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September 2015: Board Meeting Minutes

LE MONDE IMMERSION
Board Meeting
@Tonkon Torp LLP-1600 Pioneer Tower, 888 SW 5th Avenue, Portland
September 8, 2015
5:45-8:50 PM

 

Board members present: Shouka Rezvani, Dory Hobbs, Jarod Hobbs, Nicole Aas-Rouxparis, Jeffrey Scott, Karen Kitchen, Karyn Warner

Educators present: Chantal Dufour-Martel

 

  1. Unanimous vote to approve (i) June Board Minutes, (ii) distribution from Le Monde Programs LLC to Le Monde Immersion, (ii) janitorial contract, and (iii) PPS Accountability Plan for 2015/2016.
  2. Graduation Trips Committee. This committee is meeting regularly, and has recommended that the Fifth Grade and Eighth Grades eventually be dismissed one week before the rest of the school, to celebrate graduation from elementary and middle school, and to provide time for class trips. They also recommended that Fifth Graders take a class graduation trip to Canoe Island, and that Eight Graders plan a trip to Paris, and that both trips, though coordinated with the assistance of the school, not be school-sponsored trips. Both of these recommendations were approved by the board. This committee
    will continue to meet and make recommendations regarding grade-wise graduation trips.
  3. School Update from Head of School.The school is working on addressing various needs as teachers adjust to classrooms and notify administration of things to be modified, fixed, and purchased.

    Smarter Balanced results – Le Monde performed phenomenally well, especially given that we were not provided with the common core trainings that the district offers its teachers. For the most part, in English and in Math, the two subjects tested, Le Monde far surpassed other PPS charter and district school results in terms of the percentage of students receiving the highest grade (4), and was only outscored by ACCESS Academy, the highly-talented and gifted only focus school, and for English, Ainsworth, but only by a few percentage points.

  4. Discussion of PAX by Chantal. PAX is a good behavior game, which is not a game played intermittently during the day, but something that is consistently implemented throughout the day. PAX is being considered to help students model good behavior and make collaborative decisions throughout the day.
    It is a research-based program and is one way to operationalize PBIS, which is already adopted by the school. Its materials also are available in French.
  5. TAG Policy Discussion. Whether or not the school should adopt a separate TAG policy was discussed. The district has indicated that students at Le Monde cannot access TAG testing or related services. The school already is working to ensure that all students are challenged appropriately for their individual abilities and skill levels, which is a guiding principle for the school. The International Baccalaureate program (IB), teacher professional  development, and other options designed to enhance the educational experience and differentiation abilities of teachers were discussed. It was determined that no specific TAG policy or program will be implemented at this time, though the school will continue to work toward ensuring that all students are adequately supported and challenged, and that all teachers have the tools and skillsets to accomplish that result.
  6. Equity in Education Reflection. The staff received equity in education professional development before the start of school, and the high points of that PD was discussed. Each board meeting will have an equity reflection exercise to keep equity at the forefront of planning as the school grows. This month, the board members were encouraged to watch “The Danger of a Single Story”, a Ted talk on Youtube by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. We will continue to work on our equity plan with the assistance of our consultants.
  7. Financial Review. Financial discussion was postponed pending the bookkeeper finalizing August financials; preliminary results indicate that we are operating on budget.
  8. Report regarding Le Monde Programs LLC. Dylan Clifford will be the AFCA coordinator this year and the board is excited to have him in charge. Shouka has met with the LLC staff to discuss planning and implementation of this year’s programming.
  9. Hiring. Hiring needs for next year were discussed.