Regular Meeting
Odyssey Charter School
6201 Noble Ave. N.
Brooklyn Center, MN55429
November 20, 2002
6:30 P.M.
Call to OrderA regular meeting of the Odyssey Charter School Board of Directors was held on Wednesday, November 20th, 2002 at Odyssey Charter School. The meeting was called to order at 6:40 p.m. and was facilitated by Lori Bona.
Roll CallThe following Board members were present: Stephanie Dess, Rick Wolf, Jeni Holm, Nathan Disch and Lyle Clemenson.
Acceptance of Agenda Lyle Clemenson stated that he did not wish to resign and would like item 5.2 stricken from the agenda. A motion by Jeni Holm, seconded by Rick Wolf, to accept the printed agenda as amended. The motion carries unanimously.
Approval of Minutes A motion by Nathan Disch, seconded by Rick Wolf, to accept the minutes of the October 16th regular meeting and the October 28th special board meetings. The motion carries unanimously.
Community Comments There were no comments from the community.
Consent AgendaMotion by Jeni Holm, seconded by Rick Wolf, to accept the consent agenda as amended above. Motion carries.
Old Business 6510 Zane Building
Lyle Clemenson reported there has been no progress in the leasing of the Zane building. He stated the interested party has not been able to secure financing. Anne Lindgren stated she was planning on bringing someone through the site on Monday, Monday 25th. Lyle Clemenson suggested both putting an advertisement in the local paper and putting a sign up advertising the availability of the building. Lyle Clemenson stated he would complete those tasks. Kari Mitchell will also put an announcement in the weekly school newsletter.
Election process
Nathan Disch stated the election committee came up with an amendment to the bylaws that more clearly defines the election process. He stated the amendment will address all the concerns that were brought up. He added the committee should have a final edition of the amendment by the next regular board meeting so the board can vote on it
Lori Bona asked for a time line regarding nominations. She also asked if the board should implement the new election process before the next board meeting. Nathan Disch stated that depended on how fast the board wanted to move. Karen Johnson suggested the nomination forms be prepared six weeks before the election, and the ballots be mailed out three weeks before the election.
Jeni Holm asked if in the meantime the current board would be in effect, and added that she felt uncomfortable with things as they stand. She stated that waiting until February for the next elections seemed like a lengthy delay. She asked if there was any reason the board couldn’t move ahead with the process based on the procedures that will be put in place eventually.
Nathan Disch stated the board could send out nomination forms and include information that would clearly spell out dates and procedures being put in place.
Jeni Holm asked if anything had been sent out to notify families of the status of the elections. She added that as most families are not aware of the status of the elections, the board should get a letter of explanation out as soon as possible.
Nathan Disch stated it would be acceptable to resend the nomination materials with a new cover letter. He added that there would be an opportunity to meet the candidates on the Saturday preceding the election.. Jeni Holm stated she would feel better if the board set some dated for the election process before the end of the meeting. She asked how many days there would be between the call for nominations and the election. Nathan Disch stated there would be four weeks between the two dates. Jeni Holm asked what would be the soonest date the board could hold elections following the new procedures.
There was discussion about the date of the annual meeting and the bylaws. Nathan Disch stated the annual meetings must be within 15 months of each other.
Lori Bona stated that if the board offered an opportunity to meet the candidates on January 11th, the nominations and biographical information would need to be in by Wednesday, December 18th.
Jeni Holm stated she would like to get a mailing out by the early part of next week, as that would give people one week to make nominations, and then the nominees would have one and a half weeks to get their biographical information in. She added that all the dates should be listed so that by accepting the nomination, nominees agree to be available on January 11th.
The following dates were set for the election process:
Nominations out by November 11th
Nominations due by December 6th
Biographical information due by December 18th
Meet the candidates January 11th
Ballots mailed out by January 8th
Election and annual meeting January 22nd
Update on executive director position
Steph Dess stated the transition team met with Anne Lindgren and they talked about tasks that would need to be covered. Those tasks included being the Osseo liason, staff development, and day to day operations. They also talked with Ed Kossmann about what tasks he would be able to cover. She went on to say the team met with the leadership team to gather information about certain tasks involve and who normally does them. She stated they have no recommendations to make at this time, as they are still in the information gathering stage. She stated that Anne Lindgren is working on a transition plan.
Anne Lindgren stated that she has been working with Mary Beth Frank and Ed Kossmann on a transition plan. Lyle Clemenson asked if the plan was in writing, and when things would take place. Steph Dess stated she had only her handwritten notes and she would type them up. Lyle Clemenson asked if she planned on typing them up soon, as Anne Lindgren will be leaving January 1st. He went on to ask who would assume the duties of Anne Lindgren when she leaves. Rick Wolf stated that that is the goal of the team. Lyle Clemenson asked how everything would get done with everyone so busy. He asked further who would handle these duties and responsibilities, and the duties would be delegated. He stated that someone within Odyssey should establish these things immediately. He went on to say that he would like a written plan.
Anne Lindgren stated she is compiling a list of resources that are available to Odyssey.
Jeni Holm stated that that information is the most important thing the board needs to make good decisions.
Lyle Clemenson stated that he is concerned that the management of the school is being left unattended. Jeni Holm asked Anne Lindgren if she knew when the board would have the information in hand. Anne Lindgren stated she could have it by next Wednesday. Lyle Clemenson asked what the next step would be after the board received the information. Jeni Holm stated it would be productive if the transition team could look at it. She added that a special meeting might be required so the board could look at the information. Lori Bona stated she did not want to meet next week as she would like time to look at the information. She added that in the conversation with the leadership team she was told the information would be available to the board on December 5th. She asked if the board wanted to convene before the next regular meeting. Lyle Clemenson asked when the board would have someone in place to manage the school. Jeni Holm replied that those conversations are taking place in the school on a daily basis, and they are working on division of duties everyday. She added that they need all the information before they can make a decision.
Lori Bona stated they need to be clear about what tasks would need to be covered if it was necessary to hire someone. Rick Wolf stated they need to meet with leadership to get some recommendations and then create a timeline within a day of when they get the information from Anne Lindgren. Lyle Clemenson stated the board needs to get a timeline straight, and the elections are not as important as getting the management of the school in place.
New BusinessAdministrative Report- Ed Kossmann presented the attached administrative report.
Finance Team Report- Mary Beth Frank presented the attached financial information.
She stated that Finance Team meetings will be changing to the 8:30 a.m. the Friday before the next regularly scheduled board meeting. She added that the next finance team meeting was scheduled for Friday, December 13th at 8:30 a.m.
Human Resources Team
Mary Beth Frank presented the attached proposed Drug Policy. She stated that it is a work in progress. She stated it is a part of the policies that have been adopted, and the attorney recommended that special light be brought to it to make people aware of its existence.
Merit Pay
Rick Wolf stated that although it is a topic of merit, it is unrealistic to look at awarding merit pay at this time. He stated Odyssey is not in a position to offer merit pay due to a tight budget. He added he hoped there were enough intrinsic benefits for the staff that they would understand the situation. Lyle Clemenson stated he would like to keep it on the plans for the future.
Educational Programs
Nathan Disch stated this team has not yet met, but they plan to in the next month. He added that the team is asking for direction from the board. Steph Dess suggested that perhaps the team needed a mission statement to define their duties and purpose.
Adjournment:The meeting was adjourned at 8:00pm.
Next meetings:Regular meeting to be held Wednesday, December 18thth at 6:30pm.