Minutes – 19 November 2009

19 November 2009 6:00pm
Procedural Items:
1. Welcome/Call to Order: Chair Naomi Swinton called the meeting to order at 6:15 PM

2. Establish quorum: Quorum established

3. In attendance: Director Cindy McLeod; Governing Council members Chris Cudia, Kim Kirkpatrick, Diana Whitten, Caroline Garduño-Lopez, Suzanne DeVos-Cole (new parent rep. who was welcomed to her first GC meeting), Naomi Swinton, Pat Leahan; Student reps. Marisol Meyer, Cat Leger (Absent: Student rep. Jaibo Bailey) (Excused: GC member Diane Moore)

4. Approval of agenda: Motion by Kim, second by Chris, all approved, motion passed

5. Approval of minutes: Motion by Kim, second by Diana, all approved, motion passed

6. Confirm date of next regular meeting: Wed., Dec. 9, 6-8PM (5:30 PM BUDGET DISCUSSION – Please be there at 5:30; students don’t need to be there until 6:00)

Public Comments, Director, Student and Amigos Reports:

7. Budget: For next month’s agenda, we will discuss how we want to monitor our budget. We contract with WLV School District, but we have concerns with how the budget is currently being handled.

8. Director’s Report: Cindy McLeod
We had a budget discussion; Cindy handed out the “RG Budget Summary 2009-2010” and “Trial Balance by Fund” for our perusal and inquiry. We will have another budget discussion on Dec. 9th from 5:30 – 6:00 PM.

9. Amigos de Rio Gallinas Report: Next meeting is Fri. Nov. 20th at Traveler’s Café, 3:45 PM; selling Dean’s Beans as a fundraiser, orders are due Nov. 30th, Naomi will send info to GC; Next fundraiser is early February 2010

10. Student Representatives: Marisol wants RGS to connect more with Warehouse 21 Teen Center in Santa Fe; Will ask Amigos for gas money and other needs to network with W21; Naomi will support the students in their request at the next Amigos meeting and U7 Committee meeting. Some discussion centered around students wanting to maybe change school schedule (like year-round or starting later in the AM); A student-led survey was suggested. Marisol recommended that RGS students have a float in the Christmas Light Parade and she will follow up on that. The parade is Dec. 5th.

Executive Session: none needed

Action Items
11. Initial BAR $1,000 Grant from PNM
Motion by Kim, second by Diana, all approved, motion passed

Old Business:
12. Governing Council Training, Nov. 14 in Albuquerque – follow up:
For next month’s agenda, we will discuss Nov. GC training , as well as ELAB materials presented at Oct. meeting. Kim, Chris, Diana and Pat attended the 8-hour GC training to fulfill new state requirements. We will present some of the training highlights at the Dec. meeting.

13. Outstanding Items from Previous Meetings:

A. Deadline is Dec. 2nd for people to apply for open seat on council due to the loss of GC member Steve Flores who passed away one month ago tonight; “Official Notice of Special Election” has been written, posted and circulated; Resume and letter of application should be submitted to GC Secretary, Pat Leahan, or School Director Cindy McLeod; Election will be held at our next GC meeting on Dec. 9th.
B. Naomi suggested a committee be formed to plan the RGS 5-year celebration, which will likely happen in Feb. or March at the Plaza Hotel; Student reps expressed interest in helping.
C. “Choose Your Weapon Summit: Fighting Nonviolently” will be held at the UWC Jan. 17th at 7:00 PM, and Jan. 18th starting at 9:00 AM and going all day. Co-sponsored by the RGS, UWC, and LVP&J Center. There will be lots of workshops offered; Community and GC members are strongly encouraged to attend.
D. We will aim to do a presentation to the WLV School Board about RGS at their Feb. meeting; Student reps are encouraged to be a part of that presentation.

New Business:
14. Review End of Year Calendar of Events: Attend RGS Summit Jan. 17-18 with 7th and 8th graders; and Younger School Celebration of Learning will be in Dec. (stay tuned for the date)

15. Discussion of “Charter School University Book Section 1: A New Kind of Accountability”: The books will arrive soon; Read the first 4 chapters in preparation for next month’s meeting

Adjournment
16. Motion by Kim, second by Diana, all approved, motion passed.
Meeting adjourned at 7:06 PM