Monument Academy School Board, April 9 – Board hosts candidate forum, makes staff decisions

• Candidate forum
• Staff funding and actions
• Policy updates
• Highlights

By Jackie Burhans

The Monument Academy (MA) board met on April 9 to host a candidate forum and make various decisions on bonuses, stipends, and changes to staff positions. It also presented a first read on changes to its bylaws and chief financial officer (CFO) policies.

The meeting ended with an executive session for the evaluation of the executive director and for negotiations and advice to negotiators regarding the value and terms of engaging an employed CFO or contracted services. No action was taken upon the board’s return.

Candidate forum

Board President Ryan Graham noted that both he and Matt Ross were approaching the end of their board terms, thus opening two vacancies. Vice President Lindsay Clinton said there were three applicants, two of whom attended the forum: Joe Fantocone and Adam Fisher. Candidates began with a five-minute opening statement, followed by five questions selected from community input by the board, and ended with a two-minute closing statement.

Vice President Lindsay Clinton said that the board picked five questions for the candidates to answer for up to two minutes. The candidates would also provide answers to a written questionnaire.

Fantocone said his family chose MA, looking for more than strong academics. He has one child in MA, with twin boys who will join in the coming years. He wants to join the board to act as a steward to ensure MA’s strength. Fisher, who has two boys in fifth and seventh grades who have attended since kindergarten, said he was grateful to the current board and believes strongly in MA’s mission. He wants to continue the board’s work and take it to the next level.

Board members asked questions one after another, and the candidates took turns answering first. Questions included, “Why are you running?,” “What are your top three objectives?,” “Would the candidate uphold MA’s policies and resolutions on parental rights and the protection of students?,” “What is your moral standard?,” “What role do schools play in supporting students’ mental health?,” and “What specific changes would they make in MA policies, programs, or school curriculum?”

The candidates indicated they wanted to steward MA’s culture and create an environment to thrive, and to strengthen the relationship between the children and parents. They both agreed they would support MA’s policies and resolutions. The candidates both emphasized involving parents in any concerns about mental health, and neither wanted to make big changes to MA’s policies, programs, or curriculum, emphasizing transparency and staying focused on MA’s mission and vision.

Clinton said the election would take place between April 27 and May 1, and results would be announced at the May 7 board meeting.

Staff funding and actions

Executive Director Collin Vinchattle requested that the board approve one-time bonuses for Home School Enrichment (HSE) staff, noting that it had done so for regular staff and preschool staff earlier in the year. He said the HSE program was doing well, and there was money in the budget to support the bonuses.

Vinchattle also asked the board to approve a $2,500 stipend for HSE staff for extra work to be done over the summer to prepare for the following school year. He also asked the board to approve a new position called HSE coordinator to replace the current homeschool liaison, who is stepping back but will train the new staff member.

The board unanimously approved the bonus, stipend, and new position for MA’s homeschool program.

Vinchattle asked the board to approve the sending of staff engagement letters with changes to two positions. He noted that the state’s Joint Budget Committee would be late releasing the details of next year’s School Finance Act (SFA) but wanted to provide early information about the position and base salary for teachers. He felt this would help lessen uncertainty and help with retention, noting that changes could be made once the SFA is released.

The board unanimously approved the staff handbook for the 2026-27 school year with no changes. Vinchattle said that Joshua Miller of the school’s law firm had reviewed it and said nothing from the state Legislature would cause a change at this point. The staff handbook will be available via the school’s board portal and can be changed should anything come up in the remainder of the legislative session.

Policy updates

The board heard first reads of changes to the MA Bylaws policy and the CFO policy.

In the MA Bylaws, Graham proposed adding a section under Removal of Board Members to allow for a parent-initiated recall of a board member. A recall could be initiated with a verified petition with signatures from 25% of the eligible electors. Upon verifying the sufficiency of the petition, a special election would be held 60 to 90 days thereafter. So long as at least 25% of eligible electors voted and 50.1% agreed with the recall, the board member would be recalled, and a vacancy would be created. The vacancy would be filled with a vote of two-thirds of the remaining board members.

Clinton noted that the next suggestion came from the internal audit in 2024 to establish a standing Mission Advisory Committee (MAC) that is advisory in nature. It would consist of three participants, such as former directors, board officers, founding participants, etc. The MAC, which will be effective as of July 1, 2026, would provide review or input on material changes to the mission/vision, educational/academic design, or core principles. The board shall consider that input before taking final action on any material change.

Vinchattle said that policy 1500C Chief Financial Officer would be renamed to CCOO-MA and would add the following duties: preparing the financial audit, investing in funds, and making sure bond covenants are met. He said another aspect of the role is creating and maintaining a five-year budget on a biannual basis.

Graham noted that both proposed changes were “first reads” and the board welcomed input from the community at http://ma-boarddocs under policies. Vinchattle said he would open the comments feature so that community members could post their input.

The board will bring an updated version to the May board meeting for a vote.

Note: MA’s board policies are available at http://www.tinyurl.com/ma-policies.

Highlights

Board meeting highlights include:

• Spotlight. Carle spotlighted the front desk team from both campuses, including Elizabeth Aleksek, Evangeline Rouleau-Glen, Kara Giroux, and Amy Murray, saying they were an amazing team that greets everyone with a smile, keeps everything organized, and makes an effort to know each student by name. He thanked them for being the friendly faces of the school.
  
• Executive director. Vinchattle reported that the MA Middle School was once again named a Capturing Kids Hearts’ national showcase, which speaks to the positive culture the administration has created. He noted that MA would be interviewing for a principal for the secondary school, because Angela Duca would be leaving. He also gave kudos to Registrar Lena Gross, who has seen an increase in accepted seat offers.
  
• Finance director. Laura Polen presented finances for February and for the year to date, which show things running as expected. She noted that the Finance Department had been busy planning to use bond proceeds and donations for the track and field area, scoreboard, and lighting. Construction work has begun. The Legacy in Motion capital campaign funds are planned for bleachers, concessions, and a press box. MA has received its Fitch and Moody’s rating, which she was not at liberty to release. MA is continuing to work on refinancing it bonds and has created Fund 43 for the new Performing Arts Center and deposited the initial installment of $1 million of the promised $17 million anonymous donation. Finally, she noted that the budget work for the 2026-27 school year is underway.
  
• Curriculum West. Clinton reported that the committee voted unanimously in favor of the field trip approval document. It also voted down recommending the Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) curriculum, because primary teachers were not in favor. Director of Academics Tina Leone asked for more time to consider concerns and do an IEW site visit. The committee asked for more guidance on core vs. supplemental curriculum, she said.
  
• Curriculum East. Clinton said the committee approved the class proposal for a trip to Washington, D.C., in the 2027-28 school year. It also agreed to focus on unit writing during professional development (PD) days during 2026-27 to achieve its curriculum alignment effort.
  
• Student Accountability and Advisory Committee (SAAC) West. Clinton said the committee heard a presentation on academic data. She said new members are needed for next year and asked that parents pay attention to communication at the start of the year to hear more about the opportunity.
  
• SAAC East. Dygert said that Operations Manager Jake Dicus presented the state of MA buildings and facilities and shed some light on the use of Gala and emergency funds. The committee finalized its recommendation letter to the board with responses highlighting the value of high-level academic offerings such as Advanced Placement tests, as well as the Honors and Gifted and Talented programs. Respondents also valued athletic programming, with 56% saying that retention was unlikely if MA was not eligible for 4A classification. Recommendations included looking into why one-third of the community has a negative perspective on student workload expectations and exploring three possible ways to improve students’ daily experience and support their success, she said.
  
• Graduation. Duca reported on end-of-school-year events for MA seniors and invited the board to participate in the 2026 graduation ceremony on May 16.
  

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The MA School Board meets at 6:30 p.m. on the second Thursday of each month. The next regular board meeting will be on May 14 at 6:30 p.m. at the East Campus. The agenda and packet are available at tinyurl.com/ma-boarddocs.

Jackie Burhans can be reached at jackieburhans@ocn.me.

Other Lewis-Palmer District 38 Monument Academy School Board articles

• Monument Academy School Board, March 12 – Board approves bond refinancing plan (4/1/2026)
• Monument Academy, March 18 – MA announces anonymous $17 million donation for performing arts auditorium (4/1/2026)
• Monument Academy School Board, Feb. 12 – Board affirms handling of parental grievance, need for code of conduct (3/4/2026)
• Monument Academy School Board, Jan. 15 – Board passes mid-year budget, selects bond counsel (2/4/2026)
• Monument Academy School Board, Dec. 11 – MA retains BB- credit rating (1/1/2026)
• Monument Academy School Board, Nov. 13 – Board hears audit, marketing updates (12/4/2025)
• Monument Academy School Board, Oct. 16 and 23 – Board appropriates ERTC funds (10/30/2025)
• Monument Academy School Board, Sept. 11 – Board selects marketing firm, transfers funds (10/2/2025)
• Monument Academy School Board, Aug. 14 and 25 – Board moves forward on facility plans, hears marketing proposal (9/4/2025)
• Monument Academy School Board, July 17 – Board prioritizes marketing plan, passes policy on religious opt-outs (8/1/2025)