APPROVED 5/29/2013 Georgia Connections Academy (GACA) MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING Wednesday, April 17, 2013 at 6:00 p.m. ET Held at the following location and via teleconference: Georgia Connections Academy 2763 Meadow Church Road, Suite 208 Duluth, GA 30097 I. Call to Order Ms. Hug called the meeting to order at 6:05 p.m. when all participants were present and able to hear each other. The school location and phone line were open for the public to attend. II. Roll Call Board Members Present at Roll Call: Board Members Absent: Alisa Hug, Warren Mosby and Charlotte Collins (in person at the school, which was open to the public); Steve Julal (via phone); Rich Thompson; Guests Present: Heather Robinson, School Principal (in person at the school, which was open to the public); Norma Harper, Member of the Public; Barrie Drum, Missy Nelson, Nicole Miller, Brooke Hurst and Heather Woodward, Connections Education staff (all via phone). III. Public Comment There were no public comments at this time. IV. Routine Business a. Approval of Agenda Ms. Hug asked the Board to review the Agenda distributed prior to the meeting. There being no changes noted, and no further discussion, Ms. Hug made the following motion and it was seconded by Mr. Mosby as follows: RESOLVED, that the Agenda for the April 17, 2013 Meeting of the Board of Directors of the Georgia Connections Academy, as presented, is hereby approved.
V. Audit Committee, Committee of the Entire Board a. Approval of Audit Firm Engagement for the 2012-2013 School Year Mr. Julal reviewed the audit firm engagement letter, as included in the Board materials. He advised the Board that the audit firm he was recommending was the same firm the Board had engaged for the previous school year, and the estimate of audit-related charges was similar to the previous school year. There being no further discussion, a motion was made by Mr. Mosby and seconded by Ms. Collins as follows: RESOLVED, that the engagement of Brooks, McGinnis & Company, LLC for the 2012-2013 school year audit, as presented, is hereby accepted. VI. Oral Reports a. Principal s Report Ms. Robinson reviewed the Monthly School Report with Board members. She also reviewed recent school activities. i. Graduation Plans and End of Year Activities Ms. Robinson updated the Board on graduation plans and end of year activities. ii. State Testing Update Ms. Robinson reviewed the school s recent testing participation levels and schedules, as well as student achievements with the Board. iii. Performance Standard Update Ms. Robinson noted this item would be presented later in the meeting. b. Update on Professional Services Agreement Renewal with Connections Academy of Georgia, LLC Ms. Hug provided the Board with an update on the negotiations held to date on the Professional Services Agreement Renewal with Connections Academy of Georgia, LLC. She reminded the Board of their prior approval and appointment of Ms. Hug to negotiate, finalize and execute the Agreement on behalf of the Board. She further advised that Board Counsel s review had also been completed, all negotiations finished, and that she was ready to execute the Agreement. Mr. Mosby stated that he wanted the full Board to review the Agreement, and consider further negotiations. Board members discussed the Commission Charter Contract timeline, as well as the PSA Renewal timeline. There being no further discussion, a motion was made by Mr. Mosby and seconded by Mr. Julal as follows: RESOLVED, that the School Leader is directed to follow up with the Charter Commission regarding the Professional Services Agreement renewal deadline extension, as discussed, is hereby approved.
c. Financial Report Ms. Miller reviewed the financial information included in the Board materials with the Board. She reviewed the balance sheet, and the school s revenue and expense statements with the Board. Mr. Julal added that he had also reviewed the financial statements and all appeared to be in order. VII. Consent Agenda Ms. Hug asked the Board members whether there were any items from the Consent Items that they wished to have moved to Action Items for discussion, or tabled. There being no items moved, a motion was made by Mr. Mosby and seconded by Mr. Julal as follows: RESOLVED, the Consent Items: a. Approval of Minutes from the March 20, 2013 Meeting; b. Approval of Minutes from the March 27, 2013 Special Meeting; c. Approval of Staffing Report; d. Approval of Revised Fiscal Policies; and e. Approval of Revision to 2012-2013 School Year Handbook: CIPA Policy; are hereby approved. [Ms. Harper left the meeting at 7:10 p.m.] VIII. Action Items a. Approval of Connections Academy of Georgia, LLC Invoice for March Mr. Julal reviewed in detail the CA invoice for the month of March as drawn from the financial report presented earlier in the meeting and contained in the Board materials. He asked the Board members whether they had any questions on the invoice or required any further explanation. There being no further discussion, a motion was made by Mr. Mosby and seconded by Mr. Julal as follows: RESOLVED, that the Connections Academy of Georgia, LLC invoice for the month of March, in the amount of $1,138,024.47, as presented, is hereby approved for payment upon the availability of funds. b. Approval of School Compensation Plan for the 2013-2014 School Year Ms. Robinson reviewed the draft School Compensation Plan that was included in the Board materials. She reviewed the proposed enhancements to the school s staff bonus structure in detail with the Board. The Board reviewed the financial implications of the plan and the impact that the approval of the plan would have on the school s employees. Ms. Robison reviewed the current bonus structure with the Board. There being no further discussion, a motion was made by Mr. Mosby and seconded by Mr. Julal as follows: RESOLVED, that the School Compensation Plan for the 2013-2014 school year, as presented, is hereby approved.
c. Authorization for School Leader to Begin Recruitment for and Hiring of Additional Administrative Positions Ms. Robinson discussed the school s need to begin recruitment for, and hiring of, additional administrative positions in preparation for the upcoming school year. The Board expressed their support for moving forward with the recruitment and hiring of such staff. There being no further discussion, a motion was made by Mr. Mosby and seconded by Ms. Collins as follows: RESOLVED, that the School Leader to begin recruitment for and hiring of additional administrative positions, as presented, is hereby authorized. d. Approval of National Charter School Conference Attendees Ms. Robinson advised the Board that since their consideration of this item at a previous meeting, the school has received additional grant funds that may be used to pay for attendance at the upcoming National Charter School Conference. Board members had discussion on the training opportunities presented, and expressed their desire to encourage Board members participation, if schedules permitted. There being no further discussion, a motion was made by Mr. Mosby and seconded by Ms. Collins as follows: RESOLVED, that the attendance of Board members at the National Charter Schools Conference, as discussed, be hereby approved. The motion was approved unanimously. e. Approval of Board Designee(s) to work with the School Leader on Strategic Planning Ms. Robinson presented this item to the Board. She noted her desire to work with a Board member(s) on items resulting from the Board s prior training session. She noted that in accordance with feedback received at the Board s prior training, Ms. Robinson would like to work with a Board designee or designees on strategic planning initiatives. Mr. Mosby volunteered to work with Mr. Robinson on behalf of the Board. There being no further discussion, a motion was made by Ms. Collins and seconded by Mr. Julal as follows: RESOLVED, that the appointment of Mr. Mosby as the Board Designee to work with the school on Strategic Planning initiatives, as presented, is hereby approved. IX. Information Items a. State Relations Update Ms. Drum provided the Board with an update on recent legislative activities that may impact the school.
b. Board Planning for the 2013-2014 School Year i. Proposed Meeting Schedule The Board discussed changing their meeting schedule to the third Thursday of the month at 6:00 p.m., and requested to have meetings scheduled for every month of the year. Ms. Woodward advised that the consideration of the Board meeting schedule for the 2013-2014 school year will be included on the June Annual Meeting agenda. ii. Board Composition Board members discussed current Board composition and recruiting efforts, as well as the Board attendance policy currently in place. X. Board Development: Georgia s College and Career Ready Performance Index (CCRPI) Presentation Ms. Robinson presented this item to the Board. She reviewed the Georgia College and Career Ready Performance Index presentation that was included in the Board materials. XI. Adjournment and Confirmation of Next Meeting Date of May 15, 2013 at 6:00 pm ET The next meeting is scheduled for of May 15, 2013 at 6:00 pm ET. A motion was made by Mr. Mosby and seconded by Ms. Collins to adjourn the meeting at 8:07 p.m.