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

Approve the Agenda

Review and approve the meeting agenda.

Approve Previous Meeting Minutes

Approve previous meeting minutes.

Public Comment

Our Public Comment period is for members of the public to address the board. 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 by 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 were no public comments.

Finance Committee and Treasurer's Report

Treasurer and Finance Committee Chair Andrew Tashiro reviewed school financials in detail. Mr. Tashiro noted that both expenses and revenue are tracking favorably overall against budget. He also shard that the balance sheet remains healthy.

Facilities Committee Update

Update was provided by Facilities Chair Jade Yang. Ms. Yang highlighted several maintenance and potential new project explorations, including further security enhancements.

Diversity Committee Report

Diversity Committee Chair Christina Cassidy reviewed that committees recent discussions, noting that the school DEI Coordinator is now fully in place, working directly with TMS leadership.

Governance Committee Report

Governance Committee Chair Richard Piercy alerted everyone that the next board retreat/board training event will be February 6. Mr. Piercy will shortly send out an email with all details. He noted that the newest Board members will utilize a future Governance Committee meeting for their required additional hour of training. A discussion was held to verify that committed annual diversity training for Board members is being integrated into retreat/training plans.

Principal's Report

Principal Mike Stewart updated the Board on staff, academics and student body. Mr. Stewart began with a review of student body demographics and attendance statistics. He noted some reduction in enrollment in a few of the higher grades; identifying home schooling and private schools as the alternatives families chose which created open slots. Mr. Stewart noted that he believed private school choice for upper grades is a trend TMS will continue to see over coming years.

Mr. Stewart reviewed lottery numbers for each grade. He then shared MAP scoring statistics. He stepped through several charts that detailed percent of students at/above grade level RIT and percent of students meeting or exceeding growth goals. While TMS students are overall performing beyond national norm, the percent of students meeting or exceeding growth goals are not this year what TMS is accustomed to experiencing. Mr. Stewart discussed how he and leadership are addressing growth priorities with educational staff.

Finally, Mr. Stewart reviewed staffing. He noted that almost all staff have completed their intent-to-return forms. While a few forms remain outstanding and a few forms completed with the "uncertain" category checked, TMS retention rate is looking to be about 90%, consistent with past years. Known open slots are being advertised and recruited right now, including Mr. Stewart's participation in numerous job fairs.

Executive Director's Report

Executive Director Dr. Katherine Kelbaugh had numerous updates. Dr. Kelbaugh reviewed continued COVID-19 mitigation strategies, clarifying that there are two sets of CDC guidance and TMS follows the CDC School Guidance. She then shared several updates in the areas of grant management, student recruitment, and educational leadership.

Dr. Kelbaugh recounted TMS Foundation news. Dr. Kelbaugh reminded the Board that Auction Night will be an every other year event; therefore, in spring 2022 there will be a fundraiser at the Lost Druid Brewery on March 31, 5-8 PM.

Her final remarks included a summary of recent meetings and communications on charter renewal, reminding all that a Charter Renewal Town Hall is scheduled for January 20.

Board Chair Update

Board Chair Kelly Swinks reminded the Board that she will be sending out information for the annual Executive Director 360 evaluation.

The Meeting was Adjourned

The meeting adjourned at approximately 9:58 pm