Westside Atlanta Charter School

Governing Board

Regular Meeting - Thursday October 9th, 2025 @7:00 PM

Meeting Minutes

Attendance Summary

Name Status Arrival Time Departure Time
Jonathan Baker present member On Time At Adjournment
Hannah Heck present member On Time At Adjournment
Ashley Pruitt present member On Time At Adjournment
Chris Tuten present member On Time At Adjournment
Alyson West present secretary On Time At Adjournment
Julius Farrington present member On Time At Adjournment
Tiffany Chen present member On Time At Adjournment
Jessica Weissinger present chair On Time At Adjournment
Katrina Mitchell present vice-chair On Time At Adjournment
Susan Beckett-Mitchell present member On Time At Adjournment
Erika Williams present member On Time At Adjournment
Susan Beckett- Mitchell present member On Time At Adjournment

Welcome and Call to Order

The meeting will be called to the order.

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.

Approve the agenda as submitted

By: Jessica Weissinger Seconded by: Susan Beckett-Mitchell

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Approval of Minutes from Sep 11, 2025

Approve the September 11, 2025 minutes as submitted

By: Jessica Weissinger Seconded by: Alyson West

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Mission Statement

The meeting will begin by reading the mission statement:


Westside Atlanta Charter School fosters a diverse, tight-knit community of lifelong learners, giving each child an excellent academic experience that builds curiosity, critical thinking, and character.

Public Comment

The WACS Board would like to welcome students, parents, staff and community members. In order to facilitate an efficient meeting, if you would like to offer comments please limit your remarks to the public comment period of the agenda. We would ask that sign up on the sign up sheet and limit your comments to 3 minutes. Finally, we ask that you not include comments that reference individual students (other than your own). If you need to reference a specific student, you may do so in writing to governance@wacs.us where the board can protect student privacy. We understand that after the public comment period, you may have questions/comments regarding topics that are discussed during the meeting. Please direct those questions to governance@wacs.us. The Board may not address comments/questions after the public comment period. However, we will work with the school administration to provide a prompt response to your email.


If you have a grievance, we would ask that you follow the board policy of starting first with the lowest level of authority as that is almost always the place where change can happen most effectively. Any grievance directed to the attention of the board, should be sent to governance@wacs.us. We thank you for your cooperation. At this time, we would like to open the floor to public comment.

Public comment given by WACS parent and volunteer, Ebony Tolbert:

-The Hispanic Heritage program was impressive, inclusive, and is worth highlighting to the community.

-She expressed concern about building writing skills and the need for additional writing time in ELA and humanities prior to 7th grade.

-She suggested the school should bring back reading in classrooms and partner with the Scotts' Crossing Library.


Public comment given by WACS parent and volunteer, Shane Tolbert:

-Thanks WACS for connecting an additional security camera at the front entrance.

-He requested that all teachers keep grades current in Infinite Campus.

-He suggested a limit on using technology and being mindful of the kids' access to AI.

-He requested that WACS consider recording the board meetings so they can be viewed asynchronously.

Community Council Report

Community Council Co-Chair Olivia Hollis gave an update.


  • Rescheduled Sparkles outing was cancelled due to power outage
  • Parent party was a success
  • Bingo and Spaghetti Night scheduled for Nov 14th

School Leader Report

The Executive Director reports on the status of the school.

  • Enrollment update: currently 349
  • Attendance update: 96% past month; 96% to date
  • Proposed hire: Special education lead teacher

Approve the proposed hire for Special Education Lead Teacher role

By: Jessica Weissinger Seconded by: Julius Farrington

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Finance Committee Report


Monthly financial update given by Jessica Weissinger

  • Finished month above budget expectations
  • Waiting to be billed by APS for property Ins.
  • Monthly loss reserve remains untouched
  • Good month on investments
  • Under budget in new technology and subs
  • Security grant received
  • Compliance reports submitted and accepted by APS for 2024-2025 school year


Auditor Jessica Story from CPA firm Warren Averett presented audit results. The firm issued an unmodified opinion for WACS.


Approve issuance of the 2025 audited financial statements subject to increasing board-designated net assets to 3 months.

By: Jessica Weissinger Seconded by: Tiffany Chen

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Governance Committee Report

Governance Committee monthly report given by Ashley Pruitt.


  • Board planning retreat and whole-board training are scheduled
  • Working on social media policy
  • Working on AI best practices policy

Development Committee Report

Development Committee co-chair Jonathan Baker gave monthly report.

  • Boosterthon fundraising plans are going well. The event is 10/10.
  • Business Partners banners will be printed soon. The BP breakfast went well.
  • Playscape (elementary) discussion to ratify conditional approval

Ratify conditional approval of playscape contract.

By: Jonathan Baker Seconded by: Alyson West

Tiffany Chen abstained from voting due to material relationship with vendor.

Executive Session

Entering into executive session for purpose of discussing a periodic personnel evaluation, discussing protected student information under FERPA, and discussing consultations with attorney regarding covered legal matters.

Enter executive session for the following protected discussions: (1) periodic personnel evaluation, (2) protected student information under FERPA, and (3) consultations with the attorney regarding covered legal matters.

By: Jessica Weissinger Seconded by: Chris Tuten

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Exit Executive Session

By: Jessica Weissinger Seconded by: Jonathan Baker

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

Approve the 12.4% bonus for Executive Director for 2024-25 school year

By: Jessica Weissinger Seconded by: Jonathan Baker

There was no notable discussion on the motion.

The Meeting was Adjourned

The meeting adjourned at approximately 9:44 pm

Motion to adjourn

By: Jessica Weissinger Seconded by: Tiffany Chen

There was no notable discussion on the motion.