Westside Atlanta Charter School

Governing Board

Regular Meeting - Thursday December 12th, 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 present member On Time At Adjournment
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.

Move to call meeting to order.

By: Douglas McRae Seconded by: Alyson West

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Approval of Minutes from Prior Meeting

Board will approve minutes from last month's meeting and retreat.

Approve the minutes as submitted

By: Douglas McRae Seconded by: Tiffany Chen

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.

Move to approve agenda as written.

By: Douglas McRae Seconded by: Jonathan Baker

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Mission Statement

The meeting will begin with a reading of the school's mission statement:


Westside fosters a diverse, tight knit community of lifelong learners, giving each child an excellent academic experience that builds curiosity, critical thinking, and character.

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.



Public comments:

  • Ebony Tolbert commented on K-2 playground maintenance and safety
  • Van Hardimon commented on school security officer placement

Finance Committee Report

Finance Committee gives monthly report.


  • Monthly financials review given by William Arterberry, CFO
  • Update: Title I status and discussion about increasing return rate of federal form from households
  • Update: Dept. of Watershed is still on hold
  • Update: WACS, not tenant, to pay APS directly
  • Reduction in QBE/state and local funding
  • Time & Effort (teacher salary & years of experience) adjustment/payment will recoup the loss
  • Back up reallocation plan includes: Staff PD plan from Dr. Herrington and Ms. Rabsatt, Other consultants, and substitute allocation




Governance Committee Report

Governance Committee gives monthly report.

  • Immediately following the meeting, the Governance Committee will hold a brief tutorial for any Board members on Charter Boards and board documents.
  • Upcoming: outline for full board and governance calendar to coordinate committees
  • Full board training topic for next year

Development Committee Report

Development Committee gives monthly report.


  • Business Partner Program-delivering on program benefits, new program banners are on display
  • End-of-Year Giving- will send out email this week
  • Introduced Friends of Westside to bring additional funds from nontraditional donors
  • Boosterthon Fundraiser planning is underway




Board Leadership

The Board votes to affirm Jessica Weissinger as Board Chair.

Motion to affirm Jessica Weissinger as Board chair.

By: Douglas McRae Seconded by: Hannah Heck

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

The Meeting was Adjourned

The meeting adjourned at approximately 7:51 am

Motion to adjourn

By: Jessica Weissinger Seconded by: Alyson West

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Community Council Report

Community Council Co-Chair Laura Spoo gives an update.

  • Planning for next year
  • Leadership and room parent committee discussed 2H fundraising and independent bank account
  • Wins: parent participation, fall parties, teacher lunch in Nov.

Upcoming:

  • winter parties
  • staff refreshments from Teacher Appreciation Committee,
  • Kindness Week,
  • Jan. 6 parent breakfast to kickoff second half
  • Goal is get more volunteer signups, contact info and activity awareness

School Leader Report

The school leader reports on the status of the school.


  • Enrollment update: 348
  • Lottery: Opens January 6th, closes Feb, 28th
  • Re-enrollment Feb. 1-28th


Excellence in Teaching Spotlight: Catherine Perry for excellence in

  • running our Encore program
  • as a parent liaison
  • increase in parent engagement activities
  • openness to coaching and feedback
  • she is our first point of contact for parents
  • she facilitates our attendance plan