Nuasin Next Generation Charter School
Minutes
Governance Committee Meeting
Date and Time
Monday November 15, 2021 at 5:15 PM
Mission
We prepare our students for college through a rigorous arts-infused program.
Vision
All students will be taught by a highly effective teacher in a nurturing environment and will achieve at high levels. Each student will develop the knowledge, skills and values necessary for responsible citizenship and life-long learning. The impact of our collective efforts will fundamentally change public education.
Committee Members Present
C. Barnes-Watson (remote), E. Chen (remote), J. Boulet (remote), K. Shabazz (remote), S. Pressley (remote)
Committee Members Absent
A. Bothner, K. Brisseau
Committee Members who arrived after the meeting opened
C. Barnes-Watson, E. Chen, K. Shabazz
Guests Present
A. Khanyile (remote), M. Russell (remote)
I. Opening Items
A.
Record Attendance
B.
Call the Meeting to Order
J. Boulet called a meeting of the Governance Committee of Nuasin Next Generation Charter School to order on Monday Nov 15, 2021 at 5:18 PM.
K. Shabazz arrived.
E. Chen arrived.
C. Barnes-Watson arrived.
C.
Approve September Minutes
J. Boulet made a motion to approve the minutes from Governance Committee Meeting on 10-20-21.
C. Barnes-Watson seconded the motion.
The committee VOTED to approve the motion.
II. Head of School Review Process
A.
Evaluation Process Updates
Last month it was agreed that after data became available, Malik would choose and share three key priorities for the school in the coming year.
Malik shared that he has selected the key priorities and is working to finish fleshing them out with the recent data. For this week, he is very focused on the renewal process with DOE so this information will come in the following weeks for review ahead of the December meeting.
III. Update on Accountability Practices
A.
Individual Accountability Goals
Committee members reviewed the accountability goal ideas again. Members discussed how to get momentum and engagement among Trustees, what support role a school staff member might have to ensure that these discussions remain on the monthly Board meeting agenda, and how Committee Chairs can integrate these discussions into their Committee meetings.
Jessica will take the following steps to move things forward:
- Introduce chart to full Board
- Draft an email to full Board to ask them to share what goals they are personally interested in pursuing in the coming months, as well as a plan to share and discuss these going forward
- Connect with Malik to coordinate about the approach and how this can be integrated into the Board meeting agenda-setting in a way that doesn't burden staff
The goal is to get the ball rolling on these individual goals and then have a check-in on how it's working in the February PD meeting.
B.
Partnering with Peer Charter Boards
From previous discussions it has become clear that there is a lot of interest in this idea, but also a lot of questions about how it would work in practice, especially since no relevant networks or relevant resources seem to currently exist.
Aaron has put in a lot of legwork and thought on this and has offered to coordinate and support Board members who may be interested in reaching out to other Boards for networking and learning purposes. This will serve the purpose of ensuring that the Board has a coordinated and organized approach to outreach and networking.
IV. Open Meeting Law Audit
A.
Review of process
In keeping with OML audit goal set last year, Jessica spoke with Susan and thought through potential process for an OML audit.
Everyone will have a role to play:
- Individuals will check on their own basic compliance actions throughout the year and also reflect on any questions or areas of confusion
- Committee Chairs will receive a checklist to reflect on their compliance, and reflect on any questions that may have arisen over the past year
- Governance Committee will review accessibility of Board information from the website/to the public, with an eye to OML compliance but also our general strategic goal of increased transparency. Other input also welcome.
- Susan will conduct an in-depth audit of one or two particular meetings throughout the year and give feedback. She will also consider any questions or priorities that Trustees have flagged in their own self-reviews.
- This process will inform our annual self-assessment and OML review before the February PD day.
Some extended discussion was had of how the review of the website should be approached. In the coming month Jessica will put together some reference materials to create more clarity about what the Committee OML audit and the website review should encompass.
V. Closing Items
A.
Look Ahead
Due to time constraints, Jessica will be in touch over email with any pressing matters for the coming months.
B.
Adjourn Meeting
There being no further business to be transacted, and upon motion duly made, seconded and approved, the meeting was adjourned at 6:40 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
J. Boulet