City Garden Montessori School
Minutes
Governance Committee Meeting
Date and Time
Tuesday March 11, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Location
ECEC Conference Room - 2nd Floor
Committee Members Present
D. Smith, J. Dixon, L. Schwartze, L. Vowell (remote)
Committee Members Absent
S. Haigler
Guests Present
C. Huck, C. Schell, M. Howard (remote), S. Miner
I. Opening Items
A.
Welcome & Check-Ins
B.
Record Attendance
C.
Call the Meeting to Order
D. Smith called a meeting of the Governance Committee of City Garden Montessori School to order on Tuesday Mar 11, 2025 at 3:20 PM.
II. Action Items
A.
Approve January Minutes
D. Smith made a motion to approve the minutes from Governance Committee Meeting on 01-24-25.
L. Schwartze seconded the motion.
The committee VOTED unanimously to approve the motion.
B.
Board recruitment
- What can board do to better engage in recruitment/increase applications?
- Kitty -
- can't rush recruitment; need to develop individual plans for engagement over the summer/fall for folks who have expressed interest? (e.g., Sunlight & Soil, Fall Affair, block party)
- Request for board events calendar and consideration of board coverage
- Next steps
- Proceed with cycle of review/interview for initial round of applicants for May vote
- Open new round for April-May (May deadline, June vote)
C.
Board evaluation
- Claire shared context/reminders about 2024 updated evaluation, following work with CSL and revisions of board responsibilities/board member agreements.
- Discussion around possible revisions - leadership interest, committee commitments, input on board priorities
- Increase board participation by completing during May meeting, and ensuring time to review ahead of June retreat.
- Next steps - committee to review evaluation independently and provide feedback by 3.31
D.
Community engagement
- Christie shared updates on survey completion/themes, as well as steering committee meetings and activities to-date
- Claire and Mia shared alignment with strategic planning process, including stages for engaging the broader board on community engagement input
E.
Policies
- Sarah shared policies requiring updates (School calendar and board financial disclosure); third policy requirement did not apply to CG.
- Next steps - Sarah & Donna to connect on revisions to existing policies, for April committee review/May board review/June board vote.
III. Updates
A.
Updates from committee members
- Water main breaks at school - noted impacts and appreciation for staff/caregiver community
- ColorBrave on 3.28 - open to the public!
IV. Closing Items
A.
April Committee Meeting
- Agreement from group to shift to Friday, April 18th, 9-10:30
B.
Adjourn Meeting
There being no further business to be transacted, and upon motion duly made, seconded and approved, the meeting was adjourned at 4:30 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
J. Dixon