Pharos Academy Charter School

Minutes

Pharos Academy Charter School Board Meeting

Date and Time

Thursday February 15, 2024 at 6:30 PM

Location

Pharos Academy Charter School

1001 Intervale Avenue

Bronx, NY 10459

All meetings of the Board of Trustees of the Pharos Academy Charter School are held in compliance with New York State Open Meeting Law. 

Date:   February 15, 2024
Time:  6:30 p.m.
Location:  1005 Intervale Avenue, Bronx, NY 10459

Other Location(s):  https://bronxlighthouse.zoom.us/j/5239033349

910 Union St, Apt 7B, Brooklyn, NY 

2 Dows Lane, Irvington, NY 

17 Brady Ave New Rochelle, NY

 

ALL ARE INVITED TO ATTEND!
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PHAROS ACADEMY CHARTER SCHOOL
DE LA JUNTA ADMINISTRATIVA
 

 

Realizamos todas las reuniones de la Junta Administrativa de la escuela Pharos Academy Charter School conforme a la Ley de Reuniones Abiertas del Estado de Nueva York.

Día: 15 de febrero
Hora:  6:30 p.m.
Lugar:  1005 Intervale Avenue, Bronx, NY 10459
Otros Lugares:   https://bronxlighthouse.zoom.us/j/5239033349

910 Union St, Apt 7B, Brooklyn, NY 

2 Dows Lane, Irvington, NY 

17 Brady Ave New Rochelle, NY

 

 

 

Trustees Present

B. Thompson (remote), G. Garcia, J. Lopez-Molina (remote), J. Sowell, S. Sutherland (remote), T. Perez, T. South

Trustees Absent

K. Shah, R. Granado, S. Beier, S. Jean-Jacques

Guests Present

C. Russell, Gabriela Beato, M. Dorsey, Patrick Wesonga, Samuel Bass (remote), T. Brown

I. Opening Items

A.

Record Attendance and Guests

B.

Call the Meeting to Order

J. Lopez-Molina called a meeting of the board of trustees of Pharos Academy Charter School to order on Thursday Feb 15, 2024 at 6:49 PM.

II. PHACS Staff Presentation

A.

PHACS Staff Presentation

Gabriela Beato - Staff Presentation: 

Discussed educational background, previous employment and current employment experience at Pharos Academy Charter School as a first-year teacher.  

III. Board Governance

A.

Approve Minutes

J. Lopez-Molina made a motion to approve the minutes from Pharos Academy Charter School Board Meeting on 01-18-24.
J. Sowell seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

B.

Follow Up

Parent Board Member/Parent Engagement /PTO

 

Action plan needed to move forward in planning to engage with Parent Teacher Association.

The Parent Teacher Association is currently working on organizing and arranging to meet.  

The Board will work with Dr. Brown and Courtney to arrange an event to move forward. 

Dr. Brown will speak with the PTA President and will communicate with the Board to schedule a time to meet. 

 

 

IV. Finance Committee Review

A.

Finance Committee Report

Financially all things are steady and working according to plan. 

Enrollment numbers are lower than projected and will be closely monitored. 

Draft 990 presented and in need of signing by May 2024.

RFP were sent out for cleaning and soliciting bids for cleaning services.  Five companies responded and the highlighted cleaning vendor is Direct Clean Service Solutions. 

 

B.

Investment Account Update

C.

Items Over 50K

J. Lopez-Molina made a motion to Approve the cleaning proposal for Direct Clean Service Solutions.
J. Sowell seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

D.

990

J. Lopez-Molina made a motion to Allow the 990 to be authorized and signed by Javier Lopez-Molina.
B. Thompson seconded the motion.
The board VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.

V. Executive Director's Report

A.

Executive Director's Report

 

TESTING Updates:

  • Testing will be available in March 2024.
  • Teachers are still grading the testing scores.  
  • School activities have been very quiet; students are working hard, and teachers are still reviewing and grading. 

COLLEGE Updates: 

  • Seniors are getting their college acceptances. Board members will be invited to the College Acceptance event. 
  • State schools are discussed with scholars and the difference between private schools and state schools. 
  • Jarrod Sowell expressed interest in supporting with the college funding opportunities. 

FAFSA Activity:

  • FAFSA status is still in progress, which has been delayed.  Scholars are getting decisions but are still waiting for the financial piece of the process. 
  • FAFSA Party inquiry - FAFSA school supports by starting with 11th Graders and when they become seniors FAFSA nights occur to support the application process.
  • Return on investment for the chosen major, comparable colleges for the chosen majors, loan payments and forgiveness are some of the topics discussed with future college students. 
  • Educating students through exposure to the college environment.  
  • HS Curriculum and tracks are set up for the scholar to be competitive with college prerequisites. 

 

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 7:51 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
J. Lopez-Molina