GCEP Board Meeting Notes for May 17, 2010

MINUTES OF THE

REGULAR MEETING OF THE

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

 OF THE

GREATER CRENSHAW EDUCATIONAL PARTNERSHIP, INC.

May 17, 2010

The  Board  of  Directors  of  The  Greater  Crenshaw  Educational  Partnership  held  a  Regular Meeting  on  May  17,  2010  at  Crenshaw  High  School,  5010  11^th  Ave  Los  Angeles,  California.

The  following  directors,  constituting  a  quorum  of  the  Board  of  Directors,  were  present:

Blair H. Taylor, President

Dean Karen Gallagher, Vice President

Dr. Lewis King, Secretary/Treasurer

Dr. Rudy Crew, Interim Executive Director

Also  present  were  the  following  staff  and  advisors  of  the  Members  of  the  Organization  and  invited  speakers:

Pamela Bakewell                                 Los Angeles Urban League

Renita Smith                                        Los Angeles Urban League

Arturo Frazier                                      Los Angeles Urban League

Carrie Harris Allen                              Principal, Crenshaw High School

Ruth Holzman                                     Reed Smith .Inc

Welcome & Opening Remarks

The meeting was called to order at 7:10 p.m. by Mr.  Blair Taylor, GCEP Board President.

 

Approval of Minutes

The Vice  President  of  the Board,  Dr. Karen  Gallagher,  made  a  motion  to  approve  the  minutes  from  the  January  25,  2010 and  the  March  22,  2010  Board  meetings.  It was properly seconded by Dr.  Lewis King and unanimously approved. 

 

Legal Update

The Legal Update was given by Ruth Holzman.  Ms. Holzman recommended an adoption of the following policies deemed to be the best practices for non-profit organizations:

1. All Directors review and approve Form 990’s   
2. Formally adopt a conflict of interest policy based on a questionnaire to be completed by each Director.
3. Formally adopt a Whistle blower policy that ensures that no retaliatory action can be taken if someone “ blows the whistle”.
4. Formally adopt a document retention and destruction policy.  Document retention and destruction should be ongoing.
5. Formally adopt a compensation policy.

 

Ms. Holzman made several additional recommendations to the Board:
A Compensation committee is needed to approve the permanent Executive Director’s salary.  The Permanent Director’s salary is currently paid by USC but will be paid by GCEP.  We will need an Appropriations committee to help develop such a request.  Ms. Holzman  recommended  that  a  Corporate  Governance  Committee  be  formed  that would direct  Counsel  to  draft  documents  for  legal  review.

Mr. Taylor asked for discussion:

Ms. Holzman  further  explained  that  these  committees  would  be  standing ,  as  opposed  to  Ad  Hoc  Committees.  Only  board  members  are  allowed  to  serve  on  standing  committees.  This  will  be  an  Action  Item  at  the  June  28,  2010  GCEP  Board  meeting.

 Audit Update

Dr. Gallagher presented an update on the GCEP audit, reporting that   USC  has  agreed  to  cover  the  cost  of  the  audit,  however  we  must  submit  to  the university policy due  to  the  university  spending  freeze.  This report will also be a public document.  Upon completion of exploratory discussions about the nature and volume of GCEP transactions, Grant Thornton, the auditor proposed by USC, had recommended that the Los Angeles Urban League’s auditor conduct the audit, since the Los Angeles Urban League serves as fiscal agent for GCEP.  Ms. The issue was discussed, with consensus reached that thes would be the best course of action.

 

Principal’s Report

Mrs. Carrie  Allen,  Crenshaw  High  School  Principal,  reported  that  today  was  a  positive  first  day  for  the  California  State  Testing  at  Crenshaw.  The  awareness  of  the  importance  of  this  test  has  significantly  increased  due  to  teachers  embedding  sample  release  questions into the daily coursework. 

Principal Allen also reported on the positive exit report of the WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges) Accreditation Team.  The visiting team report from WASC was positive.  She expects a term announcement the first week of June.  The goal is a full three-year accreditation term.  This  would  be  an  exceptional  outcome,  in  light  of  the  lack  of  baseline  test  data  and  the  current  level  of  test  scores. 

Mrs. Allen briefly spoke regarding the federal School Improvement Grant (SIG).  She  reported  that  the  delayed  SIG  grant  would grant  $500,000  to  QUIA  schools.  The money awarded needs to be spent by August 2010.  It  has  been  spent  on  the  Credit  Recovery  Program/Enrichment  Courses   for  the  summer.  The  program  will  offer  at  least  40  classes  with  peer  tutors  and  student  teachers  from  Math  in  America  and  will  decrease  the  teacher/student  ratio  from  30:1  to  10:1.  The  grant  funding  will  also  be  spent  on  a  2-day  professional  development  workshop  in  conjunction  with  the  USC  School  of  Education  at  the  end  of  the  school  year,  based  upon  teacher  training  needs.  The  workshop  will  be  project – and  experiential -based  learning  linked  to  the  Small  Learning  Communities.

 Principal  Allen  also  reported  on  a  New  SIG  grant  opportunity,  “ The  Restart  Model “,  for  which  Crenshaw  High  Schools  qualifies  due  to  the  partnership with GCEP.  The grant is for $2 million/ 3 years.  The  grant  offers  teacher  incentives  and  is  built  around  professional  development.

Mr. Taylor stated that this was a great opportunity.  He posed further questions regarding grant expectations and ramp-up time.

Dr.  Lewis King praised Principal Carrie Allen for her leadership.  Dr.  King  inquired whether the   Small  Learning  Communities  (SLC’s)  have  forums  that  allow  these  learning  opportunities  to  permeate  the  entire  system  (i.e.  Case-managing for every student based on assessment).  Dr.  King  also  inquired  about  ability  to  systematically  accommodate  student  needs  on  an  ongoing  basis. 

Principal Allen responded affirmatively to Dr. King’s question.  She  stated  that  her  staff  members,  especially  the  SLC  Leads,  were  very  capable  of  handling  such  tasks.  She does expect to broaden the leadership base.  Principal  Allen  also  ensured  the  board  that  CHS  has  the  data  and  will  continue  to  address  infrastructure/technology/system  issues.

Executive Director’s Report

Dr.  Rudy  Crew  began  his  report  by  certifying  that  the  Crenshaw High School  budget  does  address  the  objectives  of  the  Strategic  Plan.  He then proceeded to present an overview of strengths and opportunity areas in the Crenshaw High School budget.  Dr. Crew stated that the discretionary fund has been reduced.  He summarized the three critical areas that need attention: Literacy and Skill Recovery, Teacher Preparedness and Proficiency, and Math.  

Dr. Crew urged GCEP to implement in-depth training for administrative staff.  Principal Allen needs additional support to compensate for the entire administrative team’s learning curve.  From a facilities standpoint, the facility (school) itself is clean.  However, the security system has still not been installed, although it is in process.  Dr. Crew further discussed the new budget and implementation of the GCEP Strategic Plan.  In order for this to happen we would need a stronger budget.  Overall, the budget is solid and sound, but could benefit from additional strength in specific areas.

Dr. Crew summarized his report by expressing a need for greater overall teacher support and applied learning.  Today’s student learning styles requires the students to touch, taste and feel versus learning through the antiquated “stand and deliver” mode of instruction.  Student needs require that instructors be more artistic rather than mechanic.  Dr. Lewis King requested that a transcript of Dr. Crew’s comments be used to fine-tune and refine the budget.

                Mr. Blair Taylor asked when we will have final enrollment numbers, as they will impact the budget.  Carrie Allen responded that enrollment was anticipated to be down by 300 students.  She further explained that this is due to 10-12^th graders who leave to attend charter and private schools.  Principal explained another item with significant financial impact:  If 80-85% of the students who qualify for free lunch, all students eat free.  If free lunch registration forms are returned, then the stigma of students  needing free lunch priveleges will be eliminated.  Forms will be  included in pre-registration packets.  Mr. Blair Taylor moved a motion to approve the Budget:

Resolved:  The Crenshaw High School budget be approved.  Dr. King approved the motion and Dr. Gallagher properly seconded. 

A question was raised regarding the timing results on the Test Scores.  The results will be given in late July/early August.

 

Ad Hoc Committee Updates  

Ad Hoc Committee on Executive Director Search

Karen Gallagher stated that the Ad Hoc Committee was looking at a pool of 2-3 candidates for the Executive Director position.   She continued by saying that we need a replacement by this summer.   After reviewing the policy for the Executive Director search, she concluded that the process needs no modifications.  However, we will need a timeline.  All of the applicants for this position have relevant and solid experience.

Mr. Blair Taylor asked if there would be a period during which GCEP would not have an Executive Director.  Dr. Gallagher stated that Dr. Crew will not leave GCEP until the Director seat has been filled.  Principal Carrie Allen asked will the stakeholder have a say in the process.  It was stated that the GCEP Board will have the final say in the appointment.  Principal Allen suggested that the School Site Council should have an opportunity for involvement.  Dr. Lewis King added that there should be an open forum and process for Executive Director selection. 

Ad Hoc Committee on Board Expansion

Renita Smith gave an explanation of the strategic efforts for GCEP Board Expansion.  Mrs. Smith introduced Arturo Frazier, who reported on the following efforts made to generate parent board candidates: Mr. Frazier attended meetings with the School Site Council, CEAC, Principal’s Committee on Parent Outreach (Ms. Stevenson) and the Parent Center.  Multiple phone-blasts were conducted through the Principal’s Robo-Call system to every household of the students enrolled at Crenshaw High.   She stated that another meeting for June is needed in order to continue to advance the Boar Expansion effort.   Mrs. Smith emphasized the need for a corporate member for the GCEP Board be considered to find resources for the partnership. 

Principal Carrie Allen suggested that we go back to the Crenshaw Cougar Coalition and extend another invitation.  Mr. Taylor asked if the Crenshaw Cougar Coalition is still interested in being a part of GCEP.  Dr. King recommended that we should send a formal letter to all persons in the Crenshaw Cougar Coalition to participate.  GCEP also needs additional voting members in order to accomplish important committee work of the Board.

                Principal Carrie Allen suggested that we get the student leadership involved with non-voting membership to ensure interaction between students and GCEP.  Mr. Taylor emphasized the importance of moving forward aggressively with our efforts in seating new board members.

 It was also reported that Honda has appointed someone for the Board Expansion.  Dr. King stated that a formal letter of invitation should be sent to all who have expressed interest.   Mr. Taylor stated that we would open a slate of non-voting members including a ASB Member, Corporate Member and Parent Member.  Principal Carrie Allen recommended that a School Site Council member be considered for non-voting.

Fundraising Update

Mr. Taylor reported that the Los Angeles Urban League (“the League”) introduced a new partner, Starbucks, to Crenshaw High School.  While visiting the League, Mr. Taylor invited Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks to visit Crenshaw High School, as part of the discussions of future funding and partnering opportunities.  The League eventually received a grant of $750,000 for Neighborhoods@Work, a portion of which would be granted to GCEP to assist in the Executive Director search and provide staff support.  Mr. Taylor praised Dr. Crew’s leadership and ability to serve as Interim Executive Director while managing a full teaching load at USC.  He emphasized the importance of putting an Executive Director in place for full time service.

Due to an unavoidable scheduling conflict, Mr. Blair Taylor departed at approximately 8:38 p.m.

School Site Council Report

Dr. Ramsey addressed the GCEP Board.  In his remarks, he stated that the School Site Council has been working with Principal Carrie Allen in preparation for the SIG $2 million grant.  He reported that the Media Academy did a great job with the Census Public Service Announcement contest.  He also stated that the School Site Council remains interested in the GCEP Strategic Plan. 
The School Site Council requested help from GCEP with awards for student scholarships on June 7^th.  Dr. Ramsey also invited the board to have a discussion on a family spirit GCEP Day in an effort to celebrate and build camaraderie.   He reported that SSC is working on a new bell system to give more time for study and tutoring.  Dr. Ramsey issued a challenge to the GCEP Board suggesting that we restore emphasis on the arts for our students.

The commencement exercises for Crenshaw High School will take place on June 24, 2010

The June meeting fo rthe GCEP Board of Directors was rescheduled due to Board member scheduling conflicts.  It will possibly be held on June 28, 2010. 

Public Comment

There were no public comments offered. 

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 9:50 p.m.  It was properly moved and seconded.