Westside Atlanta Charter School

Governing Board

Regular Meeting - Thursday November 14th, 2024 @7:00 AM

Meeting Minutes

Attendance Summary

Name Status Arrival Time Departure Time
Jonathan Baker present member On Time At Adjournment
Douglas McRae present chair On Time At Adjournment
Hannah Heck present member On Time At Adjournment
Ashley Pruitt present member On Time At Adjournment
Chris Tuten present member On Time At Adjournment
Katrina Mitchell not present member
Tiffany Chen present member On Time At Adjournment
Alyson West present secretary On Time At Adjournment
Julius Farrington present member On Time At Adjournment
Jessica Weissinger present vice-chair On Time At Adjournment

Welcome and Call to Order

The meeting will be called to order.

Motion to call the meeting to order.

By: Douglas McRae Seconded by: Alyson West

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

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.

Motion to approve the agenda for this Board meeting.

By: Douglas McRae Seconded by: Alyson West

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Public Comment

The WACS Board would like to welcome students, parents, staff and community members. In order to facilitate an efficient meeting, if you would like to offer comments please limit your remarks to the public comment period of the agenda. We would ask that sign up on the sign up sheet and limit your comments to 3 minutes. Finally, we ask that you not include comments that reference individual students (other than your own). If you need to reference a specific student, you may do so in writing to governance@wacs.us where the board can protect student privacy. We understand that after the public comment period, you may have questions/comments regarding topics that are discussed during the meeting. Please direct those questions to governance@wacs.us. The Board may not address comments/questions after the public comment period. However, we will work with the school administration to provide a prompt response to your email.


If you have a grievance, we would ask that you follow the board policy of starting first with the lowest level of authority as that is almost always the place where change can happen most effectively. Any grievance directed to the attention of the board, should be sent to governance@wacs.us. We thank you for your cooperation. At this time, we would like to open the floor to public comment.



  • Van Hardimon made a public comment about campus security, location of personnel, and the new vestibule. William Arterberry, CFO and Dr. Tanner responded with an update.


  • Shane Tolbert made a public comment about the K-2 playground area refurbishment. Dr. Tanner responded with a status update on grants submitted.

Approval of Minutes from Prior Meeting

Board will approve minutes from last month's meeting.

Motion to approve the minutes of October meeting.

By: Douglas McRae Seconded by: Julius Farrington

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Community Council Report

Community Council Co-Chair gives an update.


  • Fall Festival update and parent volunteer update
  • Need more support for fundraising
  • Need volunteers for the Book Fair next week
  • Upcoming teacher lunch will be sponsored by 3rd and 7th grade families
  • Mu Roberts is stepping down as interim Co-Chair
  • Laura Spoo will share more about CC succession in Dec. meeting



School Leader Report

The school leader reports on the status of the school.


  • Enrollment currently at 348
  • Superintendent Johnson visited on Nov. 11th. He toured the school with students and enjoyed his visit.
  • Highlight Literacy Award, Sonia Rosales 
  • Highlight Excellence in Teaching, Elenie Menna (new 2nd grade teacher)
  • Approval of hiring Joseph Spivey, Director of Operations who will handle payroll, facility management, maintenance and ordering, CFO support, support for other departments.
  • Dr. Tanner was recognized as School Leader of the Year from the Freedom Coalition of Charter Schools
  • Dr. McKee accepted the award in Dr. Tanner's honor.






Motion to approve the hiring of Joseph Spivey for Director of Operations

By: Jessica Weissinger Seconded by: Jonathan Baker

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Finance Committee Report

  • Monthly financials review presented by CFO, William Arterberry
  • APS rental income update, budget impact, and upcoming renegotiation of rental contract
  • Atlanta Watershed Management meter update and budget impact




Governance Committee Report

  • Board retreat recap given by Ashley Pruitt, Governance Committee Chair
  • Board surveys
  • Committee survey for needs and mission alignment
  • Refreshing the onboarding process for new members
  • Drafting a facility use policy

Development Committee Report

Development Committee gives monthly report.


  • Business Partner Program new banners for 2024-25 are on the way
  • Want to establish Friends of Westside for additional giving
  • End-of-Year Giving communications are going out
  • Boosterthon Dates Feb.6-14th




Mission Reading

We will close the meeting by reading the mission.

The Meeting was Adjourned

The meeting adjourned at approximately 8:07 am

Motion to adjourn

By: Jessica Weissinger Seconded by: Alyson West

There was no notable discussion on the motion.