Bronx Charter School for the Arts
Minutes
Monthly Board Meeting
Date and Time
Tuesday July 8, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Location
Zoom
Trustees Present
Arlene Bascom (remote), Barbara H. Scott (remote), David Barnard (remote), Denise Brecher (remote), Evette Stair- Radlein (remote), Zahreen Ghaznavi (remote)
Trustees Absent
Charles Whites, Eric Osorio, Lori Biancamano, Susan Geisenheimer
Ex Officio Members Present
Kathy Ortiz (remote)
Non Voting Members Present
Kathy Ortiz (remote)
Guests Present
Lydia Bremer (remote)
I. Opening Items
A.
Record Attendance
B.
Call the Meeting to Order
C.
Approve Minutes
II. Executive Director Report
A.
Update
Enrollment Updates
Kathy Ortiz provided the latest enrollment update. A total of 623 students have been fully registered, an increase from last year. The elementary school is fully enrolled, though grades 1 and 2 have the lowest enrollment numbers. The middle school has unfilled seats in grade 6. A discussion occurred regarding enrolling 8th graders; while the leadership team finds this challenging, it was agreed to offer seats to 8th graders with younger siblings registered. The board concurred that if 8th-grade seats do not need to be filled, focus should remain on other grades. The primary goal is to maintain continuous engagement with families of fully registered students. Incentives include uniform vouchers, free book bags, and personalized home mailings. Despite current enrollment being satisfactory, efforts will continue to achieve full enrollment of at least 580 students.
Staffing Updates:
- BAE has 4 vacancies available.
- BAM has 6 vacancies available.
To assist with filling vacancies, a referral incentives program was created, offering staff a bonus of $500 upon fulfilling the guidelines. Additionally, enhanced job postings have been listed on LinkedIn and Indeed.
B.
Facilities & Real Estate
Facilities:
Kathy Ortiz and David Barnard discussed the latest updates on facilities. All drawings/specifications for the facilities at 950 Longfellow have been distributed; contractor site walkthroughs are concluding this week. Bids are expected by July 21. As of this date, all work is on schedule.
III. Finance Report
A.
Update
"Was not discussed and tabled for a later date"
IV. Development & Communications
A.
Update
"Was not discussed and tabled for a later date"
V. Upcoming Events
A.
Update
August 4th- Ends Summer Boost - Bubbles and Brunch
August 12th - Next Board meeting
August 25th - Lunch day
Trustees Absent - Loretta Cargill