John Dibert Community School moved into a new facility at the Phillis Wheatley campus in the fall of 2014. The charter school has been continuously overseen by charter management organization Firstline Schools, Inc.

In the fall of 2014 John Dibert Community School, operated by Firstline Schools Inc., moved to the Phillis Wheatley campus. The school is now called Phillis Wheatley Community School and is still operated by Firstline.

At their November meeting, FirstLine board members adopted a list of five guiding principles for governance, unanimously elected two new board members and viewed a lengthy development committee presentation focused on raising money to replace fading start-up and turn-around money for FirstLine schools. “New Orleans has a rare opportunity to set up a structure that will facilitate the long-term success of schools after this generation of leaders is gone,” said CEO Jay Altman, speaking about the governance guidelines.

Review the updated meeting agenda here.

The FirstLine Schools board of directors voted unanimously to approve a revised final budget for the 2012-2013 school year at their monthly meeting, September 26. The final budget for the upcoming year still comes in around the projected $26 million, according to finance committee chair Stephen Rosenthal.

Review the agenda for the Sept. 26 FirstLine Schools board meeting here.

FirstLine Schools Inc. welcomed two new board members and announced the long-awaited opening of the new Arthur Ashe Charter School building during its meeting on August 22.

Review the agenda for the 8/22/12 board meeting here.

While Langston Hughes Academy’s staff prepares for the coming school year, its board of directors prepare for dissolution. August 18, 2012 marks the final regular meeting of the school’s board as Langston Hughes Academy will now be exclusively governed by First Line Schools’ Board of Directors.

The FirstLine Schools’ Board of Directors took an in-depth look at the 2012-2013 budget at its monthly meeting on June 18. FirstLine controls Samuel J. Green Charter School, John Dibert Community School, Joseph C. Clark Preparatory High School, Arthur Ashe Charter School, and, beginning with the 2012-2013 school year, it will operate Langston Hughes Academy.

Review the agenda for the Langston Hughes board meeting here.

Review the agenda for Monday’s FirstLine Schools board meeting here.

Revenues from Jazz Fest parking more than doubled this year, directors of Langston Hughes Academy learned at their May board meeting. The school made almost as much on the first weekend ($17,390) as it made on both weekends last year ($19,000), and the second weekend pulled in a hefty $27,893 for a grand total of $45,283.

Initial results from standardized state tests look good, FirstLine Schools chief executive officer Jay Altman told the board at their May monthly meeting.  Altman said he expects John Dibert Community School to post some of the city’s biggest gains. He said he was pleased that  Langston Hughes Academy maintained the status quo.

Review the details here.

Review the agenda here.

Budget projections have held up and each of the five schools in the expanding FirstLine  network are operating with a surplus of roughly $30,000, finance committee chairman Stephen Rosenthal told fellow board members at their monthly meeting, April 24. The strong balances have been realized despite unpredictable drops in attendance and related revenue, especially at Joseph S. Clark Prep. The back ink shows that the corporation as a whole can support itself within the current model, Rosenthal noted.

Five members of the Langston Hughes Academy board gathered on April 24 but in the absence of several members, including finance committee member Paul Pechon, did not formally convene a monthly meeting. The school’s chief financial officer, Adrian Morgan, delivered a brief management report highlighting positive early returns from the first phase of the centralized application process – OneApp – newly inaugurated by the Recovery School District.

Review the April 24 meeting agenda here.

Review the details of the April 24 meeting here.

The absorption of Langston Hughes Academy by the FirstLine charter management organization should be complete by June 30. FirstLine, which has managed Hughes since 2010, will formally take over the school’s charter and all aspects of its governance.

FirstLine schools anticipate ending the school year comfortably in the black, board members were pleased to learn at their monthly meeting in March. Revenues are expected to exceed expenses by  $738,000, finance committee chairman Stephen Rosenthal reported, to applause.

Review the agenda here.

Review the agenda here. 

The state Department of Education today released the list of New Orleans schools eligible to participate in its voucher program. The program, called the Scholarships for Educational Excellence Program, has for the past three years offered low-income students from low-performing public schools the chance to attend the private school of their choice, with the state paying the bill for tuition and fees.

Langston Hughes Academy’s Marching Eagles band, dancers and majorette unit participated in six Carnival parades this season, including two on the West Bank and one in Metairie.  “How the parents made it all the way across town, on-time, every time is beyond me,” chief operating officer Adrian Morgan said in a report to the school’s board of directors at NOLA 180’s monthly meeting, Feb.

John Dibert Community School and Langston Hughes Academy will both offer a pre-kindergarten program next year, the FirstLine board of directors decided at its monthly meeting, Feb. 28.

Review the board meeting agenda for all FirstLine Schools here. 

Review it here.

That Langston Hughes Academy should create a separate bank account for payroll. That was the most salient suggestion to emerge from discussion of an otherwise routine financial audit by the school’s board of directors, NOLA 180, at their monthly meeting, Jan.

Finances and campus facility changes were the topics of discussion at the monthly meeting of the FirstLine charter school board, Jan. 24.

Review the January board meeting agenda for Langston Hughes Academy here.

Review the agenda for FirstLine Schools board meeting here.

Pending approval by the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education,  the charter for Langston Hughes Academy will shift from NOLA 180 to FirstLine Schools, which has been assisting NOLA 180 in managing the school. The move, announced at the NOLA 180 board meeting on Nov.

Review the agenda for tomorrow’s meeting here.

Review the agenda for tomorrow’s meeting here. 

NOLA 180, the board that oversees Langston Hughes in partnership with FirstLine Schools, attended a Family Connect meeting on Nov. 8 to seek feedback from parents about the school’s upcoming charter renewal.

FirstLine sent out a notice, which reads:

BOARD MEETING DATE CHANGE

Langston Hughes Academy
3519 Trafalgar Street
New Orleans, LA 70119

NEW DATE: Tuesday, November 29, 2011
4:00 pm

View NOLA 180’s meeting agenda here.

Board members Alison Hartman, Charleen Blache, Stephen Rosenthal, Dana Peterson, Gregory St. Etienne, Lawrence Kullman, Darleene Peters, Brian Egana, Chief Operating Officer Adrian Morgan, and Chief Executive Officer Jay Altman were present Oct.

NOLA 180, the charter school board that governs Langston Hughes Academy, a FirstLine school, met on Oct. 25.

Click the following link to review the details: LHA NOLA 180 Board Agenda

Review the agenda and information about tomorrow’s meeting at the following link: FLS Board Agenda.

NOLA 180, the board that governs Langston Hughes Academy Charter School, met Oct. 10 to discuss that administrative transition made necessary by the pending expiration of the school’s charter.

FirstLine School board met Sept. 29 to make decisions and discuss new plans and concerns for its group of charter schools: Samuel J. Green Charter School, Arthur Ashe Charter School, John Dibert Community School, and Joseph S. Clark, which includes The NET Charter High.

NOLA 180, the board that governs Langston Hughes Academy Charter School, met on Sept. 29, a half hour after its scheduled 6 p.m.

The NOLA 180 Board will meet at 5pm on Monday, in addition to their regularly scheduled meeting at the end of the month. Review the meeting agenda here.

Read the agenda here: LHA NOLA 180 Board Agenda 110927

Tomorrow’s FirstLine Schools Board meeting will begin at 4pm at Langston Hughes.  Click here to see the FLS Board Agenda 110927

The committee will meet at S J Green Charter tomorrow, prior to the full board meeting next Tuesday at 4pm.  

The agenda for this Board Committee meeting for Firstline Schools, Inc.