A Recap of Riverwalk Academy's

April 18, 2023 Board Meeting

Ms. Lara Jessee, 3rd grade teacher, was recognized for being March's Elementary Staff Member of the Month

Ms. Kayla Bumgarner, marketing and enrollment coordinator, was recognized for being April's Staff Member of the Month

Ms. Lynne Tyner, 9th grade special education teacher, was recognized for being April's 6 - 9 Staff Member of the Month

Mr. Michael Prothero, high school science teacher, was recognized for being April's High School Staff Member of the Month

There were no action items during April's Board Meeting.

A copy of Dr. Compton's updates can be found here.

Items to Note:

Enrollment

Enrollment is looking strong for 23 - 24. 95% of our families have indicated that they are returning for the next school year. The projected enrollment for next school year is close to 700 students.

Staffing

97% of the staff have signed their 23 - 24 work agreements. We're still looking to hire an additional high school science teacher and middle school ELA teacher.

Facilities

Our plans are moving forward with the approval process. Duke Energy has provided feedback (and revision requests) of the current plan. A meeting was held last week between the school and SCDOT with the updated feedback from Duke Energy. The school's updated plans have been sent back to SCDOT for approval. We're still on the timeline for the building to be open for the start of the 24 - 25 school year.

Riverwalk Academy has contracted with the Public Charter School Alliance of South Carolina (PCSASC) to administer this year’s election process. This ensures integrity and confidentiality in the process. The governing board consists of four (4) appointed members and five (5) elected members. There are currently two (2) elected seats up for election and two (2) seats up for appointment.

Timeline

April 18th, 2023

Call for Candidates will be distributed to the public by the school. Each prospective board member must complete an online filing form. The link to create a candidate bio can by found here: https://forms.gle/z6Vv2gUGEYDXGhNq9

May 2nd, 2023

Close of the candidate filing period. Acceptance of candidate filings will be closed at. 12:00 pm (Noon) EDT.

May 3rd, 2023

Election candidate information and form answers will be posted online

May 9th - 11th, 2023

Voting open with e-ballot links emailed to each parent/guardian and employee of Riverwalk Academy. Voting will open on May 9th, 2023, at 8:00 am and close on May 11th, 2023, at 4:00 pm. There is one vote per child enrolled in the school and one vote per employee. Each ballot will have a unique pin number to ensure confidentiality and integrity of the process.

May 12th, 2023

Election results will be certified and announced publicly. Election winners will be invited to the May 16th Board meeting so they can be publicly recognized.

June 2023

Appointments will be made during the Regular June Board Meeting. Every candidate who doesn’t win a seat in the general election will also be considered for appointment.

SY2023-24

All newly appointed and elected board members will be sworn in during the first scheduled meeting of the new school year. This will complete the election process.