Arise Virtual Academy Board Meeting

May 28th, 2025
ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

I. Call to Order 4:02pm

• Board Members Present: Dana Leikness, James Davidson, Betsy Genz, Nicole Rusch, Kiva Gittings Graves, Craig Schultz, Emily Matteson
• Board Members Absent: 
• Administration Present: Veronica McMahon

II. Review and Approval of Minutes

• Nicole motion to approve April 23rd, 2025, minutes. James seconded the motion. Board voted and approved.

III. Principal’s Report

• Reviewed May numbers. Currently at 272.
• Attendance continues at 98%
• FTP 12 total. However, 25 YTD this school year compared with 46 YTD in 2023-24 school year.
• Monthly PD wrap up and all staff will receive new laptops and docking stations.

Budget review

• Student scores still embargoed
• Reviewed calendar and upcoming events including end of the year picnic.
• Teacher appreciation went well – Parent Advisory Coordinated plus additional district appreciation items.
• June 4th Craig is speaking at graduation.

IV. Parent Advisory Council Report

• Teacher appreciation event completed.

V. AVA Board Strategic Plan

• Betsy Genz reviewed Strategic Plan with board with edits from last meeting.
• Kiva motion to approve Strategic Plan, Besty seconded the motion. Board voted and approved.
• Betsy will develop a work plan for board to review in fall meeting.

VI. Business Entity Annual Report Update

• Kiva collected board addresses and contact information to file with DFI by June.

VII. Non-Profit Status Discussion

• Nicole Rusch reviewed the pro/cons of becoming a non-profit entity.
• Reviewed the cost for the application and fees
• Currently the district allows ARISE to apply for grants.
• Currently ARISE can get donations through the school district.
• Becoming a non-profit also entails additional reporting and auditing requirements.
• Board agreed to hold on any decision and work with WRCCC next school year to further explore pros/cons.

VIII. AVA Board Member Recruitment

• All board members plan to stay on next school year.
• Need to review current board terms
• Agree that 7 members is good for next school year.
• Reminder that elections will occur in fall meeting.

IX. 2025-2026 AVA Board Schedule

• Board discussion about schedule. Agreed to reduce to minimum required for school year and to hold extra if needed if special circumstances.
• Agreed to meet 2nd Wednesday of September, November, February and April at same location ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

X. Ongoing Business

• Community Partners – Discussion about WIOA and DVR. Possible need to get more education for teachers. Dana will follow up.

XI. New Business

• Reminder elections next meeting and board members to complete COI forms.
• Next board meeting moved to September 10th, 2025, 4:00pm – 5:30pm

XII. Adjourn

• James motion to adjourn the meeting. Nicole second the motion. Meeting adjourned at 4:58pm.
• Minutes recorded by Kiva Gittings Graves, Board Secretary

1. Call to order Action
2. Review and Approval of March’s Minutes Discussion & Action
   • 5 minutes
3. Principal’s and Fiscal Report- Veronica Mcmahon 
   • Information & Discussion 20 minutes
4. AVA Board Strategic Plan- Review Summary of Updated Slides– Betsy Genz
   • Discussion & Working Session 20 minutes
5. Development of Monitoring Tool- Student and
   • Parent Surveys – Dana Leikness Discussion 5 minutes
6. Non-Profit Status – Dana Leikness Discussion
   • 5 minutes
7. AVA Annual Report- Veronica Mcmahon Discussion
   • 5 minutes
8. End of the Year Party- Veronica Mcmahon Discussion
   • 10 minutes
9. On-Going Business
   • Community Partners- Are there any community partners/resources that the school needs assistance connecting to?
   • Discussion 5 minutes
10. New Business
    • As of 4/8/2025, Lisa Fenrick resigned from the AVA Board of Directors due to her obtaining a new employment opportunity. We wish Lisa the best of luck in her new adventure!
    • Board member recruitment discussion 
    • Teacher Appreciation Week Ideas
    • AVA High School Graduation- June 4 th , 2025, at 5:30 pm, at Parker High School
    • Discussion
    • 15 minutes
11. Adjourn Action

Next ARISE Board Meeting is May 21 st , 2025, from 4:00 pm-5:30 pm

Arise Virtual Academy
Board Meeting
March 19th, 2025
ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

I. Call to Order 4:02pm

• Board Members Present: Dana Leikness, Emily Matteson, James Davidson, Kiva Gittings Graves, Betsy Genz, Craig Schultz, Lisa Fenrick
• Board Members Absent: Nicole Rusch
• Administration Present: Veronica McMahon

II. Review and Approval of Minutes

• Betsy motion to approve January 22nd, 2025, minutes. Lisa seconded the motion. Board voted and approved.

III. Principal’s Report

• Principal report reviewed with the board.
• Fiscal report reviewed. Two week lag-time in the report.
• Currently 255 students, of which 65 are taking one class
• Forward testing being done at Adams School. Some teachers need to travel to the city which the student lives for the testing – example, one is in Milwaukee and another in Green Bay.
• Board requested a visual of where students are located who are attending the school.
• School Superintendent is promoting ARISE advertisement.
• Continuing to see increase in open enrollment, currently at 23% open enrollment.
• Seeing an increase in elementary enrollment as well.
• Request for additional staff has been placed, pending decision in April.
• Continue to see request for enrollments for students who are failing in traditional in-person school.
• Para-professional took a position at Craig. Part-time posting was not bringing in qualified candidates. After full-time position was posted, successfully filled. New para has 13 years’ experience working with at risk kids.
• Teachers continue to focus on vocabulary and Stephanie is also conducting mini-lessons to support skill attainment.

IV. Parent Advisory Council Report

• Next activity – May Teacher Appreciation Week.

V. AVA Board Strategic Plan – working session

• Kiva reviewed a Power Point with the board to facilitate a discussion.
• Reviewed community partners discussion from January meeting.
• Discussion about remaining areas within strategic plan with goal to finalize plan by end of the school year.
• Vernoica will send additional documentation to Kiva summarizing tactics that are currently being implemented by the staff to include into the plan.
• Kiva will prepare the notes from the discussion and put into the Power Point template for additional review at the April meeting

VI. New Business

• Next board meeting was moved to April 23, 2025, at 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm.

VII. Adjourn

• Betsy motion to adjourn the meeting. James second the motion.
• Meeting adjourned at 5:19pm.

Minutes recorded by Kiva Gittings Graves, Board Secretary

Arise Virtual Academy Board Meeting

January 22nd, 2025
ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

I. Call to Order 4:02pm

• Board Members Present:, Dana Leikness, Emily Matteson, James Davidson,
• Kiva Gittings Graves, Betsy Genz, Craig Schultz, Nicole Rusch
• Board Members Absent: Lisa Fenrick
• Administration Present: Veronica McMahon, Denise Wimann

II. Review and Approval of Minutes

• James motion to approve November 13rd, 2024, minutes. Nicole seconded the motion. Board voted and approved.

III. Principal’s Report

• Principal report reviewed with the board.
• Fiscal report reviewed.
• Over 60 new applications for students
• Working with district to add additional staff to support enrollment
• Holding on additional advertisement
• Failure to participate numbers very low
• Teachers are proactive on engagement techniques to ensure participation
• Continued work on Act 20
• Upcoming trip – bowling, nature center and Sky Zone

IV. Parent Advisory Council Report

• No January meeting held.

V. AVA Board Strategic Plan – working session community partners

• Kiva reviewed a Power Point with the board to facilitate a discussion.
• Discussion about current community partners
• Discussion about goals for community partners and next steps
  • Focus area: Fostering community partnerships and increasing partners
  • Goal statement: Develop 3 new community partner relationships over the next 2 years.
    • Tactics:
    • Leverage school events such as end of the year party to invite
    • community partners that may be beneficial to students and
    • families.
    • Create resource list of community partners for students and parents.
    • Encourage students to participate in career fairs.
    • Continue to offer professional development and networking for staff with community partners. 
    • Add community partner discussion and opportunities to board
    • meeting agendas on a regular cadence.
    • Connect current ARISE counselor Steve Deering to Job Center contact.
  • KPIs: not discussed
• Board agreed to start with this list and will revisit to revise final wording and add KPIs

VI. New Business

• Discussion setting up a VR session with Job Center on a Wednesday for students.
• Next board meeting was moved to February 12 th , 2025, at 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm.

VII. Adjourn

• Nicole motion to adjourn the meeting. Craig second the motion. Meeting adjourned at 5:22pm.

Minutes recorded by Kiva Gittings Graves, Board Secretary

Arise Virtual Academy
Board Meeting November 13th, 2024

ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

I. Call to Order 4:30pm

• Board Members Present:, Dana Leikness, Emily Matteson, James Davidson, Kiva Gittings Graves, Betsy Genz, Craig Schultz, Lisa Fenrick, Nicole Rusch
• Administration Present: Veronica McMahon

II. Review and Approval of Minutes

• Betsy motion to approve October 23rd, 2024, minutes. Lisa seconded the motion. Board voted and approved.

III.Old Business

• Contract Revision for term: Chris should have updated next week. Will need to resign.
• Review Mission Statement Revision: Reviewed mission statement created by teachers. James motioned to approve. Emily seconded the motion. Board voted and approved.

IV.Principal’s Report

• Principal report reviewed with the board.
• Fiscal report reviewed.
• Enrollments up this year compared to last year at this time.
• Increase in referrals for kids who have high needs, are pre-expulsion and expulsion.
• Professional development – Act 20 screener training.
• Provided an update on Act 20 process for the school.
• Bags of Hope – families were selected.

V. Parent Advisory Council Report

• President Elizabeth Linders and Kiva met 12/9/24 to discuss the expectations of the position.
• Plan to put something together for teacher appreciation week in May.
• Will meet again on January 20th to discuss other ideas on how to engage parents and student feedback.

VI. AVA Contract Requirement Review

• Kiva facilitated a review of the requirements within the contract to ensure operational processes were in place to ensure the board was meeting the requirements with the contract.
• Board agreed all requirements were met for the 2024-2025 school year.

VII. AVA Board Strategic Plan – working session

• Kiva reviewed a Power Point with the board to facilitate a discussion.
• The board agreed they would discuss the community partner priority area in the January meeting.
• The board recommended the teachers recommend tactics to improve quality and social & behavioral challenges priorities.
• The board recommended the teachers and the board jointly develop tactics to improve enrollment and career planning & student development priorities.

VIII. New Business

• Discussion about FAFSA low rates at ARISE.
•  
• Next board meeting was moved to January 15th, 2025, at 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm.

IX. Adjourn

• Craig motion to adjourn the meeting. Lisa second the motion. Meeting adjourned at 5:33pm.

Minutes recorded by Kiva Gittings Graves, Board Secretary

Arise Virtual Academy Board Meeting October 23rd, 2024

ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

I.Call to Order 4:05pm

• Board Members Present:, Dana Leikness, Emily Matteson, James Davidson, Kiva Gittings Graves, Betsy Genz
• Administration Present: Veronica McMahon
• Absent: Craig Schultz, Lisa Fenrick, Nicole Rusch

II.Review and Approval of Minutes

• James motion to approve September 18th, 2024, minutes. Betsy seconded the motion. Board voted and approved.

III. Old Business

• Contract Revision for term: Veronica will check with Chris M to see what next steps need to occur to make the correction
• Fiscal Reporting: Veronica has a template to share as part of the principal report
• Parent Advisory Council: Veronica connected with a parent who is willing to lead PAC. Elizabeth Linders. Kiva will follow up with Elizabeth to help support her to set it up.

IV. Principal’s Report

• Principal report reviewed with the board.
• Overall, enrollment numbers are up.
• Still seeing new students starting – mostly students who have been expelled.
• Reviewed individual cases with board.
• September attendance was 99.4%
• Reviewed number of students who have received 1st, 2nd, and 3rd notices for failure to participate. Currently no students have received a 4th letter.
• Seeing an increase in students who are coming in to get assistance in person.
• Professional Development is focused on SIP – School Improvement Plan. 3 goals – reduce FTP, improve reading and improve math.
• Staff participated in recent drills – tornado and lock down.
• Nov 4th they are doing ½ day professional development – MLSS multilevel systems of support
• ACT 20 will start in January – Veronica completed the training and will be training the elementary school teachers to administer the new evaluation. Students who are below 25% will have a plan developed and implemented.
• Veronica shared the new Budget reporting template with October fiscal update.

V.AVA Contract Requirements Review

• Kiva facilitated a review of the contract requirements to ensure board areed upon how the requirements were being fulfilled.
• Collaborative review up through section 5.6 was completed.
• Board agreed to finish the review at the November meeting.

VI.Election of Officers for 2024-2025 School Year

 

• Discussion among board members on positions needed President, Vice President and Secretary.
• Betsy nominated: Dana Leikness for President, Emily Matteson for Vice President, and Kiva Gittings Graves for Secretary. James seconded the motion. Board Voted and Approved.

VII.AVA Board Strategic Plan – working session

• Board Reviewed the areas for the strategic planning: Enrollment, Quality, Career Planning & Student Development, Social and Behavioral Challenges and Community Partnerships.
• Kiva and Betsy will prepare a Power Point template to use in upcoming board meetings to complete the tactical steps for the plan.
• Board agreed that it will take them several meetings to complete the plan, but the board agreed the plan can be used as a multi-year plan.

VIII.New Business

• Vernica shared the teachers were working on a revised Mission.
• COI was completed for Dana.
• Next board meeting was moved to November 13th, 2024, at 4:30 pm – 6 pm.

IX.Adjourn

• James motion to adjourn the meeting. Betsy second the motion. Meeting adjourned at 5:25pm.

Minutes recorded by Kiva Gittings Graves, Board Secretary

ARISE Virtual Academy Board Meeting
October 16^th, 2024 – 4:00 p.m. -5:30 p.m.
ARISE Lab- Franklin Middle School
(450 N. Crosby Ave., Janesville, WI 53548)

I.	Call to order	Action
II.	Review and Approval of September Minutes	Discussion & Action 5 minutes
III.	Old Business - Pending Updates: Contract Revision for term Fiscal Reporting Parent Advisory Council	Status Updates 10 min
IV.	Principals Report and Fiscal Report- Veronica Mcmahon	Information & Discussion 20  minutes
V.	AVA Contract Requirements Review	Discussion & Action 25  minutes
VI.	Election of Officers for 2024-2025 School Year	Discussion & Action 15 minutes
VII.	AVA Board Strategic Plan - working session	Discussion & Acton 10 minutes
VIII.	New Business	Discussion 5 minutes
IX.	Adjourn	Action

Arise Virtual Academy Board Meeting
August 23th, 2024
ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

1. Call to Order 4:03pm
   • Board Members Present: Dana Leikness, Craig Schultz, Lisa Fenrick, James Davidson, Kiva Gittings Graves
   • Administration Present: Veronica McMahon
   • Guest Present: none
   • Absent: Emily Matteson
2. Review and Approval of Minutes
   • Kiva motion to approve June 19th, 2024 minutes. Lisa seconded the motion. Board voted and approved.
3. Principal’s Report
   • Construction is complete.
   • 45 staff came to training from ARISE, Rock River and Rock U.
   • Review of staff member changes:
     • Jade Loehe – 2nd and 3rd Grade
     • Janie Sutherland moved to Craig
     • Steve Deering – new counselor. Also supporting Rock River. Here 2 days a week Tues/Wed.
     • Tonya Schaff – replaced Mallory Blabaum who also went to Craig.
     • Daniella Bezat – art teacher
     • Gannon Rand – PE teacher
   • Currently enrollment is over 160 – combination of full time and part time. Nine more starting tomorrow.
   • Orientation scheduled.
   • Picture Day 9/24/24
   • Working on Scoopie Night – requesting Milton Ave.
   • Also exploring being able to sell some audio equipment not in use. Checking with District.
   • Working on Vocabulary Strategies for students
4. PAC Report
   • Kim resigned from board and from PAC.
   • Kiva will serve as interim until a parent can be identified.
   • Contract and statue require to meet but there is not a specified frequency.
   • Veronica to check with staff to see if there are potential families who may be interested in participating and share with Kiva.
5. Updates on AVA Contract and Benchmarks
   • Dana to follow up with Chris to see if amendment is needed.
   • Kiva has requested access to the contract in the District Google drive. Pending approval.
   • DPI approved the benchmarks that were submitted with the contract.
   • Kiva did submit for original articles of incorporation. Pending from State of WI- DFI. Kiva will share with the district once she receives them.
   • Kiva completed the Non-stock Corporation filing and shared the document from the state website that we are in good standing.
   • Kiva shared the next annual report is due in June to DFI.
6. Develop AVA Board Strategic Plan
   • Kiva reviewed the Janesville School District 2024-2027 Strategic Plan power point presentation.
   • Kiva also shared a word document with some possible examples of categories a virtual school may want to include in a strategic plan.
   • Discussion with the board on the approach to create a plan.
   • Veronica shared that teachers had already spent time in an activity to help identify strengths and opportunities for the school. Board agreed that they would like to review that information from the teachers as a starting point versus conducting a new SWOT analysis.
   • Discussion on how to include parent or student input on the plan.
   • Additional Discussion about revising the mission and vision.
   • Discussion that updating the Mission and Vision is a separate activity but should be the framework for the future. While Mission and Vision is separate activity, it is also connected to the Strategic Plan.
   • Discussion that Strategic Plan should be simple to start focusing on key areas. Topics that were discussed include marketing and how to grow the enrollment as well as how to create a sustainable elementary school program. Also, discussion about how to promote gifted and talented options for students.
   • Kiva reminded board that Chris Medenwaldt offered to meet with the board this school year as well.
   • Prior to next meeting, Kiva will send out a link to the board to start thinking about Mission and Vision, so the board can be prepared for a discussion next meeting.
7. Develop AVA Board Committee
   • Discussion that Board Committee may need to be created but should follow the creation of the strategic plan.
   • Some examples include Marketing Committee. Additional ideas shared about how marketing could be leveraged to grow enrollment.
   • Another example of a committee is the sunshine committee or DEI committee.
   • Will revisit committee after Strategic Plan is completed.
8. Update on AVA Live Lesson Policy
   • Discussion on the draft policy.
   • Information on failure to participate in courses was included in the ARISE handbook as well as the electronic forms that parents are required to sign at the start of the school year.
   • Kiva motion to eliminate the draft AVA Live Lesson Policy as the board supported the language in the electronic form. Lisa second the motion. Board voted and approved to eliminate the draft policy and support the language in the Handbook and the electronic form.
9. New Business
   • Next Meeting September 18st , 2024 at ARISE lab.
   • Kiva has potential board member. She will bring to next meeting and have her complete the application.
   • Kiva suggested we should have board members complete a conflict of interest form each school year. Board agreed. Kiva will check for a form.
   • Kiva also suggested we need to review the new contract to ensure we are adhering to all the items in the contract. Kiva will work to help create a document with those items.
10. Adjourn
    • James motion to adjourn the meeting. Lisa second the motion. Meeting adjourned at 5:27pm.
    • Minutes recorded by Kiva Gittings Graves, Board Secretary

ARISE Virtual Academy Board Meeting June 19th, 2024 – 4:00 p.m. -5:30 p.m.

Virtual Meeting- Microsoft Teams

1. Call to order Action
2. Review and Approval of May Minutes  Discussion & Action 5 minutes
3. New Business-
   1. • Introduction of potential Board Member- James Davidson Discussion & Action 20 minutes
   2. • Vote on new Board Member- James Davidson
   3. • Other
4. Principals Report- Patty Hernandez Information & Discussion 20 minutes
5. PAC Report- Kim Churchill Information & Discussion  15 minutes
6. Updates on AVA Charter School Contract for DPI Discussion & Action 15 minutes
7. Updates on Nonstock Corporation Status & Non-Profit Filing Discussion 15 minutes
8. Adjourn Action 

ARISE Virtual Academy Board Meeting May 15th, 2024
 

4:00 p.m. -5:30 p.m. ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI 

1. Call to order
2. Review and Approval of March Minutes  Action Discussion & Action 5 minutes
3. Principals Report- Patty Hernandez Information & Discussion 20 minutes
4. PAC Report- Kim Churchill Discussion & Action 10 minutes
5. Updates on AVA Charter School Contract for DPI Discussion & Action 15 minutes
6. Updates on AVA Policy & Procedures Action 15 minutes
7. Updates on Nonstock Corporation Status & Non-Profit Filing Discussion 15 minutes
8. Develop Principal Transition Plan Discussion 5 minutes
9. New Business Discussion 5 minutes
10. Adjourn  Action 

ARISE Virtual Academy Board Meeting April 17th, 2024 – 4:00 p.m. -5:30 p.m. ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

1. Call to order
2. Review and Approval of March Minutes  Action Discussion & Action 5 minutes
3. Principals Report- Patty Hernandez Information & Discussion 20 minutes
4. PAC Report- Kim Churchill Discussion & Action 10 minutes
5. Review and Approval of AVA Charter School Contract for DPI Discussion & Action 25 minutes
6. Review and Approval of AVA Bylaws Action 5 minutes
7. Review and Discussion of Nonstock Corporation Status & Non-Profit Filing Discussion 15 minutes
8. Develop Principal Transition Plan Discussion 5 minutes
9. New Business Discussion 5 minutes
10. Adjourn  Action 

Arise Virtual Academy
Board Meeting

March 27, 2024
ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

I. Call to Order 4:04pm

• Board Members Present: Dana Leikness, Kiva Gittings Graves, Craig Schultz,
• Emily Matteson, Lisa Fenrick, Kim Churchill
• Administration Present: Patricia Hernandez
• Absent: Kurt Saterbak

II. Review and Approval of Minutes

• Craig motion to approve February 21, 2024 minutes. Lisa seconded the motion. Board approved.
• Review and approval of minutes from November 15, 2023 and January 17,2024 were completed via email prior to the start of the meeting.

III. Principal’s Report by Patricia Hernandez

• Current enrollment: 209 students and 2 students came this week (pre-expelled).
• Staffing PD next week – March cancelled.
• Student achievement – forward testing started. A couple families wanted to opt out, but Patty reached out since this can impact state report card. Families agreed to testing.
• Budget update: $2600.00 balance.
• Credit recovery going great. Will include an additional 13 courses next year.
• Go-baby go very successful. Will participate next year as well.
• Attendance – still good above district and state
• Working on fostering school culture. Field trip MKE was success. Did ice skating trip as well. This week kids were asking where they could go next.
• Challenges – elementary school (low enrollment)
• Math was position was filled by an LTE. Currently reviewing 9 applicants.
• Working transition plan for principal. Staffing is due to Janesville School District Board on April 9th

IV. PAC Report by Kim Churchill

• Challenge to get parents engaged.
• Will set date/time for PAC meeting.
• Teacher appreciation – first week of May.

V. Review AVA Charter School Contract for DPI

 

• Reviewed draft contract. Edits made.
• Members present agreed to Patty, Kiva, and Kim holding a second working session to prepare the rest of the document for the board to review and approve prior to the next board meeting. All board members have access to the document located in a shared drive and can add comments questions or conduct additional review prior to the next meeting.

VI. Review and Discussion of AVA Bylaws

• Group reviewed and edits were suggested.
• Final draft to be reviewed and voted in upcoming meeting.

VII. Review and Approval of AVA Policy & Procedure: AVA Live Lesson Policy

• Patty shared edits from staff review. Board agreed to adopt edits.
• Final draft to be reviewed and voted in upcoming meeting.

VIII. Review and Approval of AVA Policy & Procedure: AVA Student and Parent Contract

• Patty shared edits from staff review. Board agreed to adopt edits.
• Final draft to be reviewed and voted in upcoming meeting.

IX. Review and Discussion of Nonstock Corporation Status & Non-Profit Filing.

• Board discussion.
• Patty will complete report to send to Department of Financial Institutions which is needed to re-instate ARISE board as a non-stock corporation.
• No action to file for non-profit status at this time.

X. Develop Principal Transition Plan

• Pending more information from the district.

XI. Adjourn

• Meeting adjourned at 5:31pm.

Arise Virtual Academy Board Meeting

February 21, 2024
ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

I. Call to Order 4:05pm

• Board Members Present: Dana Leikness, Kiva Gittings Graves, Craig Schultz
• Administration Present: Patricia Hernandez
• Absent: Kurt Saterbak, Emily Matteson, Lisa Fenrick, Kim Churchill

II. Review and Approval of Minutes from November 15, 2023 and January 17, 2024.

• Postponed due to not enough members present.
• Will send out via email to board members.

III. Principal’s Report by Patricia Hernandez

• Enrollment up 50 students. Students leaving current school situation for various issues including bullying and student anxiety
• Offering peer counseling.
• Middle school 23 kids
• Trialing credit recovery – if going well, will consider new program next year specially for credit recovery.
• Go Baby Go program going well.
• Hitting attendance goals.
• Good attendance at Discovery World and 42 kids went bowling
• Potential future trips – Kalahari, Zoo or Trampoline Park
• Concern about elementary numbers.
• Use of AI is up – increased meetings with students. Discussed current strategies being used to educate kids and work collaboratively with kids and families.

IV. PAC Report by Kim Churchill

• Kim provided update via email.
•  Sign-up Genius has been created - as of yet no responses; thinking I will ask mentors to reach out to parents and remind of the link.
•  Email went out to those who have completed PAC form asking for snack donations for the lab  Kim plans to reach out to those who have completed the form individually within the next month to introduce myself.  
• Will need to schedule one meeting this year.

V. Review AVA Charter School Contract for DPI

• Projected the 2024 contract and reviewed as a group.
• Members present agreed to Patty and Kiva holding a working session to prepare the rest of the document for the board to review and approve prior to the next board meeting. All board members have access to the document located in a shared drive and can add comments questions or conduct additional review prior to the next meeting. Link will be resent to all board members.

VI. AVA Mission and Vision

• Postponed.

VII. New Business

• none

VIII. Next Meeting

• March 27th 4pm-5:30pm.

IX. Adjourn

• Meeting adjourned at 5:32pm.

Arise Virtual Academy Board Meeting

January 17, 2024
ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

I. Call to Order

• Board Members Present: Dana Leikness, Emily Matteson, Kiva Gittings Graves, Lisa Fenrick, Craig Schultz, Kim Churchill
• Administration Present: Patricia Hernandez
• Absent: Kurt Saterbak

II. Review and Approval of Minutes from November 15, 2023.

• Postponed due to not enough members present at start of the meeting.

III. Principal’s Report by Patricia Hernandez

• Student enrollment numbers reviewed.
• Formative assessment training – upcoming activity.
• Math teacher resignation and replacement strategy discussed.
• Discussion about how to grow the program.
• State report card reviewed.
• STARS scores are increasing.
• Update on teacher – student reading program. Note all 6th grade students are proficient or advanced.
• Fundraiser – Culvers brought in $813.62
• Next fundraiser event in April.
• Still working on NCAA Accreditation.
• Student innovation strategies – 3D printing area remains busy, and students are engaged when in the lab.
• Community Partnership – Farmer Market at Uptown Janesville – 7 families stopped for information.
• Holiday party was well attended, and kids engaged. Large amount of donations was provided to Boys & Girls club.
• Shine Medical partnership – progressing and update posted on social media.
• Dip in attendance in November and some students disengaged. Teachers worked hard to reengage students. Most were recovered with a few going to back to in-person schooling.
• Staff lunch 12/22 went well and staff were given choice of Arise hat/cap for gift.
• Update on statewide virtual school fair – networking with other schools. Possible option to have credit recovery program at ARISE.
• No follow up requested by board.

IV. PAC Report by Kim Churchill

• Kim provided update.
• Challenge to get engagement.
• Discussed options to engage parents.

V. Review AVA Charter School Contract for DPI

• Patty provided resources to board from WRCCS and emailed documents to the board.
• Discussion about suggestions from contact at WRCCS.
• Discussion about timeline and next steps.
• ACTION: Kiva will review the materials prior to the next meeting and bring back to board for discussion and review of contract.

VI. AVA By-laws edit

• Postponed as Kurt not in attendance at the meeting.

VII. New Business

• Discussion about Youth Apprenticeship – April 23rd, 2024.  Looking to increase attendance.
• Discussion about WIOA

VIII. Next Meeting

• February 21, 2024
• Discussion that March meeting falls over district spring break. Agreed to move meeting to March 27th 4pm-5:30pm.

IX. Adjourn

• Motion to adjourn meeting at 5:32pm by Kim C and second by Emily M.

Arise Virtual Academy Board Meeting

November 15, 2023
ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

I. Call to Order

• Dana Leikness called to order at 4:04pm.
• Board Members Present: Emily Matteson, Kiva Gittings Graves, Lisa Fenrick,Dana Leikness, Kurt Saterbak
• Administration Present: Patricia Hernandez
• Absent: Craig Schultz, Kim Churchill

II. Review and Approval of Minutes from October 23, 2023.

• Lisa f motion to approve minutes and Kurt S seconded.
• Board voted and approved.

III. Principal’s Report by Patricia Hernandez

• Report reviewed and discussed by board.
• Gratitude for teachers was well received by teachers and promoted positive atmosphere. Will do one additional request to solicit any additional feedback.
• Mastery Prep is in progress and hope to help students improve ACT/Pre-ACT scores.
• State Report Card came out. Full report will be shared with board as soon as allowable by district.
• Reviewed budget.
• Reminder Culvers Fundraiser coming up. Typically bring in $600-900 in funds.
• E-sports may evolve into a club format for now to help get students involved.
• Fab lab is open to students. AVA donated Christmas Tree and made ornaments.
• Good turn out on Field Trip – 30 students. Positive feedback.
• Famer Market community event was well attended – over 500 fliers handed out and 800 pieces of individual candy to kids.
• Will be participating in Winter Farmer Markets at Uptown Janesville.
• Pumpkin Social Media post had broad reach.
• Eleven new students.
• Student attendance numbers good.
• No follow up requested by board.

IV. Action Items – Policy Approvals

• Contract Policy – board reviewed the new policy template and agreed to use as standard template. Reviewed minor edits to the language. Requested AVA teachers review for any feedback. Board will review any final feedback at January meeting and reapprove the policy.
• Live Lesson/Google Meet Attendance Policy – Board agreed on the use of the standard new policy template.
• ACTION: Kiva will take the current approved Live Lesson/Google Meet Attendance Policy and put into template for January meeting.

V. PAC Report by Kim Churchill

• Kim unable to attend due to last minute conflict.
• ACTION: Board requested Kiva follow up with Kim to get PAC Report and Meeting information.

VI. Bylaws, Mission, Vision Discussion

Bylaws

• Board started group review of the bylaws and worked on edits as a group.
• Discussed a few areas where some standard language should be added and a discussed the need for a few sections to be added.
• ACTION: Kiva and Kurt will work on adding more language for the board to review at the January meeting.

Mission/Vision

• Deferred to February meeting.

VII. New business

• Exit survey discussion. Deferred to March meeting. Goal to have exit surveys in place by May 1st
•  AVA Contract will end this year. Board will get a copy of the contact to review and request revisions.
• ACTION: Patty will send out the contract to the board.
• Mark Holzman, ??Title at JSD, shared a report of students who are in a different virtual school in the district. Patty will do outreach to families who have never attended AVA to inform them of the option, and she will do a separate outreach to students who may have attended AVA previously who may wish to come back. Board discussed that experience at AVA under prior administration and during COVID is different than AVA experience now, so families may wish to re-explore AVA as an option.

VIII. Next Meeting

• January 17, 2024

IX. Adjourn

• Motion to adjourn meeting at 5:33pm by Kurt S and second by Lisa F.

Arise Virtual Academy Board Meeting

October 18, 2023 Meeting held virtually.

I. Call to Order

• Kim Churchill called to order at 4:00pm.
• Board Members Present: Craig Schultz, Emily Matteson, Kiva Gittings Graves, Kim Churchill, Lisa Fenrick
• Administration Present: Patricia Hernandez,
• Absent: Dana Leikness, Kurt Saterbak

II. Review and Approval of Minutes from September 20, 2023.

• Kiva G motion to approve minutes and Craig S seconded.
• • Board voted and approved.

III. Principal’s Report by Patricia Hernandez

• Report reviewed and discussed by board.
• Report card will be available in November and Patty will have a presentation for the board.
• Discussion about barriers with e-sports but teachers are still working on getting it launched.
• Upcoming events – booth as farmer market in Janesville and on the waiting list for a trunk or treat event.
• Discussion about academic dishonesty and strategies to mitigate.
• No follow up requested by board.

IV. Action Items – Policy Approvals

• Contract Policy – board voted and approved with agreement to put into a standard template.
• Live Lesson/Google Meet Attendance Policy – board voted and approved with agreement to put into a standard template.
• Action Item: Kiva to put into standard template and bring to November board meeting for board to approve template.

V. PAC Report by Kim Churchill

• Kim sending out document to individuals who have shown interest. They can connect with Patty for more information too.
• Pumpkin carving contest for Halloween with rewards for winners.
• Working on engaging more parents.
• All new families get information on PAC.

VI. Bylaws, Mission, Vision Discussion

Bylaws

• Deferred to November meeting as Kurt was not able to attend.
• Action Item from September meeting: board members email suggestions to Kurt.

Mission/Vision

• Deferred to future meeting.
• Action Item: Kiva to include a link to a website with ideas.
  • o 79 Examples of School Vision and Mission Statements (2023) (helpfulprofessor.com)

VII. New business

• Exit survey discussion.
  • Should ARISE be collecting more data on why students leave?
  • Could a check-in be scheduled early on with student and parents to see how they are doing?
  • Could the board play a role in this?
• Dana and Emily will start their term in their new roles at next meeting in
• November. Kim will follow up with Dana for the hand off.
• Kiva can send approved minutes and agendas to Mallory B at ARISE to be posted on the website.
• Dana will send agendas to Denise at the school district office prior to the board meeting.

VIII. Next Meeting

• November 15, 2023

IX. Adjourn

• Motion to adjourn meeting at 5:23pm by Kiva G and second by Kim C.

Arise Virtual Academy
Board Meeting

September 20, 2023
450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

I. Call to Order

• Facilitated by Secretary Kiva Gittings Graves at 4:00pm.
• Board Members Present: Craig Schultz, Kurt Saterbak, Emily Matteson, Kiva
• Gittings Graves, Dana Leikness
• Administration Present: Patricia Hernandez,
• Absent: Kim Churchill, Lisa Fenrick

II. Review and Approval of Minutes from August 16, 2023.

• Kurt S motion to approve minutes and Dana L seconded.
• Board voted and approved.

III. Principal’s Report by Patricia Hernandez

• Report attached.
• Note that there was a correction on the graphic as the numbers for Kindergarten and High School were reversed.
• Board agreed this format and level of details were appropriate.
• Board reviewed and discussed report.
• No follow up requested by board.

IV. Action Items – Policy Approvals

• Contract Policy: Discussion of the how this year’s process worked and possible improvements for next semester. Defer to next meeting for review and approval.
• Action Item: Patty to send our draft of policy for board to review prior to next meeting

V. PAC Report by Kim Churchill

• No report this meeting

VI. Officers for Board

• Board discussion on officers and recommended President and Vice President were needed for new school year.
• Kim C prior to the meeting indicted she did not wish to run for an office for the 2023-24 school year.
• Kiva G nominated Dana Leikness for President and Emily Matteson for Vice President and motioned to vote to approve and Kurt S seconded the nominations and motion to vote.
• Board voted and approved.

VII. Bylaws, Mission, Vision Discussion

Bylaws

• Discussed revisions that need to be made to the bylaws.
• Kurt S agreed to revise the bylaws and bring back to the next meeting for the board to review and approve.
• Action Item: board members email suggestions to Kurt.

Mission

• Discussed current mission and vision. Board agreed revisions could be made to improve and simplify.
• Board agreed to do an activity at the next meeting to start discussion on revisions.
• Action Item: Patty to send electronic copy of Mission/Vision Documents to Board.

VIII. New business

• Recommendation for discussion on exit surveys at future meeting.
• Kurt suggested that someone from ARISE Virtual Academy could participate in an event with First Lutheran Church and Janesville Rotary on Oct 7, 2023 to increase visibility of the program. Kurt will share information with Patty.

IX. Next Meeting

• October 18, 2023

X. Adjourn

• Motion to adjourn meeting at 5:30pm by Kurt S and second by Craig S.
• Board voted and approved.

Arise Virtual Academy Board Meeting

August 16, 2023
450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

I. Call to Order

• Board Members Present: Kim Churchill, Craig Schultz, Lisa Fenrick, Kurt Saterbak,
• Emily Matteson, Kiva Gittings Graves, Dana Leikness
• Administration Present: Patricia Hernandez

II. Review and Approval of Minutes from June 2023

III. Principal’s Report by Patricia Hernandez

AVA 23-24 School Year Readiness Update

• Door instillation is complete.
• New AVA window signs came in and will put up in room.
• No new information on sign for outside
• AVA is fully staffed for this school year.
• Offering Art and STEM courses this year
• Have 2 teachers for Physical Education
• Documents are all digital
  • This will allow for improved tracking now that data can be sorted and filtered.
•  AVA now has a website for staff and Dr. Hernandez is working with staff to ensure consistency in approach for teachers.
  • o All documents and resources are stored on website.
• District is working to implement free transportation for all students - photo ID will be required.
• AVA will be offering photos during orientation for the IDs.
• Courses are not open yet, so enrollment has not started but anticipate courses opening as early as tomorrow 8.17.23
• Have several families coming for informational meetings in upcoming weeks.
• Open house 8.31.23
• Dr. Hernandez is working with staff to encourage more relationship building with students in the first few days of school to help improve the virtual learning experience.
• Marketing Update
• District will be sending out Community Connections to every household. Possible
• AVA information will be included – not confirmed.
• TV Advertisement
  • Had meeting with over summer to discuss possible TV advertisement – no decisions we made. 
  • Have an upcoming meeting in October with Superintendent plus district marketing teams.
• With limited advertising budget, we need to have a better      understanding of district goals for marketing prior to developing and executing a plan.
• Discussion about current AVA demographics for enrollment. Limited number of enrollees for elementary.
  • Board discussion about possible opportunities for increasing awareness of AVA program including someone to consistently run social media for AVA.

Technology Platform for 23-24 school year

• Various vendors and cost were evaluated. Zoom was a     preferrable platform by many; however contract was ended by     district.   Anticipate final decision on platform soon.
• Dr. Hernandez has set up a recurrent meeting with District IT to      ensure AVA is getting appropriate service level support for staff and  students.
• Policy changes for district – free or reduced costs
• Free or reduced lunches will not be offered to students at AVA this year.
  • Dr. Hernandez is already getting calls from families related to this    change.
  • Board discussion about how to help support the students with         food insecurities.
• Reductions for sports or other school fees are still being offered. Students can apply.
•  AVA student performance data
• The school district will be releasing data soon on student    performance.
  • Data is still embargoed.
  • Discussion about preliminary information that AVA students have       had lower college readiness scores.
  • Board questions about available data including demographic tracking.
  • Discussion about how to help ensure enough is being done to support students for college readiness.

    IV. Items for discussion and board vote

• School Calendar
  • Board discussion on calendar for school year 23-24.
  • Board voted and approved to align with Janesville Public School
• Calendar.
• AVA Policies
• Attendance policy
  • Reviewed current process being used when student is truant.
  • Board approved current process as a policy.
• Contract policy
  • Contract is now a digital fillable form.
  • Dr. Hernandez shared a demonstration of the new form.
  • Board discussion about completion of form and process. Dr. Hernandez informed the board that some families did not complete the contract in the prior school year.
  • Board recommendation to create a policy for contact completion.
• Board voted and approved that all contracts need to be returned to  AVA by 9.15.23.
• Board aligned to create policy prior to next meeting due to needing for the start of the school year. Draft policy will be circulated to board members for review and approval via email.

V. PAC Report by Kim Churchill

• Currently only 2 members.
• Need to recruit more and decide on activities for school year 23-24.

VI. Officers for Board

• Discussion that currently the board only has a president.
• Board voted and approved Kiva Gittings Graves to serve as secretary.

VII. Upcoming Board Topics

• Review ARISE (acronym)
• Lead review/refresh of mission and vision statement.

VIII. Documents provided to Board – via email.

• By-laws
• Charter

IX. Next Meeting

• September 20, 2023
• 2023 meetings will be held the third Wednesdays of each month, 4-5:30 pm

X. Adjourn

Arise Virtual Academy
Board Meeting September 21, 2022
450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

Call to Order

Board Members Present: Kim Churchill, Craig Schultz

Administration Present: Patricia Hernandez 

Review and Approval of Minutes from August 10, 2022

Principal’s Report by Patricia Hernandez

• STAR testing is finishing up for Math and English, will be completed again in January and the spring
• Being done in-person and seeing substantial decrease in scores from last year when was done virtually
• September 30 will be professional development day with team discussing evaluations and goals
• Seeing an increase in students coming into lab – had about 15 today
• Working with Angus Young on the space renovation ideas
• New student orientations are going well
• Have group of 3 staff working on activities for the year

PAC Report by Kim Churchill

• First meeting will be October 3, 2022 at 6 pm via zoom
• First fundraiser will be Boon Supply online

New Board Members

• Patricia has confirmed someone from UW-Whitewater and the Job Center

• Kim may have someone from The Gazette

• Craig will be reaching out to Foremost Media and Crystal Computing

• Kim will develop an application and a getting to know the board form

Bylaws Discussion

• Will need a President, Vice President, and Secretary

• Need at least 5 members, 7-9 would be ideal

Next Meeting 

• October 11, 2022 at 4 pm

• Will decide in October when meetings will be moving forward

• Plan for meetings to be 90 minutes in length

Adjourn

 

Arise Virtual Academy Board Meeting
October 11, 2022
450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

Call to Order

• Board Members Present: Kim Churchill, Craig Schultz
• Board Members Absent: Dana Leikness
• Administration Present: Patricia Hernandez 

Review and Approval of Minutes from September 21, 2022

Dr. Hernandez noted UW-Whitewater has confirmed a person; not yet sure who it is

Principal’s Report by Patricia Hernandez

• Monitors have arrived so all teachers will have dual and docking stations

• Smartboard has come in

• Will have a TV on wall for announcements and advertising

• BTC field trip this week, now have set up so parents can pay for field trips online

• Entire school completed the STAR testing

• Parents have said they are glad Meet and Greets are being done

• Retake Policy has been helpful for all 

PAC Report by Kim Churchill

• Only Leadership Team attended the October 3, 2022 meeting 

• First fundraiser will be Boon Supply online – month of November

• Need to follow up with parents that signed as interested at the start of the year

• Staff activity planning group is meeting every Friday – should have from leadership involved or at least checking in

New Board Members

• Possible areas to focus on to recruit from: manufacturing, hospitality, and healthcare (United Alloy, Seneca, Amazon, Dollar General)

Bylaws Discussion

• Contract with Janesville Board of Education expires 2024

• Kim will do name changes and other edits as able

• Need to discuss term limits (possibly rolling) and annual elections

• JBOE does not approve members of ARISE board

Next Meeting 

• November 16, 2022 at 4 pm

• Skip December

• 2023 meetings will be held the third Wednesdays of each month, 4-5:30 pm

Adjourn

 

ARISE Virtual Academy Board Minutes 
November 16, 2022 – 4-5:30 p.m.
ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

Board members present:

• Dana Leikness, Craig

Board members not present:

• Kim Churchill

Patty Hernandez called the meeting to order at 4:04 PM.

Consent Agenda Items

The board did not have a quorum so they were not able to approve the consent agenda items (agenda and minutes from September 21, 2022). 

Principal’s Report

Patty Hernandez shared the School Improvement Plan. The data included the beginning of the year data points regarding English, math, and attendance.  The School Improvement Plan can be found here.

PAC Report

There was no report because Kim Churchill was absent.

New Board Members

There was no new board members or guest present.

Bylaws Discussion

The board members went through the by-laws and edited the items that were obvious to fix. The by-laws can be found here. There was no action taken on the bylaws because there wasn’t enough members present for a quorum. The bylaws reference the SDJ standards of professional practice that all AVA board members need to follow. 

Adjournment - Next regular meeting: January 18, 2023

Submitted Dr. Patty Hernandez

NOT OFFICIAL UNTIL APPROVED BY AVA BOARD MEMBERS

 

ARISE Virtual Academy Board Meeting Minutes

February 15, 2023 – 4-5:30 p.m.
ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

Present: Kim Churchill, Dana Leikness, Emily Matteson, Dr. Hernandez

Review and Approval of Minutes from November 16, 2022 – tabled

Principals Report – Patty Hernandez

• Math teacher position has been filled.
• Still looking to fill two para positions.
• Dr. Hernandez went through the School Improvement Plan
• Shared another Culver’s night is scheduled as well as social activities for the students.

 

PAC Report - Kim Churchill
First fundraiser completed. Meeting again the end of March.

New Board Members – discussion on officers
Hoping to have a few more board members by next month.

Bylaws Discussion
Voting in of new bylaws will require a quorum.

Meeting Calendar for 2023
No meetings in July or December
Graduation will be May 25 at 6 pm

Adjourn

ARISE Virtual Academy Board Meeting May 17, 2023 – 4-5:30 p.m.

ARISE Lab – 450 N Crosby Avenue, Janesville, WI

• I. Welcome and Introductions Information
• II. Review and Approval of Minutes
  • November 16, 2022
  • February 15, 2023
  • March 15, 2023
  • Discussion &
  • Action
• III. Principals Report
  • Patty Hernandez
  • Information
• IV. PAC Report
  • Kim Churchill
  • Information
• V. New Board Members
  • Discussion on officers
  • Discussion &
  • Action
• VI. Bylaws Discussion Discussion
• VII. Items for May Agenda Action
• VIII. Adjourn Action