DeKalb Preparatory Academy

Governing Board

Regular Meeting - Tuesday January 28th, 2020 @6:30 PM

Meeting Minutes

Attendance Summary

Name Status Arrival Time Departure Time
Mrs. Janelle Wilhite not present member
Chris Estes present ex-officio On Time At Adjournment
Mrs. Wanda McKay present member On Time At Adjournment
Ms. Suzette Arnold present chair On Time At Adjournment
Tamara Gammon present Treasurer On Time At Adjournment
Mrs. Roberta Walker present vice-chair On Time At Adjournment
Karen Shabazz present member 15 Minutes Late At Adjournment

Welcome and Call to Order, Ascertain Quorum, Roll Call

The meeting will be called to the order.

Approval of Agenda

So that there is agreement between board members on the agenda, and the amount of time spent on the meeting, the board shall vote to approve an agenda for the meeting. To the best of its ability, it will follow that agenda, and allow for the chair to move the board through the agenda as specified.

Approve the agenda as submitted

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Head of School Report

The school leader reports on the status of the school.

motion to accept the head of school report

By: Tamara Gammon Seconded by: Mrs. Roberta Walker

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Academic Excellence Committee Report

During the month of February, community daycare visits will be conducted.


This summer 5th-8th grade math camp will be conducted for two weeks.

In the next committee meeting, the academic committee will discuss the plan for students who will not have access to the previous summer program.


AVC instructors provided an overview of the latest PBL projects. A recommendation was made for AVC instructors to be aware they can seek AVC certification via a PBS curriculum. Currently, DPA does not have enough equipment for students to use the PBS curriculum modules.


Data analysis, report of MAP scores for fall and winter, presented by Ms.Strickland.


Motion to renew Study Island.

By: Mrs. Roberta Walker Seconded by: Tamara Gammon

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Development Committee Report

Ms. Watson presented report from development committee meeting.


Ms.Watson was asked to attend the next finance committee meeting to provide budget needs from a development perspective for 2020-21.

Motion to present report as presented.

By: Karen Shabazz Seconded by: Mrs. Roberta Walker

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Finance Committee Report

Emergency repairs are needed for HVAC in the middle school area and a roof repair for the media center.


The committee reviewed all vendor contracts.


Technology inventory is complete. Ms.Gammon will do a walk through and randomly select items from the list to verify their location. Upon accurate random audit findings, the Clear Board technology will be purchased.


By Feb. 14, 2020 any request by DPA staff for 2020-21 funds must be requested.


Finance committee will audit all bills/invoices every 90 days.


A proposed budget for the coming school year will be available by March 15.

Motion to approve HVAC repair in the amount of $16,000 and roof repair in the amount of $10,625 contingent on respective contractors obtaining a bond by Jan. 31, 2020.

By: Tamara Gammon Seconded by: Karen Shabazz

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Public Comment

Our Public Comment period is for members of the public to address the board. Each member of the public may sign up to comment at the meeting, and will be allotted two minutes. The board will listen, but may not directly respond to any comments. Our meetings are open to the public and public record. As such, if your comment is about a private matter, please contact the board via email, or speak to the board chair privately.


Delmar, IT provider, advised he sent a data to Ms. Gammons as reference for the newly added equipment.


A parent, Ms. Morgan, asked what is being done about the 7th grade science teacher position?

Executive Session

Motion to move the board into executive session at 9:20pm.

By: Tamara Gammon Seconded by: Mrs. Wanda McKay

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Motion to close executive session at 9:45pm

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

The Meeting was Adjourned

The meeting adjourned at approximately 10:39 pm

Motion to adjourn

There was no notable discussion on the motion.