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2023-09-21 EAB Minutes1 EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD MINUTES September 21, 2023 The meeting was called to order with the following members present: Ms. Kristen Feuer Ms. Dana Vignale Mr. Antonio Netto Mr. Michael Weber Ms. Kathryn Mason Ms. Renee O’Connor Ms. Mallory Lehroff Also present: Ms. Ysabely Rodriguez: Village Clerk Mr. Douglas Clark: Supervisor at the Office of Inter-Governmental Affairs and Family and Community Engagement Mr. Daniel Diaz: MSES Principal Ms. Ashley Miller: MSES Vice Principal 1. CALL TO ORDER: 6:06 p.m. Quorum established. 2. ROLL CALL: See Above. 3. PUBLIC COMMENTS: None. 4. NEW BOARD MEMBER INTRODUCTIONS: Ms. Rodriguez introduced the two newest board members: Mallory Lehroff and Renee O’Connor 5. APPOINTMENT OF CHAIR, VICE CHAIR, AND BOARD SECRETARY: a. Mr. Weber and Ms. Vignale nominated Antonio Netto as board chair. None opposed. Consensus Passed. b. Mr. Weber nominated Ms. Vignale as board vice chair. None opposed. Consensus Passed. c. Ms. Vignale nominated Kristen Feuer as board secretary. None opposed. Consensus Passed. 6. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES: Ms. Vignale made a motion to approve the minutes from the September 2023 meeting and Mr. Netto seconded the motion. The board reviewed the minutes. Motion passed. 7. CONSIDERATIONS: a. MSES UPDATE PROVIDED BY ADMINISTRATION: - The school/PTA began the year raising $17,000 at the Fun Run on September 20th. - The school/PTA held a successful back-to-school dance party. 2 - The first PTA meeting was held on Monday, September 18th and there were 49 participants by zoom, the highest number of participants ever. - The school hosted a successful open house for back-to-school. - The school is fully staffed. Enrollment has gone up to 574 students as of today. - There are 96 Kindergarteners and five Kindergarten teachers. - The new building is open, and the architect will be in touch regarding the ribbon cutting ceremony. Looking at January or February for the ceremony. - Cambridge projects have already begun. - The budget for Cambridge ended last June and did not roll over. - The board discussed the Cambridge budget, what was initially allocated and what was spent. - Ms. Rodriguez stated the Village Counsel would like to know how the original $96,000 was utilized prior to the release of the additional budget allocation. - Ms. Rodriguez scheduled Tuesday, October 17th as the planned date for a report to the Village Council. - Mr. Netto inquired about the continuation of the beautification project and planting on the north side. - The board discussed some construction material on the north end of the school and Mr. Diaz explained that it is for the sewer project (bond project). Mr. Diaz is not aware of when that project will be completed. The work began in September of 2021. - Ms. Mason stated that she has received inquiries about the remnants on the north end and suggested follow up. b. UPDATE ON GIVE MIAMI DAY (DANA VIGNALE): - Ms. Vignale met with Mr. Diaz and Malu Statz (PTA President) to discuss Give Miami Day, set a goal of $350,000 dollars to refurbish all 40 of the older classrooms and refresh all the furniture in existing classrooms. - Mr. Weber attended the Give Miami Day meeting and they walked everyone through setting up the website, stressed having a short inclusive message. Discussed distribution of flyers containing the Give Miami Day QR code to take donors directly to the donation page. - Ms. Lehroff volunteered to help with the QR code. - The week of November 13th is an early giving week. - Actual Give Miami Day is Thursday November 16th. - The board discussed strategy and targeted donors such as: 1. Parents 2. PTA 3. Miami Shores community at large 4. Alumni 3 5. Local businesses 6. Realtors and Developers - Mr. Weber suggested placing a message on the school marquee and the Miami Shores marquee. - Ms. O’Connor offered her design and Canva services. - Ms. Mason suggested sending a post card in the mail to Grandparents who are not technically inclined. - The board discussed holding an additional meeting in two weeks, prior to the regular October meeting to focus entirely on Give Miami Day. c. DISCUSSION ON UPCOMING EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD REPORT - Ms. Vignale brought the data from the survey from March/April 2022 and the board discussed a possible new survey in February 2024 to capture many of the positive updates. The data we still have reflects 40 random responses out of all the responses previously submitted. - Mr. Netto opened the discussion on how to articulate and provide tangible information to the Village Counsel. - Ms. Vignale stated that based on the old survey, the two initial questions identified were student performance and the impact of school choice. - Mr. Netto stated that Mater Academy has been the largest event since the inception of board and the total number of students at Miami Shores Elementary has not reduced very much. - Ms. Mason stated that based on her conversations, many people do not realize what they should be looking for in a school, therefore we as a board might want to take on the responsibility of distributing literature differentiating the school options and educating parents to explore their options. - Ms. O’Connor inquired about the maximum capacity for the school. Mr. Diaz informed the board the capacity is 800 students, but the school would need additional teachers to meet that capacity. - The board discussed the upcoming dates proposed for the report to Village Counsel and a plan of action regarding the report and presentation. 8. NEW BUSINESS a. Ms. Lehroff stated that Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School would like to extend an invitation to Miami Shores Elementary students to attend their free afterschool choir program. 9. ADJOURNMENT- meeting was adjourned at 7:33pm