Approve the agenda as submitted
By: Tamara Gammon Seconded by: Wanda McKay
Approved as submitted.
DeKalb Preparatory Academy
Governing Board
Regular Meeting - Tuesday November 19th, 2019 @6:30 PM
Meeting Minutes
Attendance Summary
| Name | Status | Arrival Time | Departure Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Janelle Wilhite | not present member | ||
| Chris Estes | present ex-officio | On Time | At Adjournment |
| Wanda McKay | present member | On Time | At Adjournment |
| Suzette Arnold | not present chair | ||
| Harry Stern | not present ex-officio | ||
| Tamara Gammon | present Treasurer | On Time | At Adjournment |
| Roberta Walker | present vice-chair | On Time | At Adjournment |
| Karen Shabazz | present secretary | On Time | At Adjournment |
Welcome and Call to Order
The meeting called to order at 6:35pm.
Meeting Protocol
Ascertain a Quorum
Roll Call...
Chris Estes
Roberta Walker
Tamara Gammon
Wanda McKay
Karen Shabazz
Approval of Agenda
The committee approves the agenda items.
Minutes from Governing Board
The Governing Board met on Tuesday October 22nd, 2019 @6:30 PM for what was scheduled to be a 2 hours and 34 minutes long meeting. Present: Janelle Wilhite, Chris Estes, Wanda McKay, Suzette Arnold, Tamara Gammon, Roberta Walker, Karen Shabazz Not Present: Harry Stern The members considered the following items: 1. Welcome and Call to Order 2. Meeting Protocol 3. Approval of Agenda 4. Report from Governing Board 5. Election of Officers 6. Head of School Report 7. Report from Academic Committee 8. Finance Committee 9. Development Committee 10. Governance Committee 11. Any Other Business 12. Public Comment 13. Adjournment The committee considered 15 motions, of which 15 passed, and 0 failed: 1. Approve minutes as presented (passed) 2. Accept as presented (passed) 3. Hire Tyron Richardson for the position of 6th grade math teacher . (passed) 4. Approve the Audit letter. There were no findings in the audit report. (passed) 5. Approve the procurement policy with the following changes: Section 4: purchases less that $1,000 use sound business decision. $1,000 - $9,999.99 must have 3 written quotes. Purchases $10,000 and over must use the RFP process. Section 5: Purchases of $5,000 and above must have Board approval. Nutrition purchases must follow the same thresholds. (passed) 6. Approve invoice for Ciridia Technology Services in the amount of $6,565.00. (passed) 7. Approve invoice for Ciridia Technology Services for $414.40 for additional 1 time expense. (passed) 8. Approve invoice for Bambo Sonaike CPA, LLC Auditors for $10,000.00 (passed) 9. Approve invoice for $5,072.00 to McGuire Woods for legal services rendered. (passed) 10. Accept the monthly financial report as presented. (passed) 11. Approve 1 year lease from JFP North Center, 4319 Covington Highway, Decatur, GA for space for 5 offices with conditions: update projected expenses with moving quote included. Annual cost $23.028.00 (passed) 12. Accept report as presented (passed) 13. Approve the Annual Report as presented. (passed) 14. Move to Executive session. (passed) 15. End Executive session (passed) The meeting adjourned at 9:15PM
Head of School Report
The school leader reports on the status of the school.
Motion to accept the Head of School report as submitted.
By: Karen Shabazz Seconded by: Tamara Gammon
There was no notable discussion on the motion.
Report from Development
The Development met on Thursday October 17th, 2019 @1:00 PM for what was scheduled to be a 1 hours and 0 minutes long meeting. Present: Tanya Watkins Not Present: Harry Stern The members considered the following items: 1. Meeting Minutes 2. The Meeting was Adjourned The committee considered 1 motions, of which 1 passed, and 0 failed: 1. Motion to adjourn (passed) The meeting adjourned at 2:05PM
Motion to accept development report as submitted.
By: Tamara Gammon Seconded by: Wanda McKay
Per Ms. Watkins, Ms. Blackshear has been asked to join the committee. The marketing/branding project is on hold. Ms. Watkins is working on setting up DPA for the Amazon Smile program so the school can receive proceeds from purchases made by participating consumers.
Ms. Arnold has requested the board be advised of nonprofits, businesses, and school partnerships that the development director has targeted and contacted.
Ms. Gammon asked if any corporations have been approached. Ms. Watkins advised she hasn't approached corporations; she needs more information.
Academic Committee Report
The Academic Committee met on Wednesday November 13th, 2019 @1:15 PM for what was scheduled to be a 0 hours and 48 minutes long meeting. Present: Chris Estes, Roberta Walker, Selina Dukes-Walton, Veronica Grant, Melba Smith, Carla Pettis Not Present: Karen Shabazz The members considered the following items: 1. Welcome and Call to Order 2. Data Dashboard Progress 3. Academic Concerns 4. Staffing 5. Next meeting date and time 6. Adjournment The committee considered 0 motions, of which 0 passed, and 0 failed: The meeting adjourned at 2:15 PM
Motion to accept the academic report as submitted.
By: Tamara Gammon Seconded by: Wanda McKay
The board's dashboard will be presented in a condensed version on monthly basis to the board.
DPA will not subscribe to OTUS next school year.
DCSS has recommended all schools use iReady. The committee recommends we purchase more iReady books plus electronic verisons to monitor RTI students.
STEMscope training is being done in-house by the interventionist.
The Spanish teachers will use a curriculum from PBS (for free); the middle school teachers will purchase curriculum for $2,500.
Due to technical difficulties, Ms. Strickland will email the monthly dashboard for November to the board members.
Governance Committee
Governance chair notes dates to remember (via conference call):
Nov. 23, 2019- data training for board members
Dec. 10, 2019- DPA staff meeting with board members in attendance
Per Ms. Pettis, DPA administration meets weekly and discusses the 18-week evaluation.
Motion to move to executive session
By: Tamara Gammon Seconded by: Wanda McKay
During executive session, applicants were hired/confirmed by the board:
Mr. Hinch, 8th grade science
Mr. Wynn, special education resource
Tricia Davis, cafeteria monitor
Toni McCoy, parent liasion
Motion to hire Mr. Hinch
By: Tamara Gammon Seconded by: Wanda McKay
There was no notable discussion on the motion.
Motion to hire Mr. Wynn
By: Roberta Walker Seconded by: Wanda McKay
There was no notable discussion on the motion.
Motion to hire Tricia Davis
By: Roberta Walker Seconded by: Tamara Gammon
There was no notable discussion on the motion.
Motion to hire Toni McCoy
By: Roberta Walker Seconded by: Tamara Gammon
There was no notable discussion on the motion.
Motion to end executive session at 9:28pm
By: Roberta Walker Seconded by: Tamara Gammon
There was no notable discussion on the motion.
Other Business
AVC/PBL Presentation- Ms. Arnold (via conference call) requested a presentation on assessments and gains from AVC/PBL at the January 2020 board meeting.
State 18 Week Assessment
DPA DashBoard- to be presented monthly at board meetings
Board Social for Teachers and Staff- to be held on Dec. 10, 2019
Staff Performance Evaluation (TKES/LKES)
Board Training of Significant Importance
Ms. Arnold (via conference call) requested a professional learning calendar be provided to the board.
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.
No member of the audience elected to make a comment.
Ajournment
Motion to adjourn
By: Tamara Gammon Seconded by: Wanda McKay
There was no notable discussion on the motion.
Report from Finance Committee
The Finance Committee met on Thursday October 17th, 2019 @6:30 PM for what was scheduled to be a 0 hours and 38 minutes long meeting. Present: Janelle Wilhite, Susan Wright, Chris Estes Not Present: Suzette Arnold The members considered the following items: 1. Welcome and Call to Order 2. Approval of Agenda 3. Approve Minutes 4. Bank Reconciliation 5. Policy Review. 6. Other Business 7. Adjournment 8. The Meeting was Adjourned The committee considered 12 motions, of which 12 passed, and 0 failed: 1. Call to order of meeting. (passed) 2. Approve the agenda as submitted (passed) 3. To approve minutes of the last meeting. (passed) 4. Motion to approve the Procurement Policy and Credit Card Policy. (passed) 5. Motion to correct the agenda to approve the financial report. (passed) 6. Motion to amend the agenda discuss the audit report. (passed) 7. Motion to approve the Management Representation letter from Bambo Sonaike CPA. (passed) 8. Motion to approve the invoice of $10,000 for Bambo Sonaike CPA. (passed) 9. Approve the McQuire Woods Invoice from August for $5,072. (passed) 10. Motion to approve the Ciridia invoice for a one-time expense of $414.40. (passed) 11. Motion to adjourn. (passed) 12. Motion to adjourn (passed) The meeting adjourned at 12:24PM
As of November 19th, The finance committee has not met. Ms. Gammon Ms. Gammon conducted a 3 day site visit last week.
Ms. Wright will provide to the board a list of all DPA vendor agreements and contracts by December 6, 2019, so the board can audit them prior to renewal, if any are to be renewed.
Motion made to approve a change order from Johnson Controls in the amount of $1,970.
By: Karen Shabazz Seconded by: Wanda McKay
There was no notable discussion on the motion.
Motion to approve October 29, 2019 invoice rendered by Ciridia.
By: Karen Shabazz Seconded by: Wanda McKay
There was no notable discussion on the motion.
Motion to approve Ciridia invoice for $6,719 for Lenovo equipment from DCSS and new equipment purchased.
By: Karen Shabazz Seconded by: Wanda McKay
There was no notable discussion on the motion.
Motion to accept the finance report as submitted.
By: Karen Shabazz Seconded by: Wanda McKay
There was no notable discussion on the motion.
The Meeting was Adjourned
The meeting adjourned at approximately 9:28 pm
Motion to adjourn
By: Tamara Gammon Seconded by: Wanda McKay
There was no notable discussion on the motion.