April 2026 Meeting Highlights
The Board of Directors would like to share some highlights from the April meeting:
1. CMAS Testing Process Update: Although CMAS testing scores will not be available until Fall, the Board received an update on the testing process and opt-out rates. Lincoln students in 3rd through 8th grade were tested on English Language Arts and Mathematics. Students in 5th and 8th grade were also tested on Science. Our amazing staff prepared students with practice questions as well engaging assemblies to encourage and motivate young brains. During the testing window, Dr. Legueri and her supporting team executed the coordination plan to keep things running seamlessly. As you can imagine, this is a tremendous effort and the team delivered. Dr. Legueri also encouraged participation in several ways including the creation of a series of videos with guest speakers who described the value of CMAS testing as it applies to students, staff, and the school as a whole. Thanks to these efforts, our opt-out rate this year was halved compared to last and the lowest we’ve seen since COVID. While CMAS is not the only data point used, it is a valuable one. Participation of every student is important in helping build a complete data set that helps inform instructional planning and supports assessment of the health of our academic programs. We thank everyone, staff and families, who participated.
2. Budgets Approved: The Board of Directors approved both the current year budget as well as the 2026-2027 budget. The proposed budgets were built with balanced thoughtfulness of state and federal funding considerations, appreciation for staff, future financial stability, facilities and campus needs, and, of course, ensuring students have everything they need to achieve their social and academic potential.
Did you know that the final per-student funding received by schools for the current school year may continue to change all the way into June following that school year? This makes budgeting and execution extremely challenging, yet year after year, our business office, led by Lori Woods, is able to provide for our staff and families while ensuring fiscal responsibility needed for a charter school to continue operating. This is an incredible achievement, and we extend our sincere gratitude for their hard work.
3. Family Volunteer Hours Update: Each year we ask families to help us reach our goal of averaging 20 hours of volunteer time per family. Volunteering is a great way to get involved and support your students and teachers. It is also important during charter renewals when we show the district how engaged our families have been over the year by showcasing these hours. Since the adoption of Track-it-Forward, we’ve seen an encouraging increase in logged hours.
As of the April board meeting, volunteer hours logged were in-line with last-year’s totals at this time coming in at ~65% of the annual goal with an entire month of school and a few summer activities to go. We recognize that not everyone is in a season of life where they can be present in the buildings but appreciate our staff and PTO for offering alternative after-hours opportunities as well as the families who complete them. Thank you to everyone who has been able to contribute – we celebrate this community commitment to Lincoln! Board encourages families to continue participating and to be sure to log their hours.
4. SAC Family Survey: Thank you to everyone that participated in the family survey, this is an important tool for families to positively affect change at Lincoln Academy. The School Accountability Committee has been hard at work analyzing feedback and looks forward to presenting a summary to the community. Look for this update at the start of next year after finalizing a thoughtful plan to address some of the most common themes.
5. Board Self-Evaluation: Each year, the board conducts a self-evaluation. This exercise is valuable for the board to set goals for the upcoming year and recognize areas for improvement. One continuing need is improved recruitment of qualified future members. This area, among others, will be discussed as we plan for next year. We’ll be looking to our community to engage in committees and consider future membership. An active Board of Directors is a requirement for the school charter contract and a great way to get involved with Lincoln. To learn more, please visit the board webpage and/or reach out the board president at katielehr@lincolnacademy.net.
6. Staff Shoutouts: Our thanks go out to Katie Neely, Erin Hecox, and Dr. Terrill Legueri who were recognized by leadership for their contributions to Lincoln! For more details, please see the Executive Directors’ Report.
To learn more, visit our Board webpage to listen to the recording and review the written reports.