Ivy Preparatory Academy

Governance Committee

Regular Meeting - Tuesday September 13th, 2022 @6:00 PM

Meeting Minutes

Attendance Summary

Name Status Arrival Time Departure Time
Mr. RaShaun Kemp present member On Time At Adjournment
Ms. April Jackson (committee member) present member On Time At Adjournment
Dr. William Epps (committee member) present chair On Time At Adjournment

Ivy Preparatory Academy Governance Committee Meeting Information

LOCATION: Committee meetings are held at Ivy Preparatory Academy at Kirkwood, located at 1807 Memorial Drive, SE Atlanta, GA 30317.

AGENDA: Committee meeting agenda items are scheduled to be considered as noted in this agenda; however, agenda items may be taken out of the order presented on the agenda at the discretion of the chair. 

ACCOMODATIONS: Reasonable efforts will be made to assist and accommodate persons with a disability. Please contact Dr. Charcia Nichols at 404-622-2727. Request should be made as early as possible to arrange the accommodations, no later than 24 hours prior to the meeting.

PUBLIC COMMENTS: The Public Comment time period is for the public to address the Committee. Those who wish to speak must sign-up before the start of the meeting. Speakers may have up to three minutes to speak. 

Welcome and Call to Order

Call Meeting to Order - Committee Chair


TIME CALLED TO ORDER: 6:10pm


Approval of Agenda

AGENDA AMENDMENT: Review previous work on evaluations for the Head of School and Chief Financial Officer

AMEND AGENDA

By: Dr. William Epps (committee member) Seconded by: Ms. April Jackson (committee member)

APPROVE AMENDED AGEBDA

By: Mr. RaShaun Kemp Seconded by: Ms. April Jackson (committee member)

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Public Comment

Public Comments - Committee Chair

Transparency: Committee meetings are a public forum to provide transparency into the governance of the school. Engagement from the community is strongly encouraged and vital to that governance.

Time Limit: A total of 30 minutes shall be set aside for public comment.  Each speaker will have a maximum of 3 minutes to speak.  A speaker may not sign up to speak more than once during the same public comment period.

Board Action: Committee members shall not provide responses nor engage in direct conversation with speakers during public comments. The committee will bring the matter to the board to engage the Head of School or the Chief Financial Officer in responding at a later time as necessary and appropriate.

Civil Discourse: Speakers are encouraged to maintain decorum and present their comments in a civil manner.  The committee reserves the right to request any speaker engaging in personal attacks, or the use of obscene or derogatory language, to restate their position in a manner more appropriate for a school environment.


Governance Committee Work Session

Governance Committee Chair Remarks


School Leader Updates:

  • SCSC virtual Monitoring Visit - all is information was submitted two days early 
  • Initial Benchmark Data - increase tier 1 in iReady from 20% to 25%; Georgia milestones 5%
  • First Grade 72% tier 2 reading 
  • First Grade 88% tier 2 mathematics
  • Second Grade 48% tier 3 reading (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Second Grade 69% tier 2 mathematics (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Third Grade 46% tier 3 reading (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Third Grade 51% tier 2 mathematics (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Fourth Grade 41% tier 3 reading (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Fourth Grade 45% tier 2 mathematics (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Fifth Grade 60% tier 3 reading (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Fifth Grade 69% tier 2 mathematics (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Sixth Grade 55% tier 3 reading (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Sixth Grade 66% tier 2 mathematics (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Seventh Grade 49% tier 3 reading (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Seventh Grade 49% tier 2 mathematics (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Eighth grade 36% tier 3 reading (two or more grade levels below) 
  • Eighth Grade 60% tier 2 mathematics (two or more grade levels below) 


CFO Updates:

  • FY23 Commission Required Documents (Audit Report): fourth year with no findings 
  • Student Enrollment: 452 scholars; budget based on 480.  those scholars departing didn’t have issues with transportation.  Scholars place signs in their yard. Important to look at segments; not just enrollment. 


Governance Committee Member Work:

  • Review and recommend these candidates for service as board members (recommended committee service immediately follows each candidate):
  • Nadine C. Duncan, EdD, Education Consultant, advocate and publisher. Taught in Dubai and did Equity in Ed Board Training. (Governance)
  • Sarah Lampkin, Compliance Manager for Southern Company. HR Background (Governance)
  • Stephanie Twitty-Carmon, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Study to Explore Early Development and former Teacher effectiveness administrator (Academics). 
  • Next class of candidates to serve on-year terms to ensure effective succession planning 


  • Determine Date for Board Retreat 9am-12pm November 19


  • Brainstorm Board Retreat Content:  who does what at the school with an updated organizational chart; getting to the vision in the aftermath of the pandemic; team building; fundraising and financial stewardship.  


  • Provide Board Member Training Updates - Governance specialist to circle back with SCSC about training dates for the year. 


  • Review previous work on evaluations for the Head of School and Chief Financial Officer. Use the existing form.  What data points should be used?  Climate survey. MAP data (twice a year)? Reading and Mathematics. Follow students who have been at ivy over time. Look at growth. Students who’ve been at ivy for a year.  


Action items:  

FTE Updates at next board meeting

Create a matrix of board members and board needs (finance, diverse, law)

  • Send board comprehensive review info

Recommend slate of prospective board members for service

By: Dr. William Epps (committee member) Seconded by: Ms. April Jackson (committee member)


Information Items

Governing Board Meeting: Tuesday, September 27, 2022 at 6:00 p.m.

The Meeting was Adjourned

The meeting adjourned at approximately 11:56 pm

Motion to adjourn

By: Dr. William Epps (committee member) Seconded by: Ms. April Jackson (committee member)

There was no notable discussion on the motion.