posted on the school website and at all the teleconference sites. The agenda packet is a public record that should be available if requested. Agendas cannot be modified once posted. A public comment period is required. Comments should be time-limited. Disrupted conduct is not permitted. Comment is not a conversation. The Board president may ask staff to follow up with the member of the public.

Closed session is allowable for limited topics (litigation, personnel evaluation/discipline, real estate negotiations). Only essential persons may be present. Executive compensation (dollar amounts) must be discussed and approved in open session, at a regular, not special, meeting. The Board must orally report a summary description of executive compensation before final action is taken, and compensation must be reasonable (Board should conduct compensation analysis). Minutes should be more than an action format. Open session items are usually in narrative format.

Mrs. Morgan asked for guidance regarding handling emails from the public. Mr. Wadsworth commented that the best practice is to send emails to a centralized employee to handle correspondence from the parents and stakeholders. Mr. Taylor asked for clarification on the purpose of the Brown Act. Mr. Wadsworth shared that it is in response to accountability, public participation, and awareness of decisions made by public and governing agencies. 

The Conflicts of Interest are Corporations Code (applies to boards, not staff) and refers to decision making. The Political Reform Act (Form 700 applies to board, staff, spouses) and requires disclosure of financial interests in school business. Government Code 1090 (Board and staff) deals specifically with contracts and is very broad. The Board cannot enter, or delegate authority to enter, a contract in which a member has a financial interest. The appearance of impropriety, nepotism, common law, IRS rules for executive compensation, special rules tied to regular funding, etc., also apply.

Mr. Bravo asked for clarity around COVID procedures (contract tracing) in upcoming in-person meetings such as signing in. Mr. Wadsworth shared that this is not allowed under the Brown Act's normal rules, but for COVID protocols, tracking attendance is okay. Dr. Wunder asked if there will be an extension to the Executive Order N-08-21 in the current state of COVID increases. Mr. Wadsworth shared that the original end date remains September 30, but everyone will be contacted when new information is received regarding an extension. 

 Ms. Kari Croft provided fundraising and development updates. The application for Drown Foundation will be submitted on October 15. The work group is working on a running list and progress tracker for individual donor requests and outreach plans for celebrities and influencers to support the Giving Campaign.

For grants and foundations support, Ms. Croft is applying for the STOP Award from the Center of Education Reform. It is a grant in response to COVID, recognizing schools that went above and beyond to support students during campus closures. Ms. Croft continues to work with Emerson Collective and ERC on RFP's for cost replacement and alternative funding streams.

Regarding social media, Ms. Croft is working with Ms. Carla Levinson in preparation for the Giving Campaign, expanding RISE's presence on social media as a platform to communicate with families and students and a platform for fundraising. Ms. Croft will present at staff PD on Friday and send emails to Board and supporters on Monday with info on how social media can be used over the next month to support efforts.

The advisory committee has the first meeting scheduled for the week of August 30. There are five confirmed members with backgrounds in education, school & nonprofit leadership, higher education, communications and marketing, and education policy/advocacy.

Dr. Wunder shared that Dr. Jo Webber from the Da Vinci Schools Board met with a member of the Tiger Woods Foundation interested in a visit to RISE. Dr. Jennings and Ms. Croft briefly discussed the application process for the STOP Award from the Center for Education Reform. Mr. Taylor requested clarity around social media engagement and corporate donors for the Giving Campaign. Ms. Croft shared steps each person can take to support social media efforts and the process for reaching out and requesting support from the community and corporate donors through fundraising efforts. 

None.

RISE 2021-22 Priorities - Data driven, campus culture, college and career

August data and demographics update - RISE serves 219 students, 38% of whom are opportunity youth. Summer school ADA was 97.27% at Hawthorne, 87.83% at APCH, and 60% at New Earth. Mr. Whalen shared a breakdown of the number of foster youth, probationary youth, housing unstable (which changes weekly), and parenting youth across the RISE sites. He also highlighted data pertaining to student support services provided during the first quarter from all three school sites. 

Student Support Services 21-22 - Goals: Providing mental health support to all students, improve overall school attendance, collecting and providing attendance data, building and increasing school culture at all three sites, and promoting trauma-informed practices. Updates: RISE is USC MSW Teaching Institute, and seven interns will support counseling and case management, continuing to provide mental health support and resources for the impacts of COVID-19 as well as sexual health resources for all students upon request.

Orientation week August 9th -13th - Launch of cohorted schedules at APCH and Richstone, and a fully integrated orientation between NE and RISE. Highlights include free backpacks and school supplies to all students at APCH, the launch of RISE and NE integrated schedule, student and staff starting at Richstone. 

RISE response to COVID during orientation week - 2 positive cases were reported that caused varying levels of fear and anxiety within and beyond the community. COVID expectations were discussed and implemented during orientation. The RISE team acted and supported each other, students, and the community. Admin worked closely with Nurse Emily Green. Some of the biggest lessons learned include avoiding/monitoring close contacts, eating outside, and assigned seating. The following actions included Da Vinci nurses testing all students upon arrival, COVID updates provided during Friday PD, and preparation should a pivot to hybrid/virtual learning be needed. Weekly testing is offered through DV schools and APCH.

Dr. Jennings asked about costs and the availability of resources for testing. Mr. Whalen responded that testing is at no cost to RISE and that there is an abundance of testing resources provided by APCH and Da Vinci. 

Mr. Taylor asked about the continued frequency of tests offered. Mr. Whalen responded that the resources would be provided for students when needed. Mrs. Morgan asked if there were protocols are literature around asking vaccination status. Mr. Whalen responded that we are not allowed to ask directly, yet staff consistently educate and provide resources to the community regarding the vaccine. Dr. Robertson shared that most students will self-disclose their vaccination status. 

Mrs. Montes-Rodriguez asked if the shutdown would be the continued procedure moving forward. Mr. Whalen responded that it is not the continued procedure. What was learned is limiting close contacts to only send home the person that tested positive. Shutting down the entire operation would happen in the event of the worst-case scenario. Mr. Taylor asked about testing requirements for staff. Mr. Whalen shared that there are no testing requirements, but testing is encouraged. 

Dr. Hawn shared that Da Vinci is working with legal counsel regarding what is permissible. Vaccines are still only approved for emergency use. Legal counsel does not require vaccinations yet and will update the Board with any updates.

Partnership updates - All co-location partners presented during the PD series to share goals, metrics, and measures for the 21-22 school year. 

NE partnership goal: 80% attendance and engagement across New Earth programming and RISE Academic Program. Graduate 75% of RISE at New Earth’s Senior Status Students within the 21-22 school year.

APCH partnership goal: Have at least 60% of RISE students engaged in APCH services, programs, and workshops. Staff are currently collecting names of students in need of Winter holiday support for our Family to Family 2021 initiative.

Richstone partnership goal: Review and discuss organization vision and mission. Brainstorm joint vision and develop a joint needs assessment for the mission. RISE is seeking a liaison to be a community face to Richstone and RISE staff and having someone during the school day to do focus groups. 

Mrs. Morgan asked if there had been an increase in attendance at Richstone due to location. Dr. Robertson shared that most referrals come from probation and word of mouth as Richstone's population currently serves elementary and junior high youth. Staff is hopeful in increasing attendance in the upcoming months as Richstone opens up to the community, and the co-location of RISE can draw in more attention. 

Community feedback - Staff were asked to provide feedback on urgent and important focuses and actions in support of RISE students and stakeholders. Staff voted on various options such as collaboration and extracurriculars through co-location partners, RISE tenant celebrations, high-intensity support services through small cohorts. Curriculum needs such as Edgenuity to provide adaptive curricular foundation for students and staff. PBL Math via XQ, Modern Classroom Launch in September, RISE + DV Schools RWL program to enhance World of Work. Staff is figuring out creative ways to reach out to parents, staff roundtables, parent feedback cycles/calls. The next step is department-based roundtables.

Current staffing/open positions - Richstone: Assistant Principal, English teacher. APCH: academic coach, English teacher, and across sites: academic counselor and Psychologist.

At the LACOE Board meeting, RISE had an unanimous vote of approval of the material revision, which focused on the launch of the Richstone site and a modified and responsive enrollment plan. 

Fundraising efforts - Boeing awarded RISE a $50,000 grant. New Earth received a $50,000 grant from Goldlhirsh Foundation/LA2050, which will be providing funding for NE case managers for RISE students.

ASU GSV Summit - Mr. Whalen presented at the ASU GSV Summit on Strengthening Community Partnerships for Strong School Systems. The topic focused on the school systems identifying community partners to help reach students and families and offered services typically not provided in school buildings.

All Board members thanked and wished Dr. Robertson well on her next venture. Dr. Robertson shared her gratitude for her time and experience with RISE.

Mr. Amato reviewed the year-end 2021 unaudited actual results and the July 2021 financials.  He presented the June 2021 results balance sheet. Current assets reflect positive cash at $999,134. Large accounts receivables related to the LCFF deferrals and other State and Federal funds reflect positively at $602,823. The bottom-line results show unrestricted net assets at $599,938 and profit year-to-date is $89,284. Both combined results in $599,938 in unrestricted reserves for the next school year.  $200,000 in Weingart temporary restricted funds received a few years ago will be used to support the 21-22 school year budget.

Mr. Amato reviewed the end of the year P&L. Bottom line revenue is $41,374 over budget. Key points include prior year income included in the revenue from the State at $3,233 and federal at $12,574, resulting in $15,807 total prior income. This is a result of getting money in this current year, related to last year's results, leaving $25,567 left in overage. RISE also received extra funds from various grants and donations and other fluctuations in revenue. Mr. Amato then reviewed expenses. Personnel expenses are at $136,525 over budget due to the one-time year-end COLA bonus of 2.5% at the end of the year which was not planned. The hiring of key staff such as the assistant principal position and the administrative assistant coming in at different times impacted the budget overall. Books and supplies are over $67,035 over budget due to additional investment were spent on tech DreamSeeDo. The positive side of expenses shows positive balances in services and other expenses at $111,361, legal settlements at $46,500, legal services from legal counsel at $29,702, and transportation at $33,441, helping to offset the overages.

Current year July 2021 balance sheet reflects strong cash flow at $799,534. $672,144 in accounts receivables from LCFF deferrals is expected to be paid in a lump sum in September. Mr. Amato reviewed the P&L results for the first month, noting that timing variances change month to month. He focused on a few permanent variances that started to accrue. Worker's compensation shows the variance of $8,000 over budget, and the actual cost will be $33,000 for the total year, which is $21,000 over budget at the end of the year. Other things are that will impact the budget throughout the year is salary. At the time of the Boeing grant application, RISE budgeted for $100,000, offsetting the salaries for Behaviorists, but RISE was awarded $50,000. The variance of $50,000 being under budget will require a modification in strategy for budgeting and projecting with certain grants moving forward. Staff is working with Boeing to see if funds can be applied/fundraised down the line. Lastly, staff was awarded a 3.75% COLA adjustment for this current year which was just approved. This adjustment impacts the RISE budget for salaries at about $100,000. All three variances total about $170,000 in budget overages.

Positive things on the budget to help offset overages are a new source of funding through LACOE for COVID testing. LACOE is offering a funding program to reimburse for COVID testing costs. RISE could get up to $33,000 depending on how much time people spend on the program. Additional funding support includes the Emergency Connectivity Fund Grant, which provides dollars for school tech. If awarded, RISE could potentially receive $43,000 in unbudgeted funding. Updates will be provided at future meetings.

Dr. Jennings asked about budgeting for personnel. Mr. Amato shared that budget funding is in place to account for potential new hires if needed. Mr. Denniston commented on possible changes down the line regarding the additional funding programs and the task of CDE to translate the guidance into a funding rates eligibility formula. He is hopeful that RISE will be applicable to apply for these new funding programs. Dr. Jennings asked about updates to the current projection of fundraising money needed. Mr. Amato shared that he will provide this data and a tracker at upcoming meetings.
 

Mr. Bravo shared that LACOE conducted its inspection at Richstone and indicated a few things needed to be done. Minor changes include signage, horns, and strobes. Richstone is working with us on completing these requests. RISE submitted plans to the City of Hawthorne that was returned with questions. We are working towards resubmitting the plans for obtaining the COO, given that we have approval from the planning department. The process moving forward is to gain approval from the business department. 

RISE continues to work with Srour and Associates to obtain the Certificate of Occupancy at New Earth in Culver City. The city has indicated that we can not apply as a public school because we are not part of Culver City Unified School District. Our option is to apply as a private school since schools within CCSUD are the only school's considered public schools. This project is in progress. 

Everything is going well at APCH, and staff is working closely and collaboratively to ensure cleaning supplies and disinfection strategies and technologies are shared and implemented.