Minutes
East Cooper Montessori Charter School
Governing Board Meeting
Thursday, August 15, 2013
6:25 PM—7:45 PM
Executive Session 5:30 PM – 6:25 PM
Note: review of contracts and personnel matters were discussed in Executive Session.
I. Administrative
A. Meeting was called to order by Doug Stalnaker, Chair, at 6:25
B. Board Members Roll Call:
Heather Borders--Treasurer
Josh Caplea
Andy Craig
Kim Durst--Vice Chair
Stephanie Lucas
Nancy Parson--Secretary
Doug Stalnaker--Chair
C. Non-Voting Members:
Jody Swanigan, Principal (Absent) Zak Oberrath, Teacher
Mary Beall, PTN liaison
Others Attending: Colleen Daniel, Director of Finance
D. Mission Statement: Provide a rigorous Montessori education guiding the children toward academic excellence, lifelong learning, and stewardship of the greater community.
E. Freedom of Information Compliance: Agenda was posted
F. Approval of Last Meeting Minutes: Approved
G. Public Comment: None
II. Updates/New Business
- Salary Audit
2013-2014 Salaries were included in the proposed budget. Salaries were lower
than expected because of the pay scale approved on the new CCSD budget. ECMCS salaries are kept at the same level as CCSD.
- Financial update
July budget is balanced and up-to-date as presented by Colleen.
Colleen previously circulated the revised proposed budget for 2013-2014 to Board Members. The Board discussed the new budget.
Colleen was instructed to cancel the appraisal contract that was approved at the last meeting.
- CCSD Laing contract: Constituent District/Belk
Nancy and Jody met with Marty Belk, Chair of the Constituent District 2 (Mt. Pleasant). After an explanation of Montessori and charter schools, and a tour of the school, Marty was pleased with what she learned and supportive of the Montessori concept. District 2 is concerned about the growing school population in Mt. Pleasant.
Jody, Josh and Doug attended a meeting earlier today with Nancy McGinley, Michael Bobby and Bill Lewis, the major CCSD players in the discussion about ECMCS possibly using the former Laing building to accommodate our expansion needs. Due to unforeseen renovation costs to update the building adequately and the need for space in District 2, Laing is no longer considered an option for ECMCS. The Facilities Committee will meet to discuss alternatives on Monday, August 19, 2013, at 2:PM in the ECMCS art room. This meeting will be an executive session only.
- PASS & Exit exam results
Pass scores look good and will be discussed further at the next meeting. Exit exam results will also be discussed at the next meeting.
III. Presentation/Discussion Items
- Administration, Board and HR
Only one staff exit interview has been returned. Nancy will send out another reminder.
Nancy is working on the Board calendar and promises to have it completed by August 23, 2013. The calendar is on Google docs so that all board members can access it and make necessary changes.
There was a discussion of the Vision Statement. Kim will email the draft of a statement. This will be discussed at the workshop on September 14, 2013.
- Community Relations
No report at this time.
- Development
The committee is planning events to raise money and involve the school community. Suggestions are to do an auction in the spring and have a family-oriented event as well.
- Educational Program
Discussion of PASS and Exit Exam results was tabled until next meeting.
Zak reported that the teachers spent the week in training for the Common Core Curriculum, which will be implemented in all classrooms this year. The state has adopted the new curriculum which is a national initiative. 2014 PASS testing will be adjusted to reflect these changes, but a decrease in results is expected throughout the state. 2015 state testing will be new and aligned with the Common Core Curriculum.
An email survey was sent out to 2009 ECMCS grads who recently graduated from high school. The information will be useful in tracking the success of our students and looking for trends that will help in planning. Only two responses have been received so far.
- Enrollment
The committee is looking at the attrition trends to project future facility needs. Numbers for 2013-2014 are at 262, and any future vacancies will not be filled.
F. PTN Liaison
Mary reported that PTN is coordinating parent volunteer groups to facilitate communication among them. Some plans for PTN include seminars, Parent Talk, evening speakers and Coffee Mornings. They also want to encourage more participation from the male parents. Lisa Turansky will be in charge of the parent mentor program to help newcomers.
IV. Action Items (voting)
- July 18, 2013 Meeting Minutes
A motion was made and seconded to accept the minutes from the meeting July 18, 2013. It was approved.
- Contracts: Nurse; P.E. teacher; After-school teachers.
A motion was made to approve the following staff contracts for 2013-2014: Sharon Farrell—Nurse
Layla Neal—PE
Alexandria Ward and Rebecca Lingebach—after-school program.
The motion was seconded and approved.
- Policy change
A motion was made to change ECMCS policy to require any middle school lead teachers to acquire Gifted and Talented endorsement on their teaching certificate. The motion was seconded and approved.
- Budget
A motion was made to approve the revised 2013-1014 budget as proposed on August 14, 2013 with one addition of $6,000 stipend for Gifted and Talented endorsement. It was seconded and approved.
- Budget
A motion was made to make a step and grade increase level for lead teachers to conform to CCSD salary schedule, and a step and grade increase for the Director of Finance and Director of Admissions for 2013-2014.
V. Adjournment at 7:45 PM
Board Workshop: September 14, 2013, 9:00AM-1:00PM (open session)
Please note that this is a change in time.
Next Governing Board Meeting: September 19, 2013
Executive Session: 5:30 PM Open Session: 6:00 PM
Your Governing Board
The governing board recognizes that public support and open lines of communication are the keys to our school’s success.
We encourage you to become involved in our school, to be informed about issues that affect students, parents, and our staff, to inform board members about your concerns, and to attend board meetings.
The responsibility of the Governing Board of East Cooper Montessori Charter School is to ensure excellence in the governance of a quality educational program by supporting the school’s mission and charter, analyzing needs, establishing policies, allocating resources, and monitoring progress.
Board Meetings
Regular meetings of the Governing Board are held the third Thursday of each month, beginning at 6:00 pm at East Cooper Montessori Charter School. Special-called meetings are scheduled as needed.
Citizen Participation
Anyone wishing to speak to the Board must register in person the night of the regular meeting. The opportunity to address the Board at each regular Board Meeting is 20 minutes at the beginning of the meeting.
· Each speaker has three minutes.
· Speakers may not ask questions of board members.
· Board members may not engage speakers in discussion.
· Disruptive behavior is not permitted.
· Personal attacks aimed at students or staff are not permitted.
· Scurrilous, obscene, or recklessly defamatory language aimed at any board member is not permitted.
The board will follow up on all matters presented by speakers.