Oregon Charter Academy (ORCA) Approved - June 28, 20
MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS’ MEETING
Wednesday, May 24, 2023 at 12:15 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
Mr. Brown called the meeting to order at 12:25 p.m. when quorum was reached and all members who were present could hear each other.
II. Roll Call
Board Members present: Joseph Brown, Kim Thatcher, Marsha Moyer, Misty Galofteanu
Board Members absent: Bobbie Jager
Members of the Public present:
School Staff present: Allison Galvin, Executive Director, and the following school staff; Todd Schweitzer, Lori Walter, Mary Ellen Mansfield, John Meyer, Gabriel Elliott, Rachel Reid
III Public Comment
None
IV Routine Business
A Approval of the Agenda
Mr Brown 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.
Ms. Galofteanu moved to approve the agenda.
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 seconded the motion
RESOLVED, that the agenda for the May 24, 2023 meeting of the Board of Directors of Oregon Charter Academy is hereby approved
The motion passed unanimously
[Todd Schweitzer joined at 12:27]
[Marsha Moyer joined at 12:27]
V Consent Agenda
A motion was made and seconded as follows
Ms. Galofteanu moved to approve the Consent agenda. Ms. Moyer seconded the motion.
RESOLVED, to APPROVE the Consent items,
A. Approval of Minutes from the April 26, 2023 Board Meeting
B. Approval of Expenditure Summary Report- April
C. Approval of Bank Reconciliation- April
The motion passed unanimously.
VI. Action Items
A. Review and consideration of the 2023-24 School Improvement Plan
Ms Galvin shared the proposed 2023-24 School Improvement Plan In order to facilitate data tracking across multiple years, the plan follows the same format as previous plans It includes goals related to academic achievement, student experience, and preparing students for a successful future All action items in the plan have been updated by teacher leaders and academic principals
Ms Moyer asked how the school defines its metrics for success
Ms Galvin noted that metrics are tracked on a quarterly basis These metrics are measurable and on set timelines For goal one, course pass-rates are the metric For goal two, state testing is the metric The elementary school uses IXL, iReady, and reading inventories to measure success as well
Mr Brown asked the Board if there were any further questions or discussion needed There being none, a motion was made and seconded as follows
Ms Moyer moved to approve the 2023-24 School Improvement Plan
Ms Thatcher seconded the motion
RESOLVED, to APPROVE the 2023-24 School Improvement Plan as presented
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 journey1 April Financials
a) School update
Ms Mansfield shared the financial report from April She noted that the Balance Sheet currently indicates a positive balance in Cash and Operations of $10 million This money is being moved to the investments that were approved at the last Board meeting and will be reflected as such in May financials. She also brought attention to the school financial projections sheet, noting that, comparing actuals with projections for May and June, the settle-up from the state school fund should be larger than the projected amount. With enrollment increases, the school will end up with over one million dollars in positive revenue to the fund balance this year.
Ms. Moyer asked for more information about the work that has gone into this increase.
Ms. Mansfield shared that part of this increase is due to the hard decisions made in the fall regarding school-funded staff benefits and what curriculum to buy
B School Leader’s Report
1 Enrollment, Intent to Return, and State Testing
Ms Galvin shared enrollment data from the last month The school now has 2,453 students enrolled She noted that despite tightening the marketing budget, the school has become more effective with those funds Intent to return shows 1611 students planning to return next year A focus this year has been to get real “yes” answers so that administrators can accurately track numbers for the fall
Ms Galvin also shared that the school has begun reviewing preliminary results from state testing ORCA is well above the state average in all testing areas Elementary scores are exceptionally high In addition, the school has received the performance audit report from April’s site visit The auditor noted that ORCA has consistently made progress in its
metrics every year, and the growth since leaving Connections is tremendous
2 End-of-year events
Ms Galvin shared about recent and upcoming school events Prom was on May 6th at the Wilsonville Facility and had the theme “Head in the Clouds ” She shared about how engaged and involved students were during this event Spring Celebration will be June 2nd At this event, ORCA’s CTE Vet Science students will sign their FFA charter, a first for virtual schools in Oregon She also shared a recap from the year’s Middle School and High School Hangouts, new recurring events that have been geared at student socialization and community-building She praised the school’s Health/PE teachers for leading these events
3. School Spotlight: eSports
Mr. Elliott shared a spotlight on the school’s eSports program, a competitive gaming program that allows students to compete against teams from across the US. Goals of the program include providing competition opportunities, gaming and design career exploration, and ultimately attracting and retaining students who come to ORCA specifically to compete in this program. Mr. Elliott intends to grow the program into a varsity-level extra curricular activity that draws new enrollees and creates a community focus for the student body.
The club has grown significantly over the last 2 years, including new members, addition of 3 new teams, and equipping students with game-quality devices Goals for next year include live-streaming competition to the larger school community, creating a curriculum for an elective dedicated to developing gaming, computer, and design skills, and instituting player contracts with expectations for GPA, practice attendance, and conduct standards
Ms Galofteanu requested more information about the gaming packages available to students
Mr Elliott shared that, thanks to funds from a grant, the school provides mid-level gaming laptops to 12 students This allows access to better game graphics and dedicated use for players who show potential Merit of a game package is dependent on attendance, game performance, sportsmanship, and financial need Eventually, Mr Elliott hopes the school will be able to offer standard equipment to all students in the program
[Kim Thatcher left at 12:55]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 asked how Mr Elliott determines who plays and when if the school is competing against another school or team?
Mr Elliott shared that currently there is a Varsity-level team and a JV team The JV team roster changes every week, allowing each student equal playing time The Varsity team is organized so that all students get game time during a competition and no one is “benched ” The goal at this point is to make sure everyone is able to participate Mr Elliott noted that as a young team, it is unlikely that they will be winning tournaments, so the focus is currently on building enthusiasm in students
VIII Information Items
A. Outreach and Onboarding Update
Ms. Galvin shared an update from marketing and outreach efforts. ORCA has a booth at Salem Saturday Market throughout the summer. Commercials for the school air on KOIN and Comcast, and iHeart ads air on their streaming services and on Salem-Portland stations. Beaver Athletics have featured spots about the school during post-season, and 4 students were given an opportunity to be junior announcers at baseball games this spring. Onboarding sessions have ended for the school year, but Laura Dillon continues to work one-on-one with new families. Weekly Virtual Info sessions are ongoing.
B. Facilities Update
Mr. Meyer noted that spring cleaning is ongoing in Mill City. With fewer trees, there are many more blackberries to deal with The sprinkler system is now in working order again after being offline since the 2020 wildfire Pressure washing and window cleaning have been completed in Wilsonville Carpet cleaning is scheduled for next week
C Legislative Update
Dr Schweitzer shared an update from the current legislative session HB3204 made it through the House and through the Senate education committee There have been amendments but no opposition to the bill
Ms Galvin shared that due to the current lack of attendance in the capitol, there is no school budget yet for next year Superintendents are expecting to plan budgets around a possible $9 9 billion total State School Fund Summer funding will likely not disperse until July
D Board Updates
1 Board training day - Friday August 11, 9:00-2:00 in Wilsonville
2 June meeting: Annual meeting, executive session for school leader evaluation
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 journeyMs Galvin shared that the Board training day is August 11th from 9:00 a m to 2:00 p m She also noted that the June meeting of the Board is its annual meeting A draft agenda and current-year contacts list was made available to the board There is one Board member, Ms Galofteanu, whose term will be up for renewal at the June meeting
Dr Schweitzer shared that in June there will also be an annual executive session to evaluate the Executive Director He described the process for this evaluation The Board has entered into an agreement with SYS education to allow SYS to lead the evaluation process and submit it for approval by the Board As the staff who work most closely with the Executive Director, Dr Schweitzer works alongside Ms Mansfield and Ms Walter to evaluate Ms Galvin’s performance against the TSPC standards for school administrators in Oregon and provide comprehensive comments. The Board has the opportunity to go through the rubric and comments if they so choose, or can review what is submitted from the executive team and approve it.
IX. Adjournment
Ms. Galofteanu moved to adjourn the meeting.
Ms. Moyer seconded the motion.
The meeting was adjourned by Mr. Brown at 1:17 p.m.
Next regular meeting date: June 28, 2023 at 12:15 p.m. PT in 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