CORNERSTONE MONTESSORI ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING TUESDAY APRIL 21, :00 P.M.

Transcription

1 CORNERSTONE MONTESSORI ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING TUESDAY APRIL 21, :00 P.M. Bard Members Present: Melissa Santrach, Kristen Campbell, Liz Cenen, Andrea Galdames, Eve L, Juliann McDermtt, Jane Reilly, Julie Richards, and Liesl Taylr Bard Members Absent: Marjrie Nitz Other Attendees: Chris Bewell, Shane Weinand (VOA representative) AGENDA Meeting called t rder by Bard Chair, Melissa Santrach, at 6:05 pm Public Cmment Perid: N public cmments were ffered. Apprval f Agenda & Declaratin f Cnflict f Interest Melissa asked if there were any changes t the agenda. The fllwing items were added: Acceptance f minutes frm the annual Bard Retreat Appintment f an electin judge fr the annual electin f Bard members JULIANN MADE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE EVENING S AGENDA WITH THE ABOVE ADJUSTMENTS; JULIE SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Based n the apprved agenda, Melissa asked if anyne had any cnflicts f interest with the evening s agenda. Nne were disclsed. Acceptance f Minutes Melissa asked if anyne had changes t the regular March meeting minutes r the Bard Retreat minutes. Nne were suggested. LIZ MADE A MOTION TO ACCEPT THE MINUTES FROM THE MARCH MEETING AND BOARD RETREAT; ANDREA SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Head f Schl Reprt Liesl Taylr See reprt frm HOS. Liesl presented her Vital Signs reprt; additinal cmments/actins fllw: The Vital Signs reprt, a review f the missin based n schl activities, included the fllwing highlights: It s been very exciting t bserve a new 5 th grader fully embracing the cncept f big wrk in math wrk. The Prject Fair in Frest was wnderful! One anecdte shared was abut a cuple f students wh really wanted t use dry ice fr their prject and the wrk they did t learn all abut hw t handle it safely and incrprate it int their prject in an exciting way. Wrk cntinues n the preparatins fr the pancake fundraiser n May 16. Ging Outs are beginning t happen in meaningful, imprtant ways, and students are building cnnectins with children frm ther Mntessri schls in the area. A grup f Pnd students wanted t visit Sunny Hllw t learn abut putting n a play. They prepared thrughly fr the uting and had a great time! Mre art and cultural activities starting t emerge as the classrms are becming mre settled. Liesl spke abut enrllment and described the delicate balance needed t manage the numbers in each f the envirnments. Abut testing and assessments, Liesl nted that staff have been evaluating the value f cntinuing NWEA testing nw that ur authrizer n lnger requires it. CMES Bard Meeting Minutes April 2015 Page 1

2 They have decided that there is gd infrmatin t be gained frm the K 2 students results s thse grades will d the spring testing cycle and will cntinue with NWEA assessments next year. Teachers have fund that the NWEA test results are nt as helpful fr the lder students. Instead they are finding the OLPA feedback t be mre useful s will cntinue with thse next year. Additinally, Dr. Steven Hughes, wh has been wrking t measure executive functining in yunger children, is ging t begin wrking with lder children. Students beynd 2 nd grade will nt d the Spring NWEA and they will nt d the Fall 2015 NWEA assessments. Liesl will defer t Chris fr reprting abut the MCA testing currently underway. Liesl nted that the staff is getting ready fr the Special Educatin review, which will be happening n May 13 th. They see it as their time t shine and shw hw the Mntessri apprach is a gd fit fr students wh receive Special Educatin services. Melissa asked if smene frm the staff culd d a presentatin t the Bard n this. Liesl agreed that it wuld be a gd tpic fr Bard educatin and suggested that June wuld be a gd mnth since the reprt will be available. Liesl will check with staff t see if this is dable. Liesl prvided several staff updates: At their mst recent staff meeting, staff reflected n their prfessinal develpment fr the year and thught abut pssibilities fr next year. One thught was t d a service prject with the staff and bth Bards. There have been sme great new hires and Liesl cmmented that the diversity f the student cmmunity is starting t be reflected in the staff. Adrianna Trres is the new Spanish speaking assistant in the Children s Huse. Guled Hassan is the new full time Special Educatin paraprfessinal. He is als in a teacher educatin prgram. He has a very deep understanding f what s happening with the children. Interviewing cntinues fr the new Upper Elementary Lead Guide. It s been ging well and they hpe t wrap it up by the end f the week. Marcella, the assistant in the Upper Elementary, is ging back t Spain s that psitin will als need t be filled. Liesl thanked Bard members fr their wrk at the retreat she was grateful t hear each persn s stry. Liesl prvided several general updates: The elementary classrms are seeing many mre parent bservers, which is new this year. Typically there are mre bservers in the Children s Huse but this year they are having a gd number in the elementary! There is sme interest in CMES becming a fd truck stp and perhaps a CSA drp site. Liesl has cntinued t wrk n develping the cnnectin with the lcal plice. Already fur families have accessed the Prject Assist services. Liesl intrduced the calendar fr Bard apprval and ffered the fllwing cmments: There are three prfessinal develpment days in August fr Elementary teachers t cntinue their wrk f establishing the elementary prgram there is still lts f wrk t be dne! The Friday befre cnferences will be teacher prep time. Als having time during MEA t fcus n classrm adjustments and prfessinal develpment was very gd this past year s it will be dne that way next year as well. The Winter and Spring breaks align with the St. Paul Public schl calendar s that siblings will have the same days ff. CMES Bard Meeting Minutes April 2015 Page 2

3 The calendar has 170 days next year. The recmmendatin is 165 days s if snw/cld days ccur, we will be fine. We als have ample cntact hurs during the day. EVE MADE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE CMES ACADEMIC CALENDAR; KRISTEN SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Directr f Business Operatins Chris Bewell See reprt frm Directr f Business Operatins; additinal cmments fllw: E rate grant has been submitted and we ll knw by July 1 what funding will be awarded. We are hping t get Tier 1 as in past, and althugh the percentage has been reduced it is still very wrthwhile. We are als hping t receive Tier 2 funds, which includes tech supprt services and can pay fr things like firewalls and hardware. The funding is based n free and reduced lunch cunts. We did nt receive this last year but are hping t receive it this year! The Fresh Fruit and Vegetables grant has been submitted. Thugh we didn t get it this past year, we are hpeful it will cme thrugh fr the cming year. It als is based n the free and reduced numbers. Since we haven t had the Fresh Fruits and Vegetables grant this year, a parent has been arranging t have a snack fr the students 5 days a week, which has been really wnderful. Regarding enrllment, there is an Open Huse n April 30. Families n the waitlist have been invited s they can becme familiar with the schl and decide if it s the right envirnment fr their child. MCA testing is underway but it has been very prblematic frm the state s end. Just tday the educatin cmmissiner suspended testing until the technical bugs are reslved. It is hped that when it s resumed it will g much smther. Bard Chair Reprt Presented by Melissa See Bard Chair Reprt; additinal cmments fllw: Melissa thanked everyne fr their participatin at the Bard Retreat and said the Develpment Cmmittee will cntinue t wrk n accmplishing the fundraising gals. The health insurance has been finalized at a 3.2% increase. Melissa encuraged everyne wh is able t attend ESABA events whenever pssible. They ffer excellent ways t netwrk within the cmmunity. Melissa reprted n her wn experience in ding bservatins in the classrms. She fund it t be very enriching and encuraged thers t schedule a time t d a frmal classrm bservatin. Melissa presented Lease Aid Assurance frms fr each persn t sign and asked that everyne sign and return the frms t her r Chris befre leaving this evening. Melissa asked all Bard members wh haven t yet scheduled their annual evaluatin with her t d s at their earliest cnvenience. Gvernance Cmmittee Reprt Presented by Melissa See Gvernance Cmmittee meeting minutes; additinal cmments fllw: Melissa intrduced the draft Fundraising plicy and indicated that it is gd t have a plicy in place as we embark n develpment. As pprtunities arise, the plicy can be mdified if needed. Melissa asked if anyne had changes r suggestins. CMES Bard Meeting Minutes April 2015 Page 3

4 Jane suggested that the last sentence f 3c. [Fundraising activities that ccur within a classrm are excluded frm this requirement] be added t 4a. s that classrm level fundraising des nt require Bard level crdinatin. Bard members queried Liesl abut whether there were any prblems with the classrm level fundraisers and Liesl said there hadn t been any issues yet. If smething des arise, we culd develp smething mre frmal. JULIANN MADE A MOTION TO ADOPT THE FUNDRAISING POLICY AS AMENDED; EVE SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY. Melissa presented the slate f nminees fr the upcming electin: Parent Seat (3 year term): Elizabeth Cenen Cmmunity Member Seats (2 seats; 3 year term each): Melissa Santrach; Julie Richards KRISTEN MADE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE SLATE OF NOMINEES FOR THE 2015 ANNUAL ELECTION FOR BOARD MEMBERS; EVE SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY. Melissa nted that we need t appint an electin judge t prepare the ballts and mnitr the electin prcess. The electin judge als cunts the vtes. Melissa suggested the Bard t appint Chris Bewell as the electin judge. JULIE MADE A MOTION TO APPROVE CHRIS BEWELL AS THE ELECTION JUDGE FOR THE 2015 CMES SCHOOL BOARD ELECTION; KRISTEN SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY. Melissa cmmented that a change in state statue nw allws nn parent/staff bard members t vte and encuraged all Bard members t participate. Fr thse wh cannt make it t schl during vting hurs, an absentee ballt can be requested frm Chris. Melissa presented the fllwing Bard and Cmmittee meeting calendar fr the year and asked the Bard fr apprval. Melissa nted that the August meeting will ccur n the 3 rd Tuesday f the mnth. If the schl is unavailable due t cleaning r ther activities, we ll find an alternative lcatin. The annual jint meeting with the Mntessri Center f Minnesta (MCM) is scheduled fr Wednesday, September 30 th. This date is already cnfirmed with the MCM. The annual Bard Retreat is scheduled fr Saturday, April 16, 2016, but can be changed if needed. The Annual Meeting will be May 17 th at 5:30 pm and the regular May meeting will be at 6:00 pm. Mnth Bard Meeting Finance Gvernance Develpment July July 21 July 14 July 16 July 29 August August 18 August 11 August 13 August 26 September September 15 September 8 September 10 September 23 Octber Octber 20 Octber 13 Octber 15 Octber 28 Nvember Nvember 17 Nvember 10 Nvember 12 Nvember 25 December December 15 December 8 December 10 December 23 January January 19 January 12 January 14 January 27 February February 16 February 9 February 11 February 24 March March 15 March 8 March 10 March 23 April April 19 April 12 April 14 April 27 May May 17 May 10 May 12 May 25 June June 21 June 14 June 16 June 29 CMES Bard Meeting Minutes April 2015 Page 4

5 JULIE MADE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE BOARD AND COMMITTEE MEETING CALANDAR AS PRESENTED; KRISTEN SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY. Melissa reviewed the preparatins fr the annual meeting, which will be Tuesday, May 19 at 5:30 pm. Liesl will present a summary f the year and incrprate Melissa s reprt since Melissa will nt be in attendance. Liz will present the financial reprt, which will be prepared by Sandy. Develpment Cmmittee Reprt Presented by Julie See Develpment Cmmittee meeting minutes; additinal cmments fllw: Jim Olsen attended the meeting t learn abut Crnerstne frm Liesl, wh described the Crnerstne experience and talked abut hw Crnerstne is different frm ther charter schls. This was gd preparatin fr the Bard retreat, which Jim guided. Next Develpment Cmmittee meeting will be April 29 at 7:15 am at the Dancing Gat. Parent Invlvement Cmmittee Reprt Presented by Eve L Melissa thanked Eve fr crdinating the wnderful array f fd fr staff t enjy during cnferences. She was there each day t receive the fd, prep it, then clean up! Liesl als ffered her thanks t Eve the staff was very appreciative! Melissa asked if Eve had any additinal cmments regarding Parent Invlvement Cmmittee activities. Eve had n additinal cmments. Treasurer s Reprt Liz Cenen See minutes frm Finance Cmmittee meeting; additinal cmments/actins fllw: Liz shared the news that we were awarded the schl finance award again! She expressed her thanks t Chris and Liesl fr their thughtful and prudent stewardship f ur schl s finances. Liz als acknwledged Sandy s wealth f expertise and her generus cntributin f time. Our cash flw is fine the cncern abut nt receiving the special educatin funding has been reslved. Liz explained that the Minnesta Department f Educatin (MDE) has a new external user access recertificatin system and that each schl must designate a schl fficial t authrize thse wh can access the secure websites. LIZ MADE A MOTION TO DESIGNATE THE CMES HEAD OF SCHOOL AS THE AUTHORIZER FOR USER ACCESS TO MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION (MDE) SECURE WEBSITES; JULIANN SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY. Liz nted that the 2016 budget will be presented at the May meeting. Liz asked if anyne had questins abut the March financial statements r the Finance Cmmittee minutes. Nne were asked. LIZ MADE A MOTION TO ACCEPT THE MARCH 2015 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS; ANDREA SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY. CMES Bard Meeting Minutes April 2015 Page 5

6 Other Business Melissa nted that Liesl requested that the Gvernance Cmmittee frmulate a Ging Out plicy fr students. Melissa asked Bard members t let her knw if they wuld be interested in wrking n such a plicy. The wrk culd be dne ver the summer but the plicy shuld be in place fr the schl year. Suggested Agenda Items fr Next Mnth Budget apprval New hires Electin results/fficers Adjurn KRISTEN MADE A MOTION TO ADJOURN THE MEETING AT 7:38 PM; EVE SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. The next meeting will be n Tuesday, May 19. The Annual Meeting will cnvene at 5:30 PM and the regularly mnthly meeting will immediately fllw. Respectfully Submitted by Jane Reilly, CMES Bard Secretary CMES Bard Meeting Minutes April 2015 Page 6