BAY MILLS —The Bay Mills Ojibwe Charter School Board met Feb. 9, with all board members present except Board Secretary Michelle Carrick.
Principal Diane Benjamin said the Jan. 23 “Bring a Friend Day” was a success. Twenty students brought friends to school, who said they would be joining them for regular attendance next year.
Ojibwe Charter School has been given the okay to prepare and serve lunches to the students rather than have food prepared at Bay Mills Resort and Casino's Sacy's Restaurant and bussed to the school, according to Mosaica Education Regional Vice President Jim Rundborg. He said that equipment is ordered and they hope to begin preparing lunches in-house on April 1.
Rundborg said that pursuit of the school's 501(c)(3) status has been put on hold until some questions are answered. The status would make it easier to receive grants and foundations because it would establish them as a non-profit organization. Rundborg said that charter schools are already considered non-profit and questioned the need to attain 501(c)(3) status. He said he's been told that the status doesn't hurt charter schools, but that it usually doesn't help either. The only apparent downside to the process would be the cost and attorney fees. Rund-borg said he would look into these costs and relay the information to the board at the next meeting.
The board has been working on a 5-year budget projection. Rundborg said it's better to look at the school's long-term financial situation instead of focusing on the first year, which is skewed due to start-up costs.
He said the board should also think about whether or not to add a grade each year until the current K-8 school becomes K-12. He stressed the importance of an athletic program for high schoolers.
The school has posted for a part-time Technology teacher for 1 hour per day, four days per week. Benjamin said that, though the school's technology lease has yet to be approved, they have been cleared to use the Technology Lab at the Boys & Girls Club of Bay Mills.
The board decided to hold off on playground development until they can bring a proposal to the Bay Mills Donation Committee for new equipment and landscaping.
