The board of Milestone SABIS Academy of New Orleans met Oct. 17, at 7:00 p.m. Members present were Leslie Ellison, Nayita Wilson and Tania Moore. Lorin Crenshaw was absent due to a work conflict and Tom Piglia was absent due to illness. The audience of four included a reporter from The Lens.

In Crenshaw’s absence, the facilities committee report was postponed to next month’s meeting.

Reporting for the fund development committee, Nayita Wilson discussed plans for a Jan. 11 fundraiser.

Wilson also led discussion of a report by the subcommittee for policies, saying that the group is compiling topics for the board’s review at its next meeting.

Leslie Ellison reported that Tom Piglia is in poor health and has submitted a letter of resignation, which was read aloud. Tania Moore was elected treasurer.

School director Catherine Boozer said the school’s marketing committee is trying to boost enrollment. A recruitment effort the previous weekend at Carnaval Latino should help attract Hispanic students, she said.

Professional development workshops on the last Friday of each month are places where teachers bond and obtain information on how to increase student achievement and overall school performance, Boozer said.

With recent repairs, there are now two working ovens in the school, she said, concluding her report, which was accepted by the board.

School administrator Rodney Lilley offered a financial report. He said book purchases and other expenses incurred at the start of the school year will be more than covered by $571,000 in pending reimbursement under the states Minimum Foundation Program.

The board has been invited to meeting in Baton Rouge on Nov. 11 of the Louisiana Association of Public Charter Schools.

The board noted that The Lens’ report on last month’s meeting contained an error regarding the legal grounds for executive sessions that are closed to the public. The error was corrected. The board then went into an executive session to discuss personnel matters and an issue involving a student, both legitimate grounds for closing the meeting to the public.

After the executive session, the meeting continued with a comment from a representative of SABIS, Robert Giordano, via online video. Giordano said SABIS has applied to manage another school in the area that would become a sister to Milestone Academy.