Veritas Preparatory Charter School
Minutes
Board Meeting
Date and Time
Friday June 23, 2017 at 8:15 AM
Location
Veritas Prep Charter School 1st floor conference room or Dial-in number: 866-848-2216, Conference Code: 7783935205
Trustees Present
A. Mendelson, C. Alves, D. Fuller, D. Janes (remote), J. Crowell (remote), L. Abbate, L. Doherty, M. Landon (remote), M. Sweet, R. Sela
Trustees Absent
G. Moody, T. Gabinetti
Guests Present
E. Pendergrass, R. Romano
I. Opening Items
A.
Record Attendance and Guests
B.
Call the Meeting to Order
A. Mendelson called a meeting of the board of trustees of Veritas Preparatory Charter School to order on Friday Jun 23, 2017 at 8:17 AM.
C.
Approve April Minutes
L. Doherty made a motion to approve minutes from the Board Meeting on 04-28-17 Board Meeting on 04-28-17.
L. Abbate seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
D.
Approve May Minutes
L. Abbate made a motion to approve minutes from the Board Meeting on 05-26-17 Board Meeting on 05-26-17.
M. Sweet seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
II. Governance Committee
A.
Reappoint Trustees
L. Abbate made a motion to reappoint M. Sweet and A. Gabinetti to a new three-year term to expire on June 30, 2020.
A. Mendelson seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
B.
Appoint New Trustees
L. Abbate made a motion to appoint D. Ford and T. Moran to a three-year appointment to Veritas Board of Trustees to expire on June 30, 2020.
L. Doherty seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
C.
Appoint Officers
L. Abbate made a motion to appoint the following slate of officers for a one-year term to expire at the conclusion of the School's fiscal year ending June 30, 2018: Chair - M. Sweet; Vice Chair - D. Janes; Treasurer - L. Doherty; and Secretary - R. Sela.
C. Alves seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
D.
Reauthorize Committees
L. Abbate made a motion to reauthorize the following committees for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2018: Academic Achievement; Finance; and Governance.
L. Doherty seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
E.
Appoint Committee Chairs
L. Abbate made a motion to appoint the following members as committee chairs for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2018: L. Doherty - Chair, Finance; D. Fuller - Chair, Governance; and R. Sela - Chair, Academic Achievement.
A. Mendelson seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
F.
Appoint Committee Members
L. Abbate made a motion to appoint the following members to the committees for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2018: Academic Achievement - R. Sela (Chair), G. Moody, D. Janes, and M. Sweet; Finance - L. Doherty (Chair), A. Gabinetti, M Landon, D. Ford, and J. Crowell; and Governance - D. Fuller (Chair), C. Alves, and T. Moran.
R. Sela seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
G.
Progress Toward FY17 Goals
L. Abbate provides an update to the Governance Committee's goals:
- Board meeting attendance has improved but he suggests implementing a better monitoring system for it
- The goal to support the Executive Director around recruitment, development, and retention of top talent should be changed
- Adapting the governance structures to meet the needs of the school is an ongoing goal
- The committee was successful in recruiting 2 new board members but did not get many recommendations from trustees. He suggests tightening up the recruitment process.
III. Academic Achievement Committee
A.
Progress Toward FY17 Goals
R. Sela provides an update to the Academic Achievement Committee's goals:
- Emily, Amy, and Rachel have made progress towards creating a consistent structure for monitoring academic progress by using the academic dashboard at almost every Academic Achievement Committee meeting and by including Emily and Amy in those meetings. She notes that the students took the MCAS instead of the PARCC and that the results form the MCAS will not be released until October. She also highlights that 8th grade matriculation is an ongoing goal as the committee will see how they do in 9th grade.
- DESE Common Criteria was recently edited so this is an ongoing goal that will be shared with the board at a later date.
- Steps have been taken towards dissemination but nothing has been implemented yet. The committee has determined that the culture of the school and the standards based grading system will be the two biggest topics of dissemination.
IV. Finance Committee
A.
FY17 Projections and Bonus Update
L. Doherty discusses the status of the Finance Committee and notes that we are ahead of target for our budget and that the cash flow is in a good position.
R. Romano notes that the committee anticipates landing close to budget and that a potion of the surplus will be used to give 5 year bonuses to Veritas staff.
R. Romano notes that the committee anticipates landing close to budget and that a potion of the surplus will be used to give 5 year bonuses to Veritas staff.
B.
Progress Toward FY17 Goals
L. Doherty provides an update on the Finance Committee's goals:
- The committee has stopped the idea of traditional fundraising for the building. Steps have been taken towards PR/Marketing, highlighting that dissemination efforts will be used to rebrand Veritas and that the committee has started preparing stories for this. She notes that that committee should focus on building a supporter list.
- The committee has been successful in ensuring fiscal policies and procedures are implemented with fidelity, highlighting the addition of the Chief Finance Officer and the new audit firm that is focused on charter space and that provides good feedback.
V. Executive Director
A.
Report
R. Romano invites board members to attend the Executive Committee meeting on Monday, June 26th at 9:00am.
VI. Closing Items
A.
Adjourn Meeting
There being no further business to be transacted, and upon motion duly made, seconded and approved, the meeting was adjourned at 9:35 AM.
Respectfully Submitted,
E. Pendergrass