General Information

Government Type

Charter School

Entity

Salt Lake Arts Academy

Entity Website

http://www.slarts.org

Public Body

Salt Lake Arts Academy

Notice Information

Add Notice to Calendar

Notice Title

Salt Lake Arts Academy Pending Minutes

Notice Tags

Schools

Notice Type(s)

Meeting

Event Start Date & Time

July 22, 2020 03:00 PM

Description/Agenda

Salt Lake Arts Academy Special Governing Board Meeting Pending Minutes July 22, 2020 3:00 p.m. Via ZOOM (Invitation sent to Board members and interested parties on 7/22/20) Note: 45 total participants were present at the end of the Zoom meeting. Several were missed in the accounting below. Board Members in Attendance Anneliese Booher, Chris Mautz, Jennifer Goldman-Luthy, Jim Kreeck, John Bakken, Julie Livers, Lon Huntsman, Matt Nelson, Melissa Block Incoming Board Members, not yet voting: Rob Scott, Stacey Mahan Board Members Excused Andy Yorkin, Denise Begue, Heather Soderquist, Ron Zamir, Scott Messersmith, Tatiana Mixco Staff in Attendance Amy Mautz, Dan Armstrong, Elizabeth Wilson, Heather Shepherd, Holly Winn, Jeni White, Jennifer Burrow Sanchez, Jen Guillory, Jeremy Theriot, Karen Lynne, Karin Fenn, Katy Andrews, Kevin Lee, Lamar Holley, Moni Schwaerzler, Nate Rickett, Norma Iglesias Others in Attendance Anne Cook, Chris Adams, Erin Johnson, Jenny Clark, Karin Wirthlin, Katherine Zavodni, Megan Buhler, Sarah Hadley, Zac Pau'u 1. Welcome Lon Huntsman 3:00 2. Approve Minutes of Governing Board Meeting 6/30/20 All 3:00 MOTION: To approve the Minutes from 6/30/20 Jim Kreeck moved to approve Julie Livers seconded Motion approved unanimously 3. Requests to Speak 3:10 REQUEST TO SPEAK: Persons requesting to speak to the Governing Board in an open meeting need to sign up prior to the start of the open session of the board meeting, by Resolution of questions or responses to proposals should not be expected at this meeting; staff or others may be asked to research and/or prepare materials and solutions for a later time. Up to fifteen minutes in total will be scheduled for persons requesting to speak. Three minutes will be allotted for individual requests and five minutes will be allotted for group requests. If we receive more requests than the allotted time permits, those requests may be scheduled for the next board meeting. Your concerns may be submitted in writing to the principal's office for distribution to the Governing Board at any time. Three individuals will be recognized later in the meeting. 4. Approve FY20 and FY21 Budgets Finance Committee 3:15 Vote Expected Moni - reviewed a few details regarding which year some money will be applied, etc. Discussion to clarify MOTION: To approve FY20 and FY21 Budgets Matt Nelson moved to approve John Bakken seconded Motion approved unanimously 5. Return to School Plan for 2020-21 Heather Shepherd 3:30 Discussion of recent changes to Salt Lake City's Covid-19 Risk Status Lon - Overview of our unusual circumstances and concerns here and globally At June 30 meeting, Governing Board approved SLArts plan for Utah's Level Orange; but Governor Herbert changed particulars of Level Orange so that schools may choose to open in-person. Board has thought over what to do very carefully, with teacher input Honor three Requests to Speak: Nate Rickett (math teacher), Karin Fenn (dance teacher), Amy Mautz (school counselor) Nate's comments --SLArts did better than other schools in Spring and was much more interactive and supportive; not perfect but worked out ok --If we use a hybrid (part in-person, part online) during Level Orange, some parents may still opt to keep kids at home if they feel unsafe sending them to school; their experience will be lesser cf the school going fully online Karin's comments --Teachers devoted to interacting with students, prefer to be in person under different circumstances; but with current counts, and some teachers in higher risk categories, risk to health and lives is very real --Current building cannot allow adequate social distance even with hybrid; wait till buildout is finished --No way to know how safe students and families are being; if in person, beginning now families must commit to social distancing and wearing masks; we are not expendable --Need much more protective equipment --With smaller cohorts, Zoom will be more effective than previously Amy's comments --As school social worker, getting lots of info on how this impacts students socially, mentally --Safety and security are foundation to form relationships, take risks, have resiliency --Going back in Level Orange will create insecurity impacting mental health of students and teachers --Potential problems/scenarios: quality of instruction when insecure students driven to be physically close but can't be while in person teachers falling ill; student reaction if they caused it how to support at-risk within our population Lon - reviewed written concerns submitted by 10 faculty members; all were against reopening school while SLC is in 'Orange' He/Board need to be thoughtful and flexible; there are clear concerns from teachers Comments/concerns - of board members and a few others Julie - listen to infectious disease experts; e.g. Andy Pavia is local world expert; we should start remote till numbers go down Lon - known harms vs. potential risks wrt kids Jen GL (pediatrician) - lots of info out there to support whatever position you have; ways to mitigate risk; concerned about anxiety and learning in kids she sees; yet need to honor and respect teacher concerns Jim - consider the teachers' 10-voice (unanimous) opinions; worry about school being run like business; health of kids and faculty paramount; economically, if parents feel it's too risky we would lose families and revenue Matt - do we have any sense if we would lose more students going back hybrid cf online; also consider reputation of school; staying online is safer option Lon - survey of parents to check pulse? wants to be sensitive but also wants to lead rather than follow; we haven't sold our plan well enough - masks, face shields, reducing class size, reducing population by half; wants to gather more parent information Heather - SLCSD teachers haven't been training all summer like ours; we can start 8/24 as planned - at least front loading with students; thankful to board for thoughtfulness, flexibility, and hearing all the arguments, including teachers' Chris M - any option is not great! hope is for a steady momentum toward normalcy in society, but this is what we are seeing now; we should slow till end of September Karin - students will find it hard to maintain social distancing; can't test, trace, or know who has it John - Teachers' safety and the kids' safety are priority; leaning toward starting remotely even though he would prefer kids being in class Melissa - had been in camp of getting kids in person, but now reconsidering; ramifications of losing a teacher?! leaning toward remote learning start; appreciates teacher input/bravery in sharing viewpoints Lon - even though personal interest is to get kids back in classroom, not clear he will vote that way after hearing additional input; Norma has noted the orange change is a policy change, not a scientific one; if we go to yellow, what are peoples' feelings? Elizabeth - blended learning format, teachers learning, webinars, reading; way different than the 6 wks in the spring! much more engaging; kids' needs will be met; would love to see us remote until it is safe Katy - families in general approve that we start remote and move between models; admin and teachers need direction as soon as possible to get plans filled out Matt - proposes motion - frustrated by Governor's change; additional discussion to refine motion MOTION: For Salt Lake Arts Academy to reaffirm our original June 30 plan to be online only if in Level Orange; that a change in color level, or meaning within a color level, will trigger an emergency Board meeting to reconsider our options; and to maintain the August 24 school start date currently scheduled Matt Nelson moved to approve Jennifer Goldman-Luthy seconded Motion approved unanimously Lon - closing appreciative comments Julie - back east schools are going online till January; we are in good position to make changes as needed Katy - will communicate with families tomorrow for planning Chris - highlight that online learning will be enriched and interactive cf spring; he believes this will be seen as a positive decision by the majority of families Moni - quick question about updating teacher computers (all are 6 years or older) for a great price, plus we have the money; please let her know if it's ok Matt - great price! Governance to stay on for a few minutes; others dismissed Expected Adjournment 4:00 Actual time 4:30

Notice of Special Accommodations (ADA)

In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, individuals needing special accommodations (including auxiliary communicative aids and services) during this meeting should notify Jen Guillory at 801-531-1173. .

Notice of Electronic or Telephone Participation

NA

Meeting Information

Meeting Location

844 S 200 E
Zoom Meeting
SLC, 84111
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Contact Name

Jen Guillory

Contact Email

jeng@slarts.org

Contact Phone

(801)531-1173

Notice Posting Details

Notice Posted On

July 27, 2020 01:17 PM

Notice Last Edited On

July 27, 2020 01:17 PM

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