Oregon Charter Academy (ORCA) Approved - January 28, 2026
MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS’ MEETING
Wednesday, November 19, 2025 at 12:00 p.m. PT
Held at the following location: Via Zoom: https://oregoncharter.zoom.us/j/91035080370
I Call to Order
Mr Brown called the meeting to order at 12:01 p m when all members were present and could hear each other
II Roll Call
Board Members present: Joseph Brown, Kim Thatcher, Jennifer Brady, Laura Vaucher, Mary Ellen Mansfield
Board Members absent: None
Members of the Public present: None
School Staff present: Allison Galvin, Executive Director, and the following school staff; Todd Shaffer, Steve Nielsen, John Meyer, Molly Fisher, Rachel Reid.
III. Public Comment
None
IV. Routine Business
A Approval of the Agenda
Mr Brown asked if any changes needed to be made to the agenda
There being no changes to the proposed agenda, a motion was made and seconded as follows
Ms Mansfield moved to approve the agenda as presented
Ms Vaucher seconded the motion
RESOLVED, that the agenda for the November 19, 2025 meeting of the Board of Directors of Oregon Charter Academy is hereby approved
The motion passed unanimously
V Consent Agenda
A motion was made and seconded as follows
Ms Vaucher moved to approve the consent agenda as presented
Ms Brady seconded the motion
RESOLVED, to APPROVE the Consent items,
A Approval of Minutes from the October 30, 2025 Board Meeting
B Approval of Minutes from the October 30, 2025 Board Training
C. Approval of November Staffing report
D Approval of Expenditure Summary Report - October
E Approval of Legal Invoice(s) - November
F Approval of Bank Reconciliation - October
The motion passed unanimously
VI Action Items
A Review and consideration of the 2026-27 school calendar
Dr Galvin presented the proposed 2026-27 school calendars She noted that Labor day is late in the first week of September, but school will start on the Tuesday following Labor Day as in previous years
Mr Brown asked the Board if there were any questions or discussion needed There being none, a motion was made and seconded as follows
Ms Mansfield moved to approve the 2026-27 school calendars
Ms Vaucher seconded the motion RESOLVED, to APPROVE the 2026-27 school calendars as presented.
The motion passed unanimously.
VII. Oral Report
A. Financial Report
1. Financials - Year to date through October 2025
Mr. Nielsen shared financials through October 31. He noted that the trends shared at the October meeting continue to hold strong with revenue and expenditures on track for the year.
B School Leader’s Report
Dr Galvin shared a report on happenings at the school including enrollment, clubs, and first quarter metrics
1 Enrollment
Enrollment is at 2738 students as of today The school continues to grow and steadily has enrollment of around 200 more students than last year
2 Student clubs
Clubs opened in October and are now getting underway There are 56 total clubs with 473 students participating
Ms. Dillon asked if school leaders have seen an increasing trend in the number of students participating in clubs. Dr. Galvin noted that about 20% of students currently participate in clubs. At this time that is less than last year, but it is likely to increase as the year progresses.
3. First quarter review
The first academic quarter closed on October 31st, and quarterly metrics are now available. While overall the school is meeting most of its goals, she noted that the On-Track data is being investigated to determine why it is not pacing as expected.
VIII. Information Items
A Outreach Update
Ms Fisher shared about outreach in the month of October There were 71 posts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, leading to 970 engagements and 25 post link clicks Top posts featured photos from Hangouts and Regional Meet and Greets The blog featured Safe and Supportive Schools as part of National Bullying Prevention Month
B Facilities Update
Mr Meyer shared that there is nothing to report from Mill City In Wilsonville there is a sump pump in need of replacement
C Legislative Update
Dr Galvin shared an update on SB 141 This bill, passed last session, significantly updates the accountability framework for schools, and gives ODE greater authorization to hold districts accountable to various goals ODE has begun to interpret the bill and write OARs for its implementation
Dr Galvin noted that the way in which the bill is currently being interpreted would have significant impacts on the relationship between virtual charter schools and their sponsoring districts The proposed ODE administrative rules would move virtual charter schools under their districts for accountability and student counts This would require charter schools to meet the same goals as the district regardless of the different populations that they serve and hold the district liable for any failure to meet the goals on the part of the charter school Should any school, charter or otherwise, within a district fail to meet its goals, the district could lose up to 25% of its general State School Fund and student Investment Account funds In addition, the enrollment of a virtual charter school would be considered part of the district for the purposes of determining “similar district groupings,” a new grouping meant to compare schools of a similar size across the state Dr Galvin shared that this does not align with previous legislation that determined virtual charter schools to be separate entities from their sponsor districts for the purposes of Extended ADMw.
Dr. Galvin has written a formal letter to ODE’s leadership sharing concerns around the interpretation of SB 141. She has requested that ORCA and other virtual charter schools continue to be allowed to be separate entities from their district for Integrated Guidance grants. She has also requested that virtual charter school enrollments be removed from the student count for the district allowing small sponsor districts to be compared to districts that are truly similar in size.
Ms. Mansfield asked what new accountability metrics will be implemented. She noted that High School Success has always required annual accountability reports to show what is being done with those funds.
Dr Galvin noted that districts have always submitted data to ODE, but the big change with this legislation will be that ODE can now hold districts accountable to the data that they submit
Ms Mansfield asked how much more work this will create for schools
Dr Galvin stated that we do not know yet
Ms Vaucher asked how conversations have gone with Santiam Canyon SD’s leadership around these issues
Dr Galvin noted that the new Superintendent, Krista Nieraeth, has been good to work with as these changes are proposed by ODE
D Board Updates
Dr Galvin reminded the board that Graduation will be held on Saturday, June 6, 2026, at 4:00 p m at the Oregon State Fairgrounds in Salem She reminded the board that Ms Vaucher was the board speaker last year and did a wonderful job
She noted that having a board speaker is not required, but she invited the board to put the event on their calendars and consider whether any members are willing to speak
Dr Galvin went on to ask if there were any information items requested for presentation at the next board meeting None were requested at this time
IX Adjournment
Ms Mansfield moved to adjourn the meeting
Ms Vaucher seconded the motion
The meeting was adjourned by Mr Brown at 12:28 p m
Next regular meeting date: January 28, 2026 at 12:00 p.m. PT in Zoom