Oregon CharterAcademy (ORCA)
APPROVED September 28, 2022 MINUTES OFTHE BOARD OF DIRECTORS’MEETING
Wednesday,August 24, 2022 at 12:30 p.m. PT
Held at the following location: Via Zoom due to State Precautions regarding Public Health and Safety During COVID 19 Pandemic
Zoom: https://oregoncharter.zoom.us/j/91035080370
I. Call to Order
In the absence of Board President Joseph Brown, Vice President KimThatcher called the meeting to order at 12:32 when quorum was reached and all members who were present could hear each other.
II. Roll Call
Board Members present: KimThatcher, Marsha Moyer, Misty Galofteanu
Board Members absent: Bobbie Jager, Joseph Brown
Members of the Public present: None
School Staff present: Allison Galvin, Executive Director, and the following school staff; Todd Schweitzer, Lori Walter, Mary Ellen Mansfield, John Meyer, Laura Dillon, Rachel Reid
III Public Comment
None
IV Routine Business
A Approval of theAgenda
Ms Thatcher asked if any changes needed to be made to the agenda
There being no changes to the proposed agenda, a motion was made and seconded as follows.
The mission of Oregon Charter Academy is to prepare all students for success in a global society through an inclusive, rigorous, academic environment where students have daily live interaction with highly qualified teachers and continuous access to curriculum Oregon Charter Academy staff partners with families in a transparent, collaborative school environment to support all students in their academic journey
Ms Galofteanu moved to approve the agenda Ms Moyer seconded the motion
RESOLVED, that the agenda for theAugust 24, 2022 meeting of the Board of Directors of Oregon CharterAcademy is hereby approved
The motion passed unanimously
V Oral Report
A Financial Report
1 June Financials
Ms Mansfield shared the income statement for June reflecting the end of the 21 22 fiscal year. She noted that the current document is a draft as the annual financial audit began last week and is ongoing.The draft shows a net loss for the year at just under one million dollars.The primary factor in this loss was an unexpected adjustment in state funding. Considering the severance packages and staff transitions during last school year, the loss falls within an acceptable range.
Ms. Mansfield also pointed out that the school’s cash balance has gone down after purchasing the Wilsonville facility. However, this purchase resulted in a coresponding increase in building assets listed in revenue.
2. July Financials
Ms. Mansfield stated that the July financial report is in process. Final documents will be included alongside theAugust financial report
B School Leader’s Report
1 Enrollment
Ms Galvin shared that enrollment is continuing to decline She noted that while marketing is ongoing, and despite the efforts of the enrollment team, there are extenuating circumstances that continue to create challenges for enrollment These roadblocks include the 3% cap, the creation of virtual programs by local school districts, and two ConnectionsAcademy schools that were opened in competition with Oregon CharterAcademy after the decision to separate from Connections
Ms Thatcher asked if it is mainly the 3% cap that affects the enrollment
Ms Galvin explained a variety of circumstances that affect enrollment Students have been denied for the last two year, and many families are no longer trying to enroll even as schools come back under their caps In
The mission of Oregon Charter Academy is to prepare all students for success in a global society through an inclusive, rigorous, academic environment where students have daily live interaction with highly qualified teachers and continuous access to curriculum Oregon Charter Academy staff partners with families in a transparent, collaborative school environment to support all students in their academic journey
addition, ODE’s big push has lately been toward in person learning, despite the fact that that is not always the best fit for all students Ms Galvin also pointed out the role that politics has played in perceptions of virtual education
Dr Schweitzer noted that while ODE prides itself on equity, the equity issues around virtual charter school enrollment remain The practices of implementing the 3% cap law create complications for families who are trying to enroll These complications include the length of the waiting period for districts to respond to parents, and a general lack of oversight and accountability that districts’claims about their 3% statuses are accurate For example, districts are not held accountable to their enrollment numbers until the end of the appeal process, approximately one month after a denial begins
Ms.Thatcher asked for resources about this information with the goal of bringing the process for navigating this law to the attention of the legislature via pre session filing in September.
2. School recognition
Ms. Galvin shared this year’s state test scores with the Board. State test scores were higher this year compared to the both school’s last test data as Oregon ConnectionsAcademy and the state overall average.Test scores show that the students who are served at ORCAare learning and can demonstrate that learning at higher levels than their peers across the state.
Ms Galving reported that Oregon CharterAcademy was recently celebrated in the Best of the Mid ValleyAwards The school was not only voted as theBest Charter School in the region, but as the overall Best Public School
Ms Moyer asked how the school is using these awards in publicity and branding
Ms Dillon stated that this information is being shared through social media and will be included in advertising with iHeart Radio as well as posts throughout the year as the PR team works to boost this news
Ms Moyer went on to ask for information about how the school markets to families of color in the state
Ms Dillon noted that representatives from the school have attended Lunch and Play events in parks throughout Portland, events that are attended by a diverse group of families Ms Dillon is also working with Mariana Roman, the school’s Bilingual Liaison, to have information sessions and outreach publications available in Spanish
The mission of Oregon Charter Academy is to prepare all students for success in a global society through an inclusive, rigorous, academic environment where students have daily live interaction with highly qualified teachers and continuous access to curriculum Oregon Charter Academy staff partners with families in a transparent, collaborative school environment to support all students in their academic journey
Ms Moyer suggested other avenues the school may want to explore for marketing to families of color These include advertising in local papers that have high readership by families of color and getting materials about the school in visible locations at churches and other non profits
Ms Galvin noted that the majority of marketing takes place in the Portland area and Eugene, a region of the state with the highest rates of racial and ethnic diversity Dr Schweitzer noted that marketing statistics can be broken down to better target marketing strategies for specific racial or ethnic groups
Ms Moyer noted that families are looking for education through trusted institutions like their church and community groups Families are looking for safety and trust for their students.
3. Start of school year events
Ms. Galvin gave a recap of events to kick off the school year. Staff returned on Monday,August 21 with a voluntary staff picnic.Yesterday, staff had their first in-person professional development day for the school year.The day began with 5 students sharing why they love ORCA, and continued with training for teachers and staff.The first all-school student event, Open House, will be on Friday, Sept 16 at Santiam Elementary. Board members are welcome to attend.
4. Recap of summer school and grants
Ms Galvin noted that the school has received a federal staff retention grant With these funds, classified and certified staff will receive a $1000 bonus on October 31st with the remainder of funds spent on professional development
Ms Galvin shared a recap from Summer School Twenty two students participated in Summer Bridge Last year, all students who participated in Summer Bridge passed all of their classes in 9th grade There were 129 students who participated in credit recovery Of those, 23 seniors were able to graduate Ms Galvin went on to expand on grad rate statistics for the school Despite overall low statistics for grad rate, the school has a 90% graduation rate of students who start at ORCAat the beginning of their senior year Many students who do not complete their school program come into ORCAalready credit deficient
VI ConsentAgenda
Amotion was made and seconded as follows
Ms Moyer moved to approve the ConsentAgenda
The mission of Oregon Charter Academy is to prepare all students for success in a global society through an inclusive, rigorous, academic environment where students have daily live interaction with highly qualified teachers and continuous access to curriculum Oregon Charter Academy staff partners with families in a transparent, collaborative school environment to support all students in their academic journey
Ms Galofteanu seconded the motion
RESOLVED, toAPPROVE the Consent items,
A Approval of Minutes from the June 22, 2022Annual Board Meeting (attached)
B Approval ofAugust Staffing Report (attached)
C Approval of Expenditure Summary Report June (attached)
D Approval of Expenditure Summary Report July (attached)
E Approval of Legal Invoice(s) August (sent under separate cover)
F Approval of Bank Reconciliation June (attached)
G Approval of Bank Reconciliation July (attached)
The motion passed unanimously
VII. Action Items
A. Review and consideration of the 2022 23 School Level COVID 19 Management Plan for the Oregon Department of Education
Ms. Galvin shared the required ODE document related to COVID management plans for the coming school year. Being a virtual school, many elements of the document do not apply to ORCA, but the school does follow COVID safety protocols in the offices and at in-person events.
Ms.Thatcher asked the Board if there were any questions or discussion needed. There being none, a motion was made and seconded as follows.
Ms. Moyer moved to approve the COVID-19 Management Plan. Ms Galofteanu seconded the motion
RESOLVED, toAPPROVE the 2022 23 School Level COVID 19 Management Plan as presented
The motion passed unanimously
VIII Information Items
A Outreach and Onboarding Update
Ms Dillon summarized outreach events and strategies used over the summer These included the summer social media campaign, virtual info sessions, and an ORCAbooth at Salem Saturday market and a variety of county fairs She praised the efforts of staff who showed up at a variety of marketing events to provide support outside of the school year Summer marketing includedTV commercial spots on KOIN and monthly blogs on a variety of education topics Going into the fall, the outreach team will begin holding Onboarding Virtual Q andAsessions and Weekly Virtual Orientation sessions
The mission of Oregon Charter Academy is to prepare all students for success in a global society through an inclusive, rigorous, academic environment where students have daily live interaction with highly qualified teachers and continuous access to curriculum Oregon Charter Academy staff partners with families in a transparent, collaborative school environment to support all students in their academic journey
Ms Thatcher noted that the school is not listed among vendors at the state fair
Ms Dillon indicated that the school has chosen not to do a booth at the state fair due to the length of the event and the concerns for adequate staffing She noted that it is difficult to pull enough staff away from school year preparations in order to attend the fair
B Facilities Update
Mr Meyer brought a new report for the Board regarding the school owned facilities There is a continuing issue in Mill City with a slow seep and discoloration in the roof This has been an issue since the roof was installed Due to slow response from the original roofing company, Mr Meyer is looking for another company to service the roof. Upcoming facility work in Mill City includes fall landscaping and a pre winter gutter cleaning.
Mr. Meyer went on to report on the Wilsonville facility.The school has taken full occupation of its new office space. Projector and video conference systems are scheduled to be up and running by late September, and Mr. Meyer is working to get the electrical breaker for the office unit moved into the upstairs space. Mr. Meyer also noted that during recent heat waves, there were several HVAC issues affecting staff and tenants in the building.These have been addressed with the exception of one unit which will require a bid for further service.
Mr. Meyer noted that a facility budget is being worked out with Ms. Mansfield, and a facility maintenance calendar is being created with Ms. Reid.
Ms Moyer asked for clarification on the seepage in the Mill City roof
Mr Meyer clarified that it is a leak, but there is no water pouring in through the roof Ms Galvin gave background about the roof issues in the Mill City facility that have been ongoing since adding the annex on the building
Ms Galofteanu noted that the only concern she has with the leak would be depreciation in value
Mr Meyer noted that fixing the leak is a top priority
C Board Updates
1 BoardTraining
Ms Galvin noted that it has been over a year since the school has done BoardTraining She is willing to schedule with Matt Lowe to host a training retreat This will be reviewed at the next board meeting for a consensus on dates to hold the training
The mission of Oregon Charter Academy is to prepare all students for success in a global society through an inclusive, rigorous, academic environment where students have daily live interaction with highly qualified teachers and continuous access to curriculum Oregon Charter Academy staff partners with families in a transparent, collaborative school environment to support all students in their academic journey
2 Information items for the September meeting
Ms Galvin asked if there were any items the board would like a presentation on at the next meeting None were requested
IX Adjournment
Ms Moyer moved to adjourn the meeting
Ms Galofteanu seconded the motion
The meeting was adjourned by Ms Thatcher at 1:23
Next regular meeting date: September 28, 2022 at 12:30 p m PTin Zoom
The mission of Oregon Charter Academy is to prepare all students for success in a global society through an inclusive, rigorous, academic environment where students have daily live interaction with highly qualified teachers and continuous access to curriculum Oregon Charter Academy staff partners with families in a transparent, collaborative school environment to support all students in their academic journey