MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

A meeting of the Explore Knowledge Academy Charter School Board of Trustees was held on Monday, August 6, 2007, 4:45 pm at 1711 Whitney Mesa Dr., Ste # 140, Henderson, NV 89014.

A. Call to Order: President Ben Day called the meeting to order at 4:52 pm and led the flag salute and silent meditation.

B. Organization

1. Roll Call: A quorum was established with six of seven board members present: Ben Day, Jill Nelson, Camille Wilson, Dee Ann Carey, Jay Rosen, and Lauren Scheer. Heidi Thompson was absent. Others in attendance: Staff Members Joan Sando, Danette Green, Constance Ewing, Marlo Tsuchiyama, Clark Price, Abbe Mattson, Patrick Quinn, Sandra Watkins, Heather Watkins, and several other staff members and parents.

2. Adoption of Agenda: Jay moved, Jill seconded a motion to accept the agenda as presented. Vote: All members voted "aye", none opposed. Motion carried.

3. Approval of revised minutes from meeting on May 21st, 2007. Jay moved, Jill seconded a motion to accept the minutes as revised. Vote: All Board Members voted "aye", none opposed. Motion carried.

Approval of minutes from meeting on June 12, 2007. Jay moved, Camille seconded a motion to accept the minutes as presented. Vote: All ayes, none opposed, motion carried.

President Ben Day reminded the audience to come to the front and identify themselves before making comments so their names and comments can be identified on the recordings of the meeting.

C. Reports/Presentations

1. Administration

• Open Meeting Law: Joan reported that she and Danette had attended two NV State Dept. of Ed Technical Workshops for updates on compliance issues and were reminded that we are required to follow the Open Meeting Law, so we need to review it, but she would like to make that a topic for discussion at the annual retreat instead of spending too much time tonight. For example, we learned that we are supposed to be taping closed sessions as well as open sessions, and that if more than three members are together at one time, even for dinner together, they can't talk EKA business unless they have posted an agenda three business days in advance. President Ben commented that he felt that would be an appropriate topic for the retreat.
• EdVisions Western Institute: Joan presented the agenda for the Institute, which EKA is hosting on August 13-17^th , and invited the board members to participate. All our advisors of grades 5-12 will be attending, plus Clark and Connie. So far, we have 107 people coming from 15 schools, mostly in CA and WA, plus 9 leaders from EdVisions Coop in MN. Each school will collaborate to develop a 30-day plan, with coaching from EdVisions leaders. Our school will receive $3000 for hosting the Institute. Marlo also reported that EdVisions has offered us $5000 for video-conferencing equipment so our students can collaborate on projects and communicate with students from other EdVisions schools.
• CCSD Compliance Review: Joan reported that we were in compliance in all areas except Special Education and that was because we could not find a Speech Therapist for most of the school year. Our Special Ed teacher at Sandhill is a licensed Speech Therapist, so we hired her to do compensatory services over the summer. Her contract for this coming year is part time speech and part time special ed.
• Employee Contracts: Danette reported on the advisors who had signed contracts, plus we have offered letters of intent to three more. She said we also have offered a letter to Sue Stewart for Director of Finance and Joan said it would be considered in New Business because it requires action.
• Transcripts/Diplomas/Student Records: This report is in response to concerns that were expressed during a conference with Joan, Dee Anna, and Jill during July that we feel should be addressed with all board members. First is a question about whether our students get their diplomas on time or a year later. Joan reported that we had used a company called Balfour the first two years and had such poor service, so this year Ms. Ewing printed the diplomas, Ben signed them prior to the graduation ceremony, and they were handed to parents that same day. Jay asked about transcripts not being ready or incorrect so the diplomas couldn't be printed, and Dee Anna said she knew for sure there were problems. Joan asked if she meant this year and she said, "last year", and Joan replied yes, that is why we changed it this year. Connie required advisors to turn in their grades two weeks in advance so she could make sure we did not have the discrepancies like we had last year. Jay asked Dee Anna if there wasn't an issue with her child and her transcript and summer school. Dee Anna said there was a big issue with her transcript showing a class she had taken twice and it had not been taken care of. Joan said the issue of the name of the math class had been taken care of but not the enrollment in summer school. She asked Ms. Mattson to explain the changes in the names of the CCSD courses (Contemporary Math and Applied Algebra). Jay asked how many students were affected and Ms. Mattson said three. He asked if the transcripts had been changed. Danette replied that she had made the changes but that SASI is down and she couldn't print them. There was more discussion about Dee Anna's concern and the timing of the response. She had first called Joan on July 6^th and asked to have the transcript issue resolved by Monday, July 9^th. Joan had returned to the office on the 9th, but does not have access to SASI, and the advisors and Ms. Ewing were not available to discuss changing the grades as requested. Danette changed the transcripts as soon as she returned to the office but she could not change the grades, either, without the advisors approval. Camille asked if there was a way for CCSD to notify charter schools when they make changes, and Ms. Ewing said she had to call several people before she could get an updated course list, but now she has a contact person in CCSD so she will keep up to date. Jay summarized the discussion by saying there had been a problem, it had been addressed, and it shouldn't happen again. Dee Anna asked Abbe how she knew about the math classes if it was before she was on staff. Abbe replied that she was here, subbing for Kathy Erickson, plus she had reviewed the transcripts. Jay said he had an issue with report cards, that everyone is different and the latest one had no comments from the advisors. He asked if there was going to be a standard one. Danette explained we use SASI for grades 6-12 and the advisors don't have many options for adding comments. She said we only send out report cards twice a year, so perhaps Jay had been looking at progress reports. The first year we were not required to use SASI, so we used our own form and the advisors did write comments on them, but now the standard is from SASI. Camille asked if there was some way to inform parents when changes to forms are made and this was discussed. Joan said another issue discussed at the meeting in July was inconsistent use of PLPs, and that one of our goals this year is to do a better job of developing the PLPs and using data from testing and other assessments to set goals for each student. Dee Anna said she thought parents should sign off on them and Joan said that is exactly what we are planning. She asked Connie Ewing to explain her plans for PLPs. Connie presented a handout showing the courses we offer and the form we will use for each student, Student Explorations Action Learning (SEAL) plan that includes input from the student, the parent, and the advisor. We will start with ninth graders and complete their four year plans by Sept. 28^th. Other grades will be completed at parent conferences. These are similar to the PLPs used the first two years and are based on students strengths, interests, and needs. She said she got an idea from listening to the above conversation to include a copy of each student's transcripts with the SEAL form so parents can become familiar with them. Jay said he thinks this is incredible, but he is concerned that it is so much work that it may not be reasonable. Connie said we will start with ninth graders and try to have all high school PLPs done by the end of the semester. Dee Anna expressed a concern that ninth grade plans are easy because they don't have many choices, but what are you going to do about older students when you need to make changes and it is already the end of the semester. Connie said that is why she is going to include the transcripts when she sends the form home for parental input, so any issues can be discussed before it is too late to make changes, so we can work together to try to prevent problems like this. Dee Anna asked what safeguards are going to be in place so mistakes are not made. Connie replied that if the parents, the student, and the advisor all look at the transcripts, mistakes should be noticed, between all those sets of eyes. Jay asked for a report at every meeting on the progress of PLPs. Camille asked if there is some type of training for parents on what to look for on transcripts and what the state standards are, etc. She suggested we use the ninth grade class as our pilot group and provide training for students, parents, and advisors on how to read transcripts. Camille recommended video tapes and web site messages, as well as parent information meetings to inform parents on what to look for. Connie said she welcomed the suggestions and asked that, in the future, suggestions be emailed to her as she prefers to consider changes before the problems occur. Joan told about bringing in a CCSD counselor the past two years to go over transcripts with 11^th and 12th graders and their parents and suggested we might do that again. Connie will look into this possibility for all high school students.
• Enrollment

Danette presented the current enrollment figures and how many openings we have. Jay asked if we had considered a lower enrollment and cutting expenses. Joan said that is why we have not hired all of the teachers we had projected. Marlo said she is analyzing the budget and now has actual figures from all three buildings, as far as utilities, etc., so she can have a more accurate estimate. Jay asked if we had considered getting out of the lease on one of the buildings and Marlo replied yes, that both the board and the community council had discussed our options. Dee Anna asked about kindergarten students and how many classes. We have scheduled two classes with one teacher. Danette told about postcards, phone calls, and parent meetings that are being held to try to finalize enrollments before school starts.

• Facility Improvements

The Sandhill landlord has fixed all of the plumbing problems at no cost, and has installed new carpeting. We will pay for part of the carpeting but most of the cost comes from the maintenance fund the landlord keeps as a percentage of our rent. They are also applying for a solar project to help with utilities and providing a bid for painting the outside of the building. Jay asked about installing walls, but we are replacing the office dividers. To build walls, we would need a building permit and we would have to move fire sprinklers, air conditioning vents, etc. No changes have been made to Whitney Mesa or Community Lane.

• First Day Packets

Danette has the list of what will be included and her support staff returned to work today, so they will be done.

• June 7-8 All-Staff Workshop

Joan reported that all of the staff had participated in a workshop on June 7^th and 8^th to address working relationships and to set some goals for the new school year. Many of the concerns being brought up by board members had been addressed by staff at that workshop. Connie gave an overview of the two days and described the four committees that were formed; namely, Staff Professional Practice Teams at each site, Capacity Building Team to elevate trust levels, Fun Committee to plan events for staff, and Communications Team to build strategies for improving communications. Each Team had developed one major goal and would meet this year to develop action plans.

2. Students: Matthew Engh

This summer we moved the student store out into the lunchroom, creating a teacher's room, bought a refrigerator and have plans to buy storage counter.

3. Advisors: Abbe Mattson

Secondary Student Bank Account: Ms. Mattson provided the Profit and Loss statement from January to August. The student funds come from snacks, catered lunches, and spirit materials and are spent on student activities like the Prom.

Student Planners: Two advisors had developed a student daily planner that includes organizers, hall pass, English guide, Project Foundry, project guidelines, grading rubrics, behavior plans and more. All students are expected to use them on a daily basis.

Library: The library was totally organized by parent volunteers this summer. Student government has expressed an interest in keeping it organized.

Curriculum/Instruction update: Secondary plans 90 minute sessions in Math and English for all students. NWEA scores and other assessments are used for grouping and for determining needs of students. Proficiency classes will be offered for students who have not passed NHSPEs. A lot more electives are offered this year, which is good for project based instruction. Class sets of literature have been purchased for English.

4. P.A.S.T.E.

Heather Watkins, Vice President, reported that she had talked with Kristin Timmons, President and she said the funds had been transferred from Savings to Checking to cover the overdrafts.

5. Board Members

Ben reported that he had communicated with Ellen Sloane regarding her comment at a board meeting last spring that we would need to return funds to CCSD if students transferred back during the school year and David Osman had asked if that went both ways. Ellen had emailed Ben that we would not lose money to CCSD at this time. Ben also said he had a set of history books to donate to the school for fifth grade. Clark Price will be his contact on this. In response to a question from Camille about surplus materials from CCSD, Dee Anna reported that the district has a Hot-Line publication that lists all equipment and materials they don't need. Ben and Dee Anna will keep their eyes open for possible items we can use.

D. PUBLIC COMMENTS on agenda items:

Kathleen Erickson: Two suggestions: 1) Invite a couple of parents to participate in the EdVisions Institute, and 2) Invite parents to be trained as experts in the PLP process and develop a "college room" at school where parents can get information on courses, standards, etc.

E. Response to Public Comments:

F. Old Business

1. Use of Facilities: Jay moved to accept the policy and direct the administration to create a cost schedule to be presented with the application. Lauren seconded. Vote: all ayes, none opposed, motion carried.

G. New Business

1. New Staff Members

Joan reported that Marlo's contract ended on July 30^th, the administrative team had advertised and interviewed candidates for Director of Finance and would like to hire Susan Stewart. Marlo stated that she had brought Sue in to work as a volunteer to help with accounting since our accountant, Sharon, had moved out of state and she was very comfortable working with her. She explained that Sue has a background in banking, credit unions, and accounting for small businesses. Jay asked where she came from, whether she is a friend or relative of anyone. Marlo said she had worked with her several years ago. Jay asked if Marlo sought her out and she said yes. In explanation of this concern, Joan explained that most of the applicants were referrals from staff members. Danette passed around Susan's application and resume to the board members and Marlo described Susan's qualifications. Dee Anna asked what kind of training we would offer Sue. Marlo said that she planned to do Sharon's accounting work and train Sue during the transition, especially for the external audit and the 387 Report, which is the most comprehensive state report of the year and the most difficult learning curve for her when she came to EKA. Jill asked if she had book keeping experience, and Marlo said she is currently responsible for the financials and reporting at Credit One and, when she worked with her at the bank, she was promoted from staff accounting to accounts payable manager. Dee Anna asked what the salary was and Marlo said the range is $55,000 to $65,000 and she would be coming in toward the lower end of that. Dee Anna asked how much of a pay cut there would be, because she won't stick with it if she makes more elsewhere and we don't want to waste time. Jill said she only has three accounting classes on her resume and Jay said he is very concerned about her being both a realtor and director and he sees no Peachtree or QuickBooks on the resume. Camille asked if we are concerned about her preparation or more with her experience, whether she knew general accounting principles, and what is needed for this office. Marlo explained that the work at the bank was more detailed than here, that Sue had been in Corporate Accounting, and then risk analysis. Jay said we should do a more formal search. Jill said we need to call an accounting placement firm. Jay said he was more concerned that we get a person with non-profit experience and Jill said we need a full chartered accountant at the least. Jill said we shouldn't wait until the last minute and everyone started talking at once. Ben interrupted to say he knew we had been advertising since June as he remembered an email from Joan about it. Ben said he didn't think prolonging the decision would get a better person. Camille asked if we were comfortable with Sue's accounting background. Joan said she was totally comfortable with her background and the work she has done for us, as she asks tough questions and doesn't just pay bills, but she had questioned Sue about her comfort level with reporting at public meetings and Sue assured her she had no problem with that. Marlo said that Sue is familiar with many systems, like Oracle, QuickBooks, and more, but that the other candidates only knew Word and Excel. Marlo also added that Sue is trustworthy and hard-working, and has provided us with references. She said anyone who comes in would need training in school finance, as it is different, and that the State Department of Education provides technical assistance and training. Jay made a motion to accept the employment of Sue Stewart, Lauren seconded the motion. Jay requested that in the future, have the candidate here. Ben called for the vote. Jill was opposed and everyone else abstained. Then Jay asked if it was too late to change his vote. He said he didn't see any choice as we need someone and the administration seems comfortable with her. Ben stated that this is really a management decision, not a board responsibility, and we need to be careful not to micromanage. Several people started talking at once and the speakers and statements are not discernable on the tape. Joan said our charter states that the board employs the Executive Director and she is responsible for all other employees. However, the final approval is the board, just like with teachers. Some board members expressed they would like more input for upper level administrators. Joan said there is a probationary period for new employees, if that made them more comfortable. Dee Anna asked how long and Joan replied 3 months. Camille suggested we have an accountant review the financial reports periodically, to assure the board we have a person who is qualified and the books are well done within accounting principles. Marlo said that is a possibility, like a mini-audit after the first quarter, but we should make sure it wasn't a waste of time and money as we already have an external audit, plus a CCSD during the third quarter. Marlo said when she was looking for someone for this position, she looked for a hard-worker who was honest and qualified as an accountant. Jay called for another vote. Ayes: Dee Anna, Jay, Lauren, Ben, Opposed: Jill, Abstain: Camille

Two other advisors were presented for approval, Rosemary Carr and Karyl Davies. Dee Anna moved, Camille seconded a motion to approve the hiring and offer contracts. Vote: all ayes, none opposed.

Marlo Tsuchiyama presented a contract for accounting services from Clarity Systems to replace SLBG's contract as they have moved out of state. The contract is from August to December 31^st, 2007 and is already in the budget. The main responsibilities are to help with the training of the new director and with the audit and state reports. Jay moved, Dee Anna seconded a motion to accept. Ben called for the vote: hearing all ayes, he announced the motion carried. (After reading the draft of the minutes, Jill emailed Joan with a message that "for the record she had not voted, but Ben had not asked for those opposed.")

Marlo presented a contract proposal from LL Bradford to conduct our annual financial audit. Dee Anna asked if this was the firm that had asked for extra money after they had been paid, and Marlo assured her it was not that company, but this is the company that we had a good experience with the last two years. Dee Anna moved, Jay seconded a motion to accept the contract. Vote: all ayes, none opposed, motion carried.

2. School wide goals: Joan suggested saving this for the retreat or future meetings. She had added it to the agenda after talking with Jay, Dee Anna and Jill about their concerns, because they are exactly what the staff is working on in their schoolwide improvement goals, such as the 4 year plans, teacher evaluations and accountability, and communications, so their concerns are right on with the staff. Lauren asked that we develop an annual board calendar for when we can expect to approve hiring, etc.

3. Clarification of role between PASTE and EKA Board of Trustees: Joan asked for clarification because of the concern with PASTE's bank account being overdrawn. She suggested a subcommittee of both organizations work together to clarify the relationship. Even though PASTE has a constitution, are they not accountable to anyone as to whether it is being followed? Should they at least provide their annual audit report to the EKA Board? After discussion, Lauren moved to table this until another meeting and asked that PASTE's constitution be emailed to board members, Dee Anna seconded, Vote: all ayes, none opposed, motion passed.

4. Resignation of Board Member: Heidi Thompson had sent an email to Joan with her resignation. Joan had sent her the part of the by-laws that say she should serve 30 days or until a replacement is appointed, but she said she would have difficulty fulfilling that obligation due to a family situation that is demanding of her time. Lauren said she preferred to see the actual resignation in writing before approving it. Jay moved, Camille seconded a motion to accept the resignation. After discussion, a vote was taken with the following results: Ayes: Dee Anna, Jill, Camille, Jay. Opposed: Lauren. Motion passed.

5. Business and Marketing Plans, Community Relations, Communications, Grant writer: Jay had asked for this to be on the agenda and he asked if we had a plan. Joan said we had a formal marketing plan when we started, but then we got busy with operations we let it slide, so it is time to formalize it again. After discussion about what drives our decision-making such as our charter agreement, our school improvement plan, our accreditation self-study, the renewal of our charter, our budget, our approved calendar, and strategic planning, he asked that the administration put together all the documents we have that give us direction. He is interested in seeing a published set of goals and activities that combines all of the above. He suggested that marketing and communications plans could be short-term. Lauren repeated her request for an annual board calendar. Camille suggested creating a business plan that could be used for grant writing and suggested asking other charter schools what they do, and how much of the budget they designate for a PR person. Ben asked administration to look into how much it would cost and whether we could add it to the budget.

6. Implementation Plan for New Legislation: Joan presented a draft of a letter from the board to parents and staff on the new laws and regulations. She said the only one that we needed a plan for implementation is the four year plans for ninth graders which Connie already addressed in her report. Camille made a motion that we accept Connie's plan for implementing AB 212 and that we approve the letter to be sent to parents. Lauren seconded. Vote: all ayes, none opposed, motion passed.

H. Closed Session: Dee Anna Carey requested a closed session. President Ben Day adjourned the open meeting at 8:12.

I. Action on Closed Session: President Ben reconvened the open meeting at 8:42pm. He announced no action would be taken on the closed session discussion.

J. Public Comments on non-agenda items: None

K. Response to public comments: none

L. Agenda Planning: Retreat is scheduled for Saturday, September 29^th, 8:00-1:00, followed by the next open meeting. Many agenda items will come from these minutes. Also, the board reorganization or election of officers. Meeting adjourned at 8:49pm.