As president of the Tremé Charter School Association’s board of directors, Roslyn Smith is used to overseeing the faculty and staff of McDonogh 42, an open enrollment, public charter school educating students from Pre-Kindergarten through eighth grade with almost 450 students an enrollment  in 2011-2012 of 527 students. But as of July 1, she found herself in charge of only a skeleton staff managing the handover of the school to another charter school management organization, the Choice Foundation.

Choice Foundation, the charter management organization that currently runs Lafayette Academy and Esperanza Charter schools, discussed its takeover of McDonogh 42 at its June 29 board meeting. Choice’s Executive Director Mickey Landry cautioned the board that the upcoming year would be one of “massive change.”

The Treme Charter School Association, which did not have its charter to manage McDonogh 42 renewed for the 2012-2013 school year, turned over control of the school to the Choice Foundation on June 30. Additionally, the organization failed to reach a quorum in its June 30 meeting.

The Treme Charter School Association, which up through the 2011-2012 school year ran the McDonogh 42 Elementary School, announced June 20, 2012 that it will not hold its July board meeting.  It is unclear if the association will continue to function now that Choice Foundation plans to take over control of McDonogh 42.

Choice Foundation, which runs the Esperanza Charter, Lafayette Academy, and McDonogh 42 schools, held its 2012-2013 budget hearing in addition to its monthly board meeting on May 30. The initial 2012-2013 budget is $18,562,980, a 41 percent increase from last year.

At its May meeting, the board that now runs McDonogh 42 Elementary Charter School ratified the termination of 45 of the closing charter’s employees, voting to extend employment through the summer months for only eight employees. The charter operator that oversees the school, the Treme Charter School Association, did not have its charter renewed for the 2012-2013 school year.

McDonogh 42 Elementary Charter School, the Choice Foundation’s soon-to-be acquired charter, will remain at its current location for the 2012-2013 school year, the Choice Foundation’s board announced at a second May gathering. McDonogh will be under the control of its current charter operator, the Treme Charter School Association, until July.

The content of tomorrow’s board meeting agenda is reprinted below:

REGULAR BUSINESS MEETING

The Regular Meeting of the Board of Directors of the Treme Charter School Association will be held
Thursday, May 31, 2012 at 3:00 P.M. in the McDonogh 42 Elementary Charter School Auditorium, 1651
North Tonti Street, New Orleans, Louisiana 70119.

Look over the proposed numbers here.

UPDATE: tomorrow’s McDonogh 42 board meeting has been canceled. ===

Review TCSA’s board meeting agenda here.

Only three of eight members showed up for the Treme Charter School Association’s monthly board meeting, April 28. After waiting about an hour for other members to appear, the board, which runs McDonogh 42 Elementary Charter School cancelled the meeting for lack of a quorum.

Choice Foundation, the charter management organization set to take over McDonogh 42, has asked the Recovery School District to delay a scheduled move to a new campus, from January 2013 to June 2013. Fran Trujillo, McDonogh 42’s principal-to-be, said relocating the school four months after Choice’s takeover would be disruptive.

How to assimilate Esperanza Charter’s growing number of non-English-speaking students was a focus of Choice Foundation’s February board meeting. .

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.

Choice Foundation, operators of Lafayette Academy and Esperanza Charter School, has been approved to charter two more schools, McDonogh 42 and a yet to be named school in Jefferson Parish, the Choice board of directors said at their monthly meeting, Feb.1. Board President James Huger said that while the foundation has been given the “all clear” to take over McDonogh 42, there’s a slim chance the deal might collapse if the school’s current board sues the state Board of Elementary & Secondary Education, as threatened.

Despite a vow by a failed charter operator to fight the state’s revocation of its contract to run McDonogh No. 42, , an attitude of cordiality prevailed at tonight’s open-house to introduce parents to the new charter operator.

The Treme Charter School Association has voted to increase supplemental services for targeted students in preparation for spring testing. The board, which governs McDonogh 42 Elementary Charter School, met Jan.

The Treme Charter School Association, which governs McDonogh 42 Elementary, met Dec. 17 and decided to fight the loss of their charter.

A rushed board overseeing McDonogh 42 Elementary Charter almost skipped over an agenda item regarding their teachers pension plan as a matter for discussion, and then passed five action items in one vote as the Treme Charter School Association Board of Directors met Nov. 19.

The Treme Charter School Association, the governing board of McDonogh 42 Elementary Charter School, met Oct. 27.

The Treme Charter School Association, the governing board of McDonogh 42 Elementary Charter School, met Sept. 24.