Welcome and Call to Order

The Meeting will be called to order by the Chair.

Mission: The mission of The Museum School of Avondale Estates is to inspire students, teachers and the community to collaborate to develop strong critical thinking, interpersonal and academic skills in our students, which will prepare them for real-world success.

 

Core Values: Responsibility, Respect, Cooperation, Sustainability, Creativity, Kindness

Public Comment

Our Public Comment period is for members of the public to address the board. The public is defined as any individual not currently serving on the Board of Directors. The board will listen, but may not directly respond to any comments. Please do not use specific student, teacher or administrator names in your comments as our meetings are open to the public and public record. As such, if your comment is about a private matter, please contact the board via email, or speak to the board chair privately.

Email Executive Director, Dr. Katherine Kelbaugh at Katherine.kelbaugh@themuseumschool.org for Zoom access to the meeting.

Public comment (no longer than one page) should be submitted via email to Katherine.kelbaugh@themuseumschool.org. Your comments must be received between 9:00 am and 10:00 am on the day of the meeting. Only those emails received during the allotted time will be read aloud and broadcast. Emails received outside of the allotted time will be included in the Public Comments record for the next meeting.

There was no public comment.

Approval of Previous Meeting Minutes

Approval of regular meeting held on July 21, 2020.

Approval of Agenda

So that there is agreement between board members on the agenda, and the amount of time spent on the meeting, the board shall vote to approve an agenda for the meeting. To the best of its ability, it will follow that agenda, and allow for the chair to move the board through the agenda as specified.

Principal's Report

Principal Mike Stewart shared a dashboard of updates detailing student, staff and operations activities as well as a reminder of upcoming events. He also shared a snapshot of student body demographics and academics thus far into the school year and an overview of virtual learning so far. Principal Stewart said that the Boosterthon has started off extremely well. He reminded the Board that this school week marked the transition to more academics from the start-up support and social/emotional learning focus of the previous two weeks. He noted that one grade was taking the first virtual TMS Expedition this week. The student body is around 588 total with just a few students withdrawing due to family moves and home-schooling. Those spots are being quickly filled from the waiting list.

Principal Stewart is coordinating with DeKalb County Schools to take ownership of an additional 150 Chromebooks for distribution to students.

Executive Director's Report

Executive Director Dr. Katherine Kelbaugh updated the Board on the ongoing monitoring of surrounding area school districts' approach to campus vs virtual school. She reminded the board that TMS will make its decision regarding the next quarter's academic situation from consideration of a number of factors including how surrounding schools are addressing school; surveys of parents and staff as to concerns and preferences; local public health data; and CDC and medical expertise recommendations, among other factors.

Dr. Kelbaugh continues to lead the operations task force that remains focused on an eventual return to school and how that may be undertaken. This group continues to plan and refine reopening classroom procedures for whenever TMS students and staff might be able to return to campus.

An overview was then given of the Equity Diversity Inclusion (EDI) goals and activities. Dr. Kelbaugh discussed improved coordination among the numerous individuals and entities working on this effort. She shared a preview of the new EDI TMS webpage which highlights diversity and inclusion goals and how TMS is advancing those goals.

The Charter Renewal Committee continues to meet. DeKalb County Schools is not extending charter contracts. TMS will likely go into charter renewal with only 2 years of academic data. Dr. Kelbaugh and the Charter Renewal Committee will continue to update the board.

Dr. Kelbaugh shared updates from TMS Foundation, including moving of Auction Night to the spring and the hosting of a virtual Grandparents Day.

Finance Committee Update

Treasurer Tamara Richards recapped last year's school budget then reviewed the proposed current school year budget (2020-2021). Ms. Richards pointed out a few variances (under and over budget items) of the previous school year with descriptions of those situations. She also drew attention to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds within last year's financials. Ms. Richards then reviewed the proposed new school year budget, noting any areas of difference from the previous year.

Communications Committee Report

Communications Committee Chair Andrea Jones will continue to work with TMS leadership on communications related to the second quarter school environment and plans.

Diversity Committee Report

Diversity Committee Chair Christina Cassidy referenced some of the items discussed during Dr. Kelbaugh's report on the EDI efforts. She also noted the Committee's availability to assist as may be needed with student meal access as well as the Committee's work in exploring how to support TMS families whose circumstances may be changing due to the pandemic.

Governance Committee Update

Governance Committee Chair Richard Piercy updated the Board that the diversity training was being rescheduled to September 8 (7:00-9:00 PM) via virtual platform. He discussed board member recruiting efforts and receipt of applications as well as plans underway to update on-boarding of new members via a video and/or virtual platforms.

Board Chair Report

Board Chair Kelly Swinks kept remarks brief but encouraged Board members to continue to think long-term and not just immediate needs during these challenging times.

The Meeting was Adjourned

The meeting adjourned at approximately 9:49 pm