albuquerque public schools office of innovation and school

Albuquerque Public Schools Office of Innovation and School Choice

2020 APS Charter Renewal Application

Submitted by:

Native American Community Academy

APS - Office of Innovation and School Choice - NACA Charter Renewal Application 9/30/20 Page 1

Table of Contents

APS Charter Renewal Application Overview .............................................. 2

Part 1—School’s Executive Summary ......................................................... 3

A. Current Year Enrollment & Demographics .................................................... 3

B. School’s Mission and Vision .......................................................................... 5

Part 2 — Record of Performance (Self-Report) .......................................... 8

A. Academic Performance/Educational Plan .................................................... 8

B. Financial Performance .............................................................................. 37

C. Organizational Performance ..................................................................... 42

D. Facility ...................................................................................................... 49

Part 3—Plans for the Next Charter Term (Self-Study) .............................. 51

A. Performance Self-Study/Analysis-Key Questions........................................ 51

B. Mission-Specific Goals and Indicators ........................................................ 57

C. Financial Policies and Procedures ............................................................... 63


APS Charter Renewal Application Overview Sections of the Application: The Charter Renewal Application includes the following sections: Charter Renewal Application Online Instructions Part 1—School’s Executive Summary Part 2—Record of Performance (Self-Report) Part 3—Plans for the Next Charter Term (Self-Study) Appendix – school provides: Documents to be notarized (Petition of Support from Employees and Petition of Support from Households), Lease documentation, Performance Framework Reports and Amendment Requests.

Getting Started: 1. Read through the online APS Charter Renewal Application instructions before you

begin to prepare your written document. 2. Review your current charter, including any approved amendments, prior to

completing the Renewal Application. 3. Review the Charter Renewal Rubric, which the renewal team will use to evaluate

your application. 4. Use this Renewal Application MS Word file to enter your responses directly into the

text box fields provided within each section (Part 1, 2, 3 and the Appendix) by: ● Citing the analysis of student achievement data conducted by your school’s

Core Team

● Citing evidence from your analysis when making claims

About the MS Word Application: ● To support you in submitting a complete application, each section of the application is

comprised of Tasks, Task Items and Questions that you need to respond to. ● Responses should be entered into the corresponding text field or table. Using the text

entry fields will ensure your response is 12 point, blue text. Table data will be 12 point, black text.

● For each Task and Question you are provided guidance on the length of the content you should provide (i.e 1-2pages). Note: This is only guidance, you will not be disqualified for going over the amount specified.

● All scanned documents should be included in the Appendix

Part 1 - School’s Executive Summary


Part 1—School’s Executive Summary Task 1: Complete the table(s) below in Section A by providing current enrollment and demographic information.

A. Current Year Enrollment & Demographics

Enrollment Category Number

# of Students Enrolled 501

# of Students on the Waitlist 74

School’s Enrollment Cap 615

Grades that School Enrolls K-12

# Male Students 244

# Female Students 257

Race/Ethnicity Category Number %

Hispanic 28 5.59%

Asian 0 0

Black 1 0.20%

Native American 369 73.65%

White 5 1%

2 or more 98 19.56%

Special Populations Category Number

Students with Disabilities 103 SWD/19 Gifted

English Language Learners 81

Homeless Students 20

Eligible for Free and Reduced Lunch 501



B. School’s Mission and Vision

Question 1: Provide the school’s mission statement (1-3 paragraphs)

To engage students, educators, families, and community in creating a school that will prepare our students to grow from early childhood to adulthood and begin strengthening communities by developing strong leaders who are academically prepared, secure in their identity and healthy.

Question 2: Provide the school’s vision statement (if applicable) (1-3 paragraphs)

Our vision is of a thriving and dynamic community where students, educators, families and Native community leaders come together, creating a place for students to grow, become leaders, and prepare to excel in both college and life in general. The NACA community and experience will help students incorporate wellness and healthy life practices, community service and an appreciation of cultural diversity into their lives.

Question 3: Give specific examples of how the student experience is unique to your mission (1 -3 paragraphs)

NACA’s mission statement is broken into four big ideas that anchor the outcomes for NACA students: academic preparedness, security in identity, holistic health, and strong leadership, all toward community ends.

● NACA students experience a rigorous academic program with a focus on preparedness for college. NACA is a small school that provides a standards-based integrated curriculum and individualized academic support to help students be successful. High School students have access to dual-enrollment courses at CNM, UNM and IAIA, community internships, college engagement courses, and AP-coursework.

● NACA students experience a school that supports indigenous perspectives, uplifts culture, language and land-based learning. This helps students explore and feel secure in their own identity. NACA students represent over 60 tribes and 18 ethnicities. We understand the importance of the merging of teachings from home with learning at school. NACA has a thriving Parent Group of approximately 50 families, who have hosted the annual NACA Feast Day and Community Celebration since 2006. Moreover, our elementary core values curriculum is created to support identity development starting at age 5. Middle and high school students experience Native Literature, Indigenous Science, Indigenous Studies, Math as well as Personal Wellness, NACA Rock, and one of five different indigenous languages classes (Tiwa, Navajo, Lakota, Keres, and Zuni).

● NACA attends to student holistic wellness and provides access to resources that help students and families thrive. NACA’s Wellness Wheel helps students and the



adults who support them gauge holistic wellness in four core areas: intellectual, physical, social/emotional, and community/relationship. NACA offers multi-layers of student support services. Through our student support office and partnerships with First Nations Community Healthsource, we offer referrals for case management. NACA’s prevention programs help students and their families incorporate wellness and healthy life practices, participate in community service and gain an appreciation of cultural diversity into their lives.

● NACA uplifts the brilliance of our communities and builds opportunities for students to grow their leadership. NACA’s Core Values (Respect, Responsibility, Community/Service, Culture, Perseverance, Reflection) establish shared expectations toward a school culture reflective of the indigenous communities of our students and families. Students have opportunities to demonstrate leadership at school and in their communities. Student-led conferences bring students, families and teachers together with a focus on mutual commitment, accountability and growth.

Question 4: Describe your target population and how your school program is designed to support that population. (1 page)

NACA is designed to offer unique programming grounded in Indigenous education for students within and around the greater Albuquerque area. NACA is open to all students in grades K-12 in the Albuquerque area, we actively recruit families who seek an educational program that places a premium on identity and wellness in addition to academic preparedness as a school of choice. NACA meets the needs of families who desire a stronger connection with the school community and who appreciate the extra support for students before and after school through safe and enriching activities, programs and clubs. NACA is a nationally known and respected institution because of the quality of education, intentional ways we build leadership opportunities for students and families, and the many community partnerships and relationships we have made throughout the years as a community school.

Question 5: Provide and explain your mission-specific goals. Provide the goal statement and information if the school met the goal statement. You are encouraged to provide visual illustrations of how you met the goal, such as a graph. (1-3 pages)

NACA focuses on academic preparation and identity through culture, language, holistic wellness, and community and family partnerships. NACA offers an extensively integrated curriculum along with multilayers of student and family supports. The repetitive reference to and curriculum development aligned with our core values and academic rigor reinforces our goals in developing Native youth leaders who reflect our primary mission. NACA’s mission-specific goals are intricately aligned to each of the four big ideas in our mission.



Goal 1) Each year, ninety-eight percent of all NACA students will lead a parent/teacher/student conference to reflect on progress toward meeting academic and personal goals. (holistically healthy/leadership)

Goal 2) 100% of all NACA middle school students (grades 6-8) will enroll in two English courses per year: ELA core course and Native Literature. (academic preparation)

Goal 3) Each year of high school (grades 9-12), 100% of all NACA students will enroll in either a Native Language course or an Indigenous Studies course. (secure in identity)

Goal 4) In their Senior year 100% of NACA students will participate in the College Engagement (academic preparation)

As detailed in Task 4 below, and as indicated in the Performance Frameworks in the appendix NACA met each of the mission-specific goals each year of the charter term.



Part 2 — Record of Performance (Self-Report) Purpose: Looking Back: A Self-Report on the Current Charter Term Instructions for Part 2: Please refer to the online instructions for complete details about filling out this section of the application. Submit no more than 10 pages for Section A.

A. Academic Performance/Educational Plan

Task 1: Provide insight, explanation, and/or evidence to describe your Academic Performance/Education Plan. (1 page)

Educational opportunities unique to NACA NACA creates a school community for students to see themselves in their education, as we embrace culture, language and identity through culturally relevant curriculum and models of teaching outside the box. This includes:

● Integrated curriculum at all grade-levels focused on academic relevance and cultural excellence.

● Indigenous language learning in a student/tribally aligned language of Keres, Tiwa, Zuni, Diné and/or Lakota.

● Elementary-core values curriculum that integrates reading, language development, history, social studies, art and health using thematic units.

● Land-based Learning & Healing program, a program that integrates best practice in place-based learning,

● Indigenous education, culture and language based education, and application of academic knowledge, skills, and understandings to real world application in fields as diverse as ecology, biology, history, math, and language arts.

● An immersive college-level experience which includes a minimum of two high school/college dual-credit courses, which are now more easily accessible, since NACA HS is located on CNM’s main campus and close by the main campus of UNM.

● Out-of-school programming (OST) that provides students with social-emotional support, identity development, holistic wellness experiences, and academic support aligned to NACA’s K-12 standards-driven coursework before and after school.

NACA offers integrated curriculum at all grade-levels focused on academic relevance and cultural excellence in alignment with standards. In the elementary grades, NACA focuses on developing foundational skills in mathematics and language arts, supplemented by the interdisciplinary core values. As students move into the middle grades, the curriculum shifts away from off the shelf to more teacher-developed units, grounded in culturally relevant, aligned with NM State Standards and designed using the research-based

https://promiseofplace.org/



curriculum design framework, Understanding by Design (UbD). This continues on through high school, where the curriculum becomes more rigorous and focused on college preparation. NACA teachers have weekly professional development time set aside to bring grade level and subject level teams together for critique, alignment and refinement of the teacher-developed curriculum.

Grade level

Curriculum*

Math ELA Science

Elementary Eureka Math (aligned with Math CCSS )

Fundations Reading Wonders (aligned with NMCCSS for ELA)

FOSS/Magic Science (aligned with NM STEM Ready! Science Standards)

Middle Connected Math (aligned with Math CCSS )

Teacher-developed UBDs with reading trade books (aligned with NMCCSS for ELA)

NM Integrated Science Sequence (aligned with NM STEM Ready! Science Standards)

High College Preparatory Mathematics Tier 3 Math (aligned with Math CCSS )

Pre-AP 9th Grade Pre-AP 10th Grade AP Language AP Literature Tier 3 Reading - Wison (aligned with NMCCSS for ELA)

Physical Science, Chemistry, Biology, Environmental Science, AP Environmental Science (aligned with NM STEM Ready! Science Standards)

*Note NACA also uses the Math, ELA and Science Essential Elements for Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities when appropriate as well as the other subject level NM Standards for those content areas/courses.

In each year of the charter term, NACA met both its mission-specific indicators and the state’s indicators of the NM system of accountability. In 2016-17 through 2018-19, that system was the A-F school grading system, however the state accountability system shifted in 2019-20.



As with all other public schools, results for the 2019-2020 statewide assessment data are unavailable for NACA due to the waiver. See attached Annual Performance Reports published by the Albuquerque Public Schools indicate the following results during the current charter term. NOTE: Due to stay at home orders and subsequent distance learning requirements related to safety concerns of the Coronavirus, Mission-Specific Goals and Indicators were waived for 2019-20.

School Year Did NACA meet its

mission-specific indicator(s)?

Is NACA meeting acceptable standards according to New

Mexico’s School Reporting system?

2016-2017 Meets Meets



2019-2020 Waived Waived

NACA High School Graduation Rate

% of students who Graduate in a 4-year period Student Group 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19

NACA HS 65% 67% 70% 72% 74% 69.5% APS NA students 51% 45.5% 47% 55% 54.2% 56.20%

State NA students 62% 63% 63% 61% 65.8% 69.6%

% of students who Graduate in a 4-year period



NACA Student Academic Performance disaggregated by subgroup (as reported by the State of New Mexico Public Education Department on their Accountability Website)

School Year 2015 - 2016 2016-2017 2017-2018 2018-2019

All NACA Students 8.7 10 12 12Female 8.4 8 13 8Male 8.9 11 12 12Caucasian n is less than or

equal to 5n is less than or equal to 5

n is less than or equal to 5

n is less than or equal to 5African American n is less than or

equal to 5n is less than or equal to 5

n is less than or equal to 5

n is less than or equal to 5Hispanic 4.3 n is less than or

equal to 10n is greater than or equal to 10

21NACA American Indian 9.1 11 13 10Economical Disadvantaged 5.4 10 12 10Students with Disabilities 1.9 n is less than or

equal to 5n is greather than or equal to 5

n is less than or equal to 5English Language Learners 1.1 7 7 n is less than or equal to 5Statewide all students 20.2 20 21 20

Statewide American Indian 10.9 11 12 12District All Students 20.7 20 21 20District American Indian 10.7 11 13 12



NACA middle and high school students participate in the NMSBA, during this charter term this included the PARCC and the NMSBA Transition Assessments for reading and math.

School Year 2015-2016 2016-2017 2017-2018 2018-2019

All NACA students 26 27 29 24 Male 19 17 21 18Caucasian N is less than or

equal to 527 N is less than or

equal to 5N is less than or equal to 5African American N is less than or

equal to 5N is less than or equal to 5

N is less than or equal to 5

N is less than or equal to 5Hispanic 4 19 27 24

NACA American Indian 28 28 29 24Economically Disadvantages 21 25 28 24Students with Disabilities 4 8 9 5English Language Learners 13 10 9 12Statewide All Students 37 37 39 34Statewide American Indian 27 26 28 25District All Students 37 34 37 31District American Indian 27 24 26 21



Task 2: For Special Education Services how to you plan to do the following: (1 page)

A. Plan to evaluate and identify children with disabilities; B. Plan to develop, review, and revise IEPs; C. The process, including timeline, for evaluation, development, and review of IEPs; D. Plan to integrate special education into the general education program; E. Plan to deliver special education and related services; F. Projected cost of special education program; G. Plan to access and account for special education funds;

School Year 2015-2016 2016-2017 2017-2018

All NACA Students 23.9 29 31 25Female 20.8 29 30 28Male 26.2 30 31 22Caucasian n less than or equal

to 5n less than or equal to 5

n less than or equal to 5

n less than or equal to 5African American n less than or equal



n less than or equal to 5Hispanic n less than or equal



n less than or equal to 5NACA American Indian 25.3 32 30 25

Economically Disadvantaged 19.7 27 29 25Students with Disabilities n less than or equal

to 20n greater than or equal to 10

n less than or equal to 10English Language Learners 6.3 29 n greater than or

equal to 1021

Statewide All Students 42.5 40 42 35Statewide American Indian 22.1 22 24 20District All Students 45.2 39 41 34District American Indian 26.8 24 25 24



H. Plan to ensure that the school facility meets the requirements of other related services such as ADA and Section 504;

I. Plan for enrollment/IEP transition procedure; J. Plan to address discipline for students with disabilities; K. Plan to ensure confidentiality of special education records; and L. Plan to secure technical assistance and training.

A. The Native American Community Academy has the following plan to identify children

with disabilities: On an annual basis and consistently throughout the school year, professional learning communities (PLCs) comprising grade level teachers, Heads and School and support staff meet to review student performance in state summative and school-wide short cycle assessments. Students that perform in the 20% percentile or lower in the short-cycle assessments or who perform at Level 1 or Level 2 in state summative assessments are progress monitored for academic performance. Any additional data on student performance is reviewed to identify any trends.

Students identified during the review process are progress monitored and Tier 1 Interventions are employed if the student is performing below grade level in math, reading and/or written language by teachers in the respective subject areas for six weeks. If the student begins to demonstrate grade level performance then the respective teacher(s) will stop the Tier 1 intervention and maintain documentation and continue to progress monitor the student.

Tier 1 Interventions may also be implemented for students demonstrating behaviors impacting their academic progress or the academic progress of other students. Tier 1 interventions for behavior are implemented for one week by each of the student’s teachers. At the end of one week, if the intervention has supported the student in successfully eliminating the behavior impeding academic success, then the tier one intervention is stopped and the student is continued to be progress monitored and documentation is maintained. If the student does not respond to the tier one intervention within the week, the student is referred to the Student Assistance Team (SAT).

The Student Assistant Team begins case studies once referrals are received and a Tier 2 Intervention Plan is implemented for 8 weeks. After 8 weeks of the case study the Student Assistance Team may conclude that the student may require special education or related services to excel in the regular education curriculum. SAT will refer the student identified for an evaluation with parental consent. This evaluation is completed within a 60 day timeline once parental consent is received in accordance with Special Education state and federal laws.



Evaluation: The evaluation process may involve the Diagnostician, Psychologist, Speech and Language Therapist depending on the referral and is meant to identify if a student has needs or a disability requiring special education instruction and/or special education assistance through a special education program. During the evaluation process, multiple facets of the student’s life will be evaluated. Upon completion of initial testing, further assessments may be required. The Diagnostician, Psychologist and/or Speech and Language Therapist will determine if the student requires special education services as well as the type of services necessary for student academic success.

Eligibility: Once the evaluation is complete, an Eligibility Determination Team (EDT) meeting is scheduled and the parents, the student’s regular educational teacher, special education teacher(s), ancillary staff if applicable, diagnostician and/or psychologist and other professionals as invited will meet to review results and decide as a team whether the child requires special education assistance. Parents do have a right to request a reevaluation if results are not conclusive. If the student is determined eligible the following steps are taken: 1) the student is diagnosed with a specific eligibility and then they can enroll in the special education program, 2) within a month of a diagnosis, an Individual Education Program (IEP) meeting is scheduled and 3) an IEP is prepared to support the student in progressing through the regular education curriculum.

English Learners: Students that are identified as English Learners (through the Language Usage Survey (LUS) in their Cumulative folder, parent report and/or WIDA testing) participate in the same process of SAT for the exception. Prior to referring this student for testing, documentation should be provided if the student is receiving support through sheltered instruction and if the student is still referred, the student may require testing in their first language. English Language Learner is a factor considered with referral to SAT as part of the student case study, the evaluation process and is discussed at the EDT meeting.

B. The following is the Native American Community Academy Plan for developing, reviewing and revising IEPs:

Developing IEPs involves the students IEP support team comprising the student's regular educational teacher(s), special education teacher(s), ancillary staff (if applicable), diagnostician and/or psychologist and other professional, in addition to the student and parents/guardians. Initially, the team convenes to review and discuss the student’s present levels of performance in the identified areas of deficit and in the regular education setting.

Student IEPs are reviewed by their respective authorized teachers and support staff at the beginning of each school year, and as students are admitted to NACA. Student individual educational plans are reviewed by the IEP team annually on their established IEP date or as requested by the parents or guardians. All students that participate in NACA’s special



education program participate in testing every three years, which is known as their “triennial” or “Reevaluation process.”

Student IEPs are revised based on the review of the IEP and the student’s present levels of performance. When it is required changes are made to IEP in alignment with student progress, identified needs and post-secondary and transition needs when applicable. The IEP meeting is scheduled in alignment with parent availability at least 3 weeks prior to the IEP annual due date. Once, meeting date and time are confirmed by parents, the regular education teacher(s), special education teacher(s), ancillary staff (if applicable), outside agency (if applicable), and principal designee are notified.

All relevant documentation is gathered and documented in the draft IEP by the responsible team member. At the IEP meeting, the IEP team discusses academic/behavior strengths and concerns and develops goals, schedule of service, needed accommodations/modifications, post-secondary goals (if the applicable student is either 14 years old or in 8th grade at time of meeting or before next meeting), transition activities, course history (if applicable), Least Restrictive Environment, medical concerns (if applicable), behavior concerns (if applicable), and testing accommodations. If there is a need for an extended school year, NM AGE Law of Majority, discussion about eligibility proposals - what it is and how it will affect the student - will be made by the school and/or parent.

C. The process, including timeline, for evaluation, development, and review of IEPs;

The process for NACA for evaluation, development and review of IEPs aligns with the Review of Existing Evaluation Data (REED). All students who participate in NACA’s special education program participate in testing every three years, which is known as their “triennial” or “reevaluation process.” This process is conducted to determine if the student still requires special education services and to what capacity and may include professional testing again.. This is aligned with student academic progress, behavior progress (if applicable), progress of ancillary related services. When it is required, changes are made to IEP in alignment with student progress, identified needs, and academic progress.

The teachers and support staff begin to implement all services and supports as outlined in the IEP once it is finalized. Regular education teachers and special education teachers collaborate to closely monitor students to document any and all progress made by students. Progress reports are provided to parents four times per year in alignment with each quarter. Student individual educational plans are reviewed by the IEP team annually or as requested by parents.



Annually, IEPs are reviewed. IEP meetings are scheduled in alignment with parent availability three weeks prior to the annual IEP established date. Upon parent confirmation all appropriate staff supporting the student are notified, this may include the following: regular education teacher(s), special education teacher(s), ancillary staff, outside agency, and the principal designee.

D. Plan to integrate special education into the general education program;

The Native American Community Academy integrates special education into the general education program. Our continuum of services begins with all students in Tier 1. However as an individual student requires specific needs in order to access and progress through the regular ed curriculum, the student's individual least restrictive environment changes.

If a student requires intensive academic support of math and/or reading and/or written language, the student is placed into tier 3 math (Transition Math) or Tier 3 reading/written language (Wilson Reading).

The classes are segregated and offered only for students that participate in NACA’s special education program. The classes provide research based structured programs implemented with fidelity and taught by licensed special education teachers. If a student demonstrates ability in the area of math and/or reading/written language skills that indicate the student is able to access the regular ed curriculum in the specified areas then the student participates in Tier 2 support math class and Tier 2 support reading/written language classes in compliments of and also participating in the regular ed class of the specific area. If the student demonstrates ability to participate in the regular education class for math and/or reading/written language with support of the IEP, the student is scheduled into their grade level reading and/or math class. All other classes at NACA are inclusive: Science, History, Language, Elective and Personal Wellness. The students are supported in these classes according to their IEP. The teachers of the classes mentioned above, collaborate on a consistent basis with the special education team regarding the students’ needs and progress.

E. NACA’S plan to deliver special education and related services; There is a continuous plan in place at NACA to deliver special education and related services each year that includes the hiring of special education teachers to instruct with regular ed teachers in the science and history classes for grade levels 6-12. NACA does this to support a co-teaching model implemented in the noted classes and to support the instruction and learning of all students including regular ed, students with disabilities and gifted students scheduled together with consideration to learning levels and abilities. The continuum also includes ancillary supports for students that require related services in order to progress. Students are provided ancillary services in a 1-1 or segregated setting in



a group or in the regular ed setting as a push-in service depending on the support required by the student to access and progress through the regular ed curriculum. NACA contracts with outside service providers to deliver ancillary services and employs a full time social worker and a psychologist. Students participating in special education programs also participate in a segregated advisory in which they receive additional service and support with transition services and activities that support the identified post-secondary goals when applicable.

F. Projected cost of special education program;

The projected cost of special education include the following:

● MOE for operational expenditures for FY20 is at $172k. This includes salaries for inclusion, case management, contract services, IEP development, and salaries for special ed staff @ $123.5k. These positions include a Tier 3 math inclusion teacher, a Gifted Facilitator, an Elementary Teacher/Case manager, a Tier 3 math, a Tier 3 Math teacher/pull out and case manager/SAT chair, a 1:1 EA, and an Elementary EA.

● An additional $48.5k was spent in FY20 on Contract Services for EASI (Diagnostician and Occupational Therapist) @ $12.5k and CES (Speech Language Pathologist @ $36k).

● The IDEA B budget for FY20 totals $80k which includes salary and benefits for our special education director and social worker that provides services aligned to students’ IEPs.

● Supplies and Materials for FY20 totals $15k includes Tier 3 curricula for both Math and Reading which includes programs Wilson Reading Systems and TransMath. This also includes assistive technology devices and any other support and/or supplemental materials that students with disabilities require in order to access and make progress in the regular curriculum.

G. Plan to access and account for special education funds

NACA has weekly finance meetings to review the school’s budget (including special ed line items) and track expenditures to ensure funds are being appropriately spent and in accordance with plans. NACA’s special ed director has access to financial information associated with special education services and involved in hiring special ed staff and ensuring contracts are in place. Periodically she attends the weekly finance meetings to review reports and to ensure all services, supplies and materials are funded in support of NACA’s special ed students. These reports include MOE, IDEA-B, instructional materials and other expenditures related to special education services.



H. Plan to ensure that the school facility meets the requirements of other related services such as ADA and Section 504

NACA ensures that we meet the requirement of services for ADA and Section 504 in the following ways:

● NACA’s grade level facilitators also serve as grade level SAT/504/ADA Coordinators. They monitor and ensure compliance in supporting students that, are identified as performing below grade level and non responsive to the Tier 1 interventions implements, and/or have been identified as having a mental or physical impairment that substantially limits one or more of such person's major life activities or if the student has a record of such an impairment or if the student is regarded as having such an impairment.

● NACA implements the NM SAT process which includes teachers identifying students that may require additional supports in order to perform at grade level. If the student does not respond to the Tier 1 Intervention the student is then referred to the SAT team to participate in Tier 2 interventions which are more intense than Tier 1. A study is conducted by the SAT team to determine if the student responds to Tier 2 interventions and can return to grade level or if the student responds and is able to progress with the support of Tier 2. However, if the SAT team agrees that the student is not responding and requires testing the team refers the student for Special Education testing.

● If at the Eligibility Determination Team (EDT) meeting, parent provides a diagnosis from a licensed doctor of identified medical condition BUT the student is not demonstrating a significant discrepancy in comparison with students achievement and grade level peers, the EDT will consider at that time to return the student to SAT and/or to place student on a 504 plan to support the student who is experiencing difficulties due to medical diagnosis impinging on the students daily function and progress through the regular ed curriculum.

● Once a meeting is held and a student is placed on a 504 plan, a copy of this plan is provided to all individuals that are part of this student’s educational team and monitored throughout the year by the grade level facilitator. At the end of the year each 504 plan is provided to the SE Director who in turn ensures that all staff are provided a plan at the beginning of the new school year.

I. Plan for enrollment/IEP transition procedure

NACA bases the enrollment process on a lottery system. Once a student is picked through the lottery system to attend NACA, parents are contacted and additional information is obtained-for example if a student has an IEP/504/SAT paperwork. If the student is participating with SE or SAT or is on a 504 plan, this documentation is obtained, reviewed



by the SE Director. SE Director schedules an IEP meeting with family and team--at the beginning of the school year--to update the IEP document. SE Director provides SAT documentation and/or 504 plan to grade level facilitator who will schedule meetings with the team to review, discuss and update current SAT/504 plans.

IEP Transition Procedure: Students who are receiving SE services and identified supports, and are 14 years of age or will be 14 prior to their next IEP meeting and/or are in 8th grade or above grade level whichever precedes, will have a transition IEP. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss post-secondary goals, and the transition services needed to reach those goals. The case manager of the student ensures that all transition activities are completed in alignment with the IEP during the year.

J. Plan to address discipline for students with disabilities

NACA’s plan to address discipline for students with disabilities (SWD) includes the following:

NACA’s Dean of Discipline and Heads of Schools (HoS) are aware of NACA’s SWD and when discipline is being considered, the HoS and Deans will contact the SE Director to participate in the process. If the student(s) with disabilities (SWD) that is being disciplined has no BIP and therefore expected to adhere to NACA code of conduct, discipline will be decided in alignment with same discipline as of all RE students and then it may be decided to follow up with a Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) after discussing with parent and reviewing data on hand provided by all teachers, staff, administrators regarding student behavior patterns. If a SWD is being disciplined that has a BIP in place, it will be confirmed that the BIP is being implemented and next steps will be followed. If a SWD is being disciplined and the discipline is going to entail suspension days that exceed out of school suspension greater than 10 days for the year, the parent will be provided notice of short term suspension or long term suspension being imposed either in written form or called and followed up with written notice. A manifestation determination will be scheduled for the student and the team will determine if the behavior in question is a manifestation of the student's disability. If there is not a BIP in place a FBA will be conducted to determine if a BIP is warranted or not. If there is a BIP in place it will be reviewed by a team and a discussion will determine if another FBA should be conducted or if there are updates and changes that need to be made in order to support the student. If the team at the manifestation determines that the behavior in question is a manifestation of the student’s disability, the student will be returned to school immediately and next steps will be determined as far as FBA/BIP/update IEP. If the team determines it is not a manifestation of the students disability the team can place the student on an alternative setting for up to 45 days while an FBA is conducted and supports and services determined and put in place



to support student upon returning to school or the team may refer student to a hearing with a hearing officer.

K. Plan to ensure confidentiality of special education records NACA follows the requirements of FERPA and IDEA privacy protections under Part B of the IDEA which can be found at 34 CFR 300.560–300.577. NACA has identified the Special Education Director as the person who is primarily responsible for ensuring the confidentiality of any personally identifiable information. The Special Education Director is responsible that all persons who are collecting or using personally identifiable information regarding the state’s policies about confidentiality and FERPA, and maintains records for public inspection a current listing of the names and positions of individuals within the agency who have access to personally identifiable information (34 CFR 300.572).

All NACA school staff are required by law to keep student and family information private. Each year all NACA staff participate in a training regarding New Mexico’s statutes and regulations and NACA district policies and procedural directives regarding confidentiality under Part B of IDEA and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Information regarding the student is only shared with teachers and staff who work directly with the student.

In addition, access to student records are allowed for parents and any team member of the student’s current educational team including all administrators of NACA. Records are maintained in two secure areas at NACA in the office of the registrar. The registrar is the point of contact and the keys to the areas are locked in a safe with a key held by the office manager and the registrar. Access to the records requires the date, time, full name of the person and reason for access. A record access log is kept and maintained by the registrar who collaborates with the Special Education Director. In addition, NACA utilizes the Student Information System (SIS) Synergy management software maintained by the district, Registrar and Special Education Director. Synergy has levels of security access aligned with staff assignments and levels of authorities.

If an outside entity requests access to a student records, access must be granted by the parent or guardian of the student through a signed records release form to include specific information released prior to allowing the outside entity access to the student's record.

L. Plan to secure technical assistance and training

NACAs plan to secure technical assistance and training in the following ways:

At the beginning of each new school year, NACA Special Education (SE) staff participate in training in writing and developing quality and compliant IEP documents. Throughout the school year NACA SE staff and Regular education staff participate in professional development 3 hrs each week. Also, SE staff and ancillary convenes for weekly hour long



meetings. SE Director randomly pulls IEPs completed by each case manager throughout the year and provides positive feedback regarding the document and checks compliance and if errors are identified, addendums are held to correct. NACA staff are provided opportunities to participate in outside trainings regarding areas such as: Discipline of SWD, Autism: Researched-Based Methods for Instruction, Social Skill Support, Challenging Behaviors, FBA's/BIP's, Classroom Behavior Management, Student Assistance Team (SAT) and Guidance in Developing a 504 Plan, Dyslexia and Multisensory Reading Instruction, Emotionally Disturbed vs. Socially Maladjusted.

Task 3: For English Learner program and services how do you plan to do the following: (1 page)

A. Plan to identify students as English Learners NACA requires the parents of all Kindergarten students to complete the Language Usage Survey (LUS) at the time of registration. When a Kindergarten student’s form indicates another language is spoken at home other than English, the student is screened using the WIDA-APT. NACA uses the state cut score to determine if a student qualifies as an English Learner. For students that are new to NACA in Grades 1-12, part of the registration packet includes a records release form that parents sign. This allows NACA to obtain records from the student’s previous school. The records should have assessment results, including WIDA-ACCESS scores if the student has previously been identified as an EL. If the incoming student cumulative folders do not include the information, NACA may need to ask previous schools, the parents, or reference the STARS system to identify the new student’s existing EL status. Students whose composite ACCESS scores in the spring were below 5 are identified as continuing EL. For students who are new to public education in New Mexico and do not have existing records, NACA will ask families to complete the Language Usage Survey (LUS). Students in grades 1+ who indicate another language is spoken at home besides English, will take the WIDA-SCREENER Online. Both the WIDA Screener and the W-APT are administered within the first 20 days of school. English language proficiencies are shared with teachers the following fall semester.

B. Plan to assess students identified as English Learners NACA administers the WIDA-ACCESS in the early spring semester, typically in February. Because it is an online assessment, we develop a testing schedule for all students to participate in the Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking components of the assessment--in that order, and in accordance with WIDA guidelines. SWD may require 1:1 testing environments and/or more time. NACA’s Director of Special Education reviews the roster of students to be tested and provides guidance accommodations. Because NACA’s EL population is substantial (almost 20% of the student population), the entire process (with time for make-up testing when students are absent) usually comprises a two-week block and includes multiple staff participation. Heads of School for Elementary, Middle and High



School will lead their respective grade level testing sessions with support from NACA’s test coordinator and NACA’s special education director. Prior to serving as an administrator of the ACCESS test, these individuals obtain proper certification and training.

C. Plan to notify and communicate with parents/guardians regarding English Learner status and services.

Families will be notified by letter and email about their child’s English learner status after taking WIDA-APT or Screener. The letter includes an explanation of NACA’s approach to serving EL--Sheltered Instruction and Content-Based Instruction--using specific strategies to make academic subjects comprehensible and accessible while promoting the students' English language development. At NACA, these additional supports for language development will occur in the regular classroom. Families of students that are identified as needing services for English learner status, will be made aware of the schools plan to ensure NACA staff is trained to meet the needs of EL students. Also, families will be made aware of any curriculum development that supports their EL students. We also communicate to parents that they have the right to refuse services.

After students’ scores on the ACCESS are released, and typically at the beginning of the Fall semester, NACA provides a second letter to parents, informing them of the proficiency scores in each of the domains (listening, reading, writing and speaking), as well as the composite score, informing them of the students’ continued or reclassified status. We also inform parents of the New Mexico composite score of 5.0 as the exit criteria for EL.

D. Description of English Learner program and services, including any curriculum used The context of language acquisition and development at NACA means supporting our students in two crucial areas: (1) native language acquisition, development, and preservation and (2) English language acquisition and development. We consider research (i.e., McCarty & Wyan’s Indigenous youth and bilingualism: Theory, research and praxis) that supports an understanding that heritage language acquisition and development can help Native American students advance their English language skills by developing cognitive and metalinguistic skills that transfer to learning academic English (McCarty & Wyan, 2009). In addition to direct instruction in both English and Heritage languages, we implement culturally responsive practices and engage tribal leaders and community members as part of our languages program.

In early elementary, NACA uses Fundations as the phonics instructional program for early elementary (K-3) students. Fundations helps English language learners by teaching them foundational skills and strategies needed to learn to read and write in English. Teachers use modeling and scaffolded instruction to ensure that students understand the skills being taught, learn the procedures, and are able to use the skills and procedures on their own. Teachers build students’ metacognitive skills by having them think about the learning tools they have acquired and consider which they should draw on if they need help. They



also connect current learning to previous skills taught and explain how the new skills will help them achieve future goals.

By having an integrated assessment component, teachers are able to assess students’ areas of strength and weakness and can differentiate instruction as appropriate. As a comprehensive word study program addressing reading, spelling, and writing skills, students will be well-prepared to meet grade-level standards for college and career readiness and will be ready for success in subsequent grades.

Reading Wonders will be the core Literacy curriculum that will engage all students in K-5th grade. Reading Wonders is a comprehensive Pre K–6 literacy solution, designed to meet the challenges of today’s classroom and reach all learners. A wealth of research-based print and digital resources provide unmatched support for building strong literacy foundations, accessing complex fiction and nonfiction texts, writing to sources, and building social emotional learning skills. Whether in the core classroom, an English language learner, or benefiting from intervention support, Wonders provides students equity of access to rich texts and rigorous instruction.

E. Plan to monitor students exited from English Learner status Students that are exited from EL status will be monitored to ensure English language skills maintain the levels needed to successfully navigate grade level school curriculum. Teachers will receive professional development at the beginning of every year that prepares for the interpretation of data that will allow us to better understand our student’s level of proficiency in all content areas. Teachers will receive professional development weekly, and once a month, their PD will focus on EL strategies and student progress monitoring that allows for the coordinated planning of more effective strategies.

F. Description of recruitment or maintenance plan to hire and retain qualified staff for the ESL/ELD program

Teachers are hired at NACA with the understanding that students have an array of intellectual, academic and social skills and needs. We deliver education through an inclusion model of services. We know that a number of students hear multiple languages in their homes and attend cultural events where they are expected to comprehend a language that is not English. We value and encourage students to learn multiple languages. We also acknowledge that our language of instruction (besides Indigenous language classes) at NACA is English. We have been improving the programming related to English Language Learners over the course of the last five years. This includes a partnership with Dual Language Education of NM where professional development sessions around ELL/ESL/ELD are provided for all teachers. Furthermore, we have emphasized the importance of hiring ELA teachers with an endorsement in teaching English language learning skills. Moving forward, we anticipate including a stipend for teachers who are



endorsed in and willing to provide instructional leadership and support for English language learning.

G. Description of ELD program professional development NACA’s plans are to continue school-wide training in the multi-layered systems of support and on EL support from Dual Language New Mexico (DLNM). Specifically DLNM will focus on embedding English Language Development strategies for teachers by providing monthly sessions during Professional Development (PD). Since NACA’s framework for supporting EL students uses an integrated approach, all subject matter and grade level teachers are expected to use effective strategies for meeting the needs of EL throughout the school day and across disciplines. Teachers are expected to add English Language Development standards in their unit and lesson plans. Additionally, NACA will include PD for teacher coaches and principals on “look fors” in EL support when observing classroom instruction, such as the use of academic language and opportunities for students to engage in authentic conversations related to the learning goals. This will result in common language and understanding of NACA's EL and applying effective techniques such as scaffolding writing, using instructional materials that are culturally relevant, and checks for understanding.

H. Describe the process the school uses to provide English Learners access to extracurricular (academic, and non-academic) activities

All students at NACA have access to the OST (out of school time) learning program, which provides culturally relevant programming. Because NACA’s EL population are students whose first language is most likely English, the need for translation to another primary language is not necessary, however many OST staff members are indigenous language speakers and share the historic, linguistic and cultural backgrounds with NACA students. Whenever possible, heritage languages are spoken, honored and used during non-academic times to continue to bridge the school/home connection with students and families.

I. Plan to evaluate effectiveness of English Learner program Successful English Learner (EL) programs must be established to allow EL students to attain both English proficiency and parity of participation in the standard instructional program, comparable to their never-EL peers, within a reasonable period of time. NACA will use guidance from the Department of Education and The English Learner Tool Kit, https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oela/english-learner-toolkit/chap9.pdf, to evaluate the effectiveness of the EL program at NACA. The Department of Education has provided several tools to assist schools in evaluating EL programs and services. After referencing the tools, we will evaluate both process and outcome data, including:

- the effectiveness of our system for identifying EL (especially those transferring from another school),

https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oela/english-learner-toolkit/chap9.pdf



- the process of tracking and using data about EL’s acquisition of English proficiency and mastery of grade-level content,

- the extent to which EL are making progress toward achieving language proficiency, using multiple performance indicators,

- the extent to which we are meeting goals for exiting students within a reasonable timeframe.

NACA has prioritized instructional strategies to better serve our EL students. We will do this by ensuring structures are in place to assist teachers to be prepared to deliver services that allow EL students to attain both English proficiency and parity of participation in the standard instructional program.

Task 4: Provide Mission Specific Goals from your Current Charter and progress to each goal based on the established indicators. Include student performance on applicable assessments (i.e. state, interim, benchmark, short-cycle), and/or other standards-based instrument (performance task, common formative assessment) used to measure and monitor student progress. Provide the school’s analysis of student progress towards the standards. Use graphs or other visuals to illustrate student progress to the goal.

Mission- Specific Goal #1: Each year, ninety-eight percent of all NACA students will lead a parent/teacher/student conference to reflect on progress toward meeting academic and personal goals.

Three times per academic year, NACA students lead their families and advisors through a student-led conference (SLC) that is mission-informed and students prepare and present on their progress made in identity development, holistic health, leadership development, and academic progress aligned to Common Core State Standards as measured by formative assessments. SLCs can be understood through a three-part system:

- Pre-SLC: - Prior to an SLC each student, with his/her teacher (ELEM) or advisor (MID and

HIGH) as a guide, collects evidence of identity development, holistic health, leadership development, and academic progress and analyzes progress made since the last SLC. This includes the completion of a formal Wellness Wheel (see graphic below) that asks students to consider their relative wellness and confidence in four areas: Intellectual Wellness, Physical Wellness, Social-Emotional Wellness, and Community & Relationship Wellness.

- To present academic wellness, students collect 1) work samples from various classes showing both strengths and areas of growth, 2) the most recent NWEA Student Profile report showing formative assessment progress in math, reading, writing, and science, and, 3) student report cards as summarized by NACA’s use of the Learning Management System (LMS), Schoology.

- Rehearsal of the SLC protocol in advisories leading up to SLCs provide students with opportunities to build confidence prior to leading their session.

https://teach.mapnwea.org/impl/maphelp/Content/Data/SampleReports/StudentProfile.htm

https://teach.mapnwea.org/impl/maphelp/Content/Data/SampleReports/StudentProfile.htm



The following chart depicts data collected from NACA advisors noting the percent of completed SLCs as represented in NACA’s SLC Tracker spreadsheets. Each year from 2016-2017 to 2019-2020, at least 80% of all advisors successfully ran their SLC. In the most recent year as depicted in the graph below, 45.5% of NACA advisories had nearly perfect attendance at SLCs, 72% of advisories reported attendance from 90-100%, and just 9.1% of advisories reported attendance between 80-84%.

NACA SLC Average Advisory Attendance, 2016-2020

NACA SLC Average Advisory Attendance, 2019-2020

2016-2017 2017-2018 2018-2019 2019-2020 AVERAGE

95-100% 40 36.4 25| 45.5 36.725

90-94% 10 18.2 58.3 27.3 28.45

85-89% 20 27.3 16.7 18.2 20.55

80-84% 30| 18.2 0 9.1 14.325

Less than 80% 0 0 0 0 0



During Student Led Conferences: - During SLCs, every student follows a protocol with support from their advisor. The

most recent SLC protocol followed the traditional process but also included digital requirements for conducting an SLC in a distance learning environment (see SLC#1 Checklist below).

Post-SLC: - Following SLCs all students formally reflect on their conference and goal set for the

coming quarter of learning prior to the next SLC. This includes setting goals in each area of the Wellness Wheel, goals for academic progress in Rasch UnIT (RIT) growth on the NWEA MAP assessment, and grades and all classwork that make up grades (assignments, tests, participation, attendance) for the coming quarter.



Mission-Specific Goal #2:

100% of all NACA middle school students (grades 6-8) will enroll in two English courses per year: ELA core course and Native Literature.

Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for English Language Arts anchor three subject areas in the middle school grades: Native Literature (including the transition to Pre-AP and AP Language and Literature coursework for most NACA students in grades 9-12), Indigenous History, and Tier 3 (for students in special education programming). For the last five years, all middle students took either three years of Native Literature and Indigenous History or Tier 3 and Indigenous History.

In order to maintain alignment to, and progression of, CCSS for ELA, teachers of Native Literature, Indigenous History, and Tier 3 Reading use Understanding by Design (UbD) as a yearlong and unit level curriculum framework. Teachers design both yearlong and unit UbDs during NACA’s Summer Curriculum Institute and provide structured critique to teacher’s one grade-level below and one grade-level above their own in order to maintain clear sequencing of standards and expectations throughout the middle school progression of student learning.

NACA teachers use formative NWEA score reports to evaluate middle school wide, grade-level, and student level progress toward standards and adjust curriculum accordingly. Middle School reports indicate that, by the 8th grade, NACA students are meeting their growth goals as determined by the NWEA for literacy (see Winter 2020 NWEA report below).



The same report indicates that, as a grade, 6th grade students are meeting growth goals, but not exceeding them, 7th grade students are not meeting growth goals, and 8th grade students are exceeding growth goals in RIT scores.

In addition to grade cluster and grade-level reports, NACA teachers use the NWEA Student Profile to gauge the specific learnings of individual students in ELA (see example report below with student name extracted), the NWEA Learning Continuum and NWEA Achievement Status and Growth Summary with Quadrant Chart (below with student names extracted) to cluster students by skills capacity.

Professional development at NACA focuses on NWEA results. For example, a teacher might summarize the below quadrant summary indicating that six students in advanced 8th grade reading are in or near the “high achievement/high growth” quadrant while three are demonstrating “low achievement/low growth.”



Again, the 8th grade Native Literature, Indigenous History, or Tier 3 reading teacher uses this learning continuum to evaluate clusters of students against Common Core State Standards to determine what students need further practice with, are ready to be introduced to, or have mastered.



Mission-Specific Goal #3

Each year of high school (grades 9-12), 100% of all NACA students will enroll in either a Native Language course or an Indigenous Studies course.

For all five chartered years, all NACA students took a full year of Indigenous language in Tiwa, Keres, or Zuni (depending on tribal affiliation) or Lakota or Diné. Diné and Lakota are both leveled by Level I and Level II learning, while Tiwa, Keres, and Zuni are organized into elementary, middle school, and high school cohorts.

All NACA Indigenous language teachers use UbD to develop yearlong and unit curriculum aligned to tribal standards where available and tribal language education departments in all cases. The language team meets weekly to critique curriculum and best practices in language education. Common practices include Total Physical Response (TPR), integrating language learning into physical wellness and Indigenous games, and the common use of the Student Oral Language Observation Matrix (SOLOM).

The SOLOM tool provides teachers with three formative checkpoints regarding student progress.

NACA met this goal each year of its charter term. At NACA, students have the option to enroll in one of the following indigenous languages courses offered each year: Navajo, Lakota, Keres, Zuni or Tiwa. Students also enroll in the following Indigenous Studies courses: Local Indigenous Studies, Global Indigenous Studies, Continental Indigenous Studies, Native American Leadership Capstone.

Indigenous Languages SOLOM results

NACA uses the Student Oral Language Observation Matrix (SOLOM) to evaluate student growth in indigenous language courses from one year to the next. Because SOLOM describes a range of proficiency from non-proficient to fluent, the SOLOM can be used to track annual progress as well.

In late spring of each year, all content teams deliver a State [content area] in which they present qualitative and quantitative data collected over the course of the year, as guided by the vision for the content area’s growth that year. The State of Indigenous Languages focuses on Indigenous language growth from the beginning of the school year to the end in all languages taught at NACA, including Keres, Tiwa, Zuni, Diné (Navajo), and Lakota.

The vision of Indigenous languages for Young Native Leaders at NACA strives to promote a sustainable learning environment that supports language development through innovative classroom settings and cultural specific experiences in connection with the land, personal wellness, and surrounding Indigenous communities. The students’ knowledge and skills

https://www.cal.org/twi/EvalToolkit/appendix/solom.pdf



within language and culture will be measured against NACA’s leveled indicators of language proficiency. Students will acquire the skills that they can carry forward into the community to become lifelong learners of language and culture. So that in the long run, on their own, they will be able to speak confidently while effectively navigating situations that enable them to express themselves properly in a formal/informal Indigenous language only social gathering.

As a point of comparison, here are SOLOM scores from 2016-2017 and 2018-2019:

Between the two years depicted in the graph, for All Languages, more students are demonstrating Level 3: Early Production 2 in 2018-2019 when compared with 2016-2017



where more students were in Level 2: Early Production 1. Conversely, the limited number of Level 5: Beginning Fluency students in 2016-2017 were not represented in the data two years later.

Mission-Specific Goal #4 In their Senior year 100% of NACA students will participate in the College Engagement. NACA met this goal each year of its charter term. At NACA, all seniors take a Senior Seminar and all juniors take a Junior Seminar/Internship class as a part of the NACA curriculum. Every NACA Junior and Senior are required to take these College Engagement courses as part of their daily school schedule.

NACA’s College Engagement program uses an asset-based approach to empower students to reach their goals, identify strengths and interests while focusing on college and career readiness. The college engagement program creates a supportive environment for NACA Juniors and Seniors, the majority of whom would be first generation college going students. The program emphasizes planning and preparation, scaffolding the college application progress and creating opportunities for exposure to college campuses. In a non-COVID year, NACA students visit college campuses, as part of the program. On these college trips, students get the opportunity to socialize with existing college students, staff and alumni, while gaining firsthand experience sitting in on college courses.

NACA’s move to the Central New Mexico Community College campus has also created additional opportunities for students to concurrently enroll in courses while remaining close to the NACA staff and school culture.

NACA tracks several data points to monitor Student College and career readiness, among them is the SAT/ACT. The switch to the SAT began for the class of 2020. The Princeton Review Conversion table was used to compare the ACT Composite scores to the SAT Combined scores. The Class of 2021 has not taken the SAT, but that is the test that was scheduled for Spring 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Average Combined ACT Score 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

NACA 16 16.5 17.11 16 17

New Mexico Native American 16.8 16.8 16.6 16.3 16.2

NACA included these as Option Supplemental Indicators of Academic Performance

1. During the charter term, NACA will demonstrate growth in college readiness as indicated by the Average Composite ACT score.



NACA included as an Optional Supplemental Indicator of Academic Performance, a growth in Average Composite ACT scores. In the table above, we see that NACA students' average combined ACT did grow over time, with a dip in 2018, and that NACA students outperform the New Mexico Native American average combined ACT scores.

2. During the charter term, growth of the top 75% of students will rank among the highest when compared to similar schools as indicated in the NMPED report card.

3. During the charter term, growth of the bottom 25% of students will rank among the highest when compared to similar schools as indicated in the NMPED report card.

NACA has tracked growth in Academic performance of its top 75% and bottom 25% of students in the NMPED report cards, which over the current charter term has changed. While the state assessments are helpful in their annual depiction of individual and cohort progress toward proficiency, NACA’s short-cycle assessment, NWEA, provides a more formative data tracking and reporting tool to give us a snapshot of student and cohort progress at three points in the year: fall, winter, and spring. In addition to the raw data provided by NWEA in short order following and assessment window, the software provides numerous reports that give NACA teams and teachers insights into where students are on the Learning Continuum, what they have mastered, yet to master, and are ready to learn, in addition to many other helpful, immediate tools to differentiate learning for students. NACA has examined 6th - 8th grade growth reports built on NWEA data.

The first three charts use the NWEA RIT scale and show some growth for the upper 75% of NACA students over time. The trend for the last three years has been consistently trending upward.



The bottom 25% have a tendency to flatten over time rather than showing continuous growth. As we might suspect, the students in the bottom 25% definitely have the most barriers to learning with significantly high percentages of SWD and EL identifications. The percentage of students at NACA identified as EL and SWD has increased significantly over time.

In addition to the RIT charts, the following line charts look at the 75/25 division of the 6th -8th grade using National Percentiles as the metric. When examining performance this way it must be kept in mind that the 50th percentile is the national average that is highlighted in the chart. On a normal curve it would be centered at the apex of the curve. The first



degree of separation encompasses 68% of the distribution; 34% below and 34% above the center point. Scoring within this range is considered acceptable and the range is often described as low average, average, and high average. The upper 75% is within this range; the lower 25% is not in range, highlighting the need to increase support for this population.



B. Financial Performance

Task 1: Internal Controls, Financial Policies and Procedures (1 page)

● Provide information on internal controls, including any and all relevant flow charts and organizational charts which demonstrate the internal controls/process.

● Provide all Financial Policies and Procedures.

Below is the purchasing flowchart included in the staff handbook to help clarify the policy.



NACA’s Financial System of Accounting Policies and Procedures (including Internal Controls)

NACA’s Financial Policies are included at the end of this document.

Task 2: Audit Findings - Complete the Audit Report Summary table (below) by providing any findings from independent audits for each fiscal year, and how the school responded.

Identify information from the Component Unit Section of the Annual Audit specific to the Charter School. Include the actual year you are referring to.

Year Total # Finding

Nature of Findings including Rating (Compliance, Significant Deficiency,

Material Weakness) School’s Corrective Action Plan

2016-17 8 1. Internal Control Structure (Material weakness)-Revenue

2. Bank Reconciliations (Material Weakness)

3. Food Service Claims (Material Weakness)

4. Internal Controls over Activity Funds (Material Weakness)

5. Internal Controls over Cash receipts-Significant Deficiency

6. Budgetary Conditions(Significant Conditions)

7. Timely Submission of ERB and RHC Contributions (Compliance and other matters)

8. Purchasing ( compliance and other matters)

1. The school began contracting with The Vigil Group on 7/1/17. This contract provides for additional oversight and review to ensure that all receipts are correctly booked, all capital assets are identified, all expenditures remain with budget at both the function and fund levels, and that accounts payable and receivable ledgers are managed correctly.

2. From July 1, 2017 the school has put processes in place to make sure that both bank accounts are reconciled, balanced and reviewed.

3. The school notified PED about the Fraud that took place and has since resolved the Issue as of October 3, 2017.

4. Revenue from Activities are BAR’d in on a monthly basis. Monthly Activity Spreadsheets are sent to the school’s Principal to keep him updated on Revenues vs. Expenditures.

5. Cash Receipt form has been updated. Segregation of Duties have been implemented. Principal will review an count deposit before it is made, Business Support will deposit the funds and bring the receipt back to Principal to sign off on the deposit.

6. The school is submitting monthly Reimbursements to ensure that all revenue and expenditures are being accounted for.

7. Internal controls were modified to ensure proper purchasing procedures are followed.



2017-18 9 1. Fixed Assets (Significant deficiency)

2. 4th quarter NMPED reports (Non-Compliance in Accordance with the New Mexico State Audit Rule, does not Rise to the Level of Significant Deficiency)

3. No review of codes of conduct (Noncompliance in Accordance with the New Mexico State Audit Rule, does not rise to the Level of Significant Deficiency)

4. Internal Control over Financial Reporting (Material Weakness)

5. Procurement Code, (Noncompliance in Accordance with the New Mexico State Audit Rule, does not rise to the Level of Significant Deficiency)

6. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board (NMERB) and Retiree Health Care (RHC) Payments (Non-Compliance in Accordance with the New Mexico State Audit Rule, does not Rise to the Level of Significant Deficiency

7. Stale Checks (Noncompliance in Accordance with the New Mexico State Audit Rule, does not rise to the Level of Significant Deficiency)

8. Student Activity Internal Control over Financial Reporting (Noncompliance in Accordance with the New Mexico State Audit Rule, does not rise to the Level of Significant Deficiency)

9. Lack of documentation over disbursements Noncompliance in Accordance with the New Mexico State Audit Rule, does not rise to the Level of Significant Deficiency

1. The school reviewed and revised controls related to fixed assets and established a process to verify and document depreciation of leasehold improvements.

2. The school put into place a plan that required not only Actuals reports to be reviewed for accuracy prior to submission of the Cash Report, but also that the Trial Balance for that time period is reviewed against the Actuals Reports to ensure accuracy.

3. The Code of Conduct was reviewed during staff meetings.

4. The school reviewed and revised the processes for year-end financial closing and reporting processes to ensure all account receivable and liabilities (accounts payable) are properly recorded. The Business Manager will prepare these schedules after the fiscal year-end close but prior to the beginning of the annual audit to ensure that review can occur internally.

5. As of July 1, 2018, the school clarified with staff the need to obtain three quotes for every purchase that is over $20,000, to ensure that the best obtainable quote is documented.

6. As of July 1, 2018, the school increased their contract with the Vigil Group to oversee and process Payroll and Payroll Liabilities for the school. Since then the Vigil Group has developed new processes for the school. One of the processes is switching from monthly hard checks to monthly wires for payroll liabilities to ensure timely payments.

7. The school will follow its own internal controls of voiding all stale dated checks, placing stop payments at the bank, and reissuing checks for amounts still verified as outstanding by vendors.

8. Additional staff training to support student activities in alignment with the



approved Internal Controls. 9. Review of lease agreements to ensure

the process and timelines for disbursement of lease payments are made properly and that all records are maintained in accordance with state retention policy.

2018-19 8 1. Quarterly Budget Submissions (Other Non-Compliance)y)

2. No review of codes of conduct (previously reported as 2018-072) (Other Non-Compliance)

3. Timely Deposit of Cash Receipts (Previously reported as finding 2018-066) (Other Non-Compliance)

4. Business Management Contract (Other non-compliance)

5. ERB Payments (Other Non-Compliance)

6. Procurement Code (previously reported as finding 2018-074), (Other Non-Compliance)

7. Fixed Assets (previously reported as finding 2017-034 and 2018-070) (Material Weakness)

8. Internal Control over Financial Reporting (previously reported as finding 2017-034 and 2018-073 (Material Weakness)

1. Quarterly budgets were submitted on time, reviewed at the state agency and asked for resubmission, which appeared as a school delay.

2. The Code of Conduct review policy was adopted by the GC, added to the staff handbook and a process was added to collect staff assurances for reading and following it.

3. Professional development with staff responsible for collecting funds.

4. Clarification of contract payments. 5. Ensure employees are paid and correctly

contributing to ERB, based on the ERB’s review.

6. Prior to purchasing under the CES and ACES jpa, ensure items are covered in the contract.

7. Review and revise the internal control policies as it relates to asset management and depreciation.

8. Revise end of the year closing and reporting processes and to ensure all account receivables and liabilities are properly recorded.

2019-20 Scheduled for 09/21/20

As NACA has grown in student membership and years of operation, we have increased the amount of funding coming into the school (including state, federal, private, and philanthropic funding) to support programming aligned to our mission and vision. This means that the operational oversight of finances and reporting has grown as well. As the table above indicates, we have had some challenges in process, procedures, and staffing. What is not as evident in the audit reports are the structural shifts that include refining of internal controls, distribution of financial responsibilities, and fine tuning financial reports to ensure sound decision making related to the school’s budget. Moreover, NACA has almost double the amount of funds when compared to other non-charter schools in APS. This workload requires the team to make sure that AP, AR, bank reconciliation and payroll are tended effectively and efficiently.



Over this charter term, NACA has grown from having one business manager handling all of the financial responsibilities to adding a business support specialist to now outsourcing primary business management services to a firm. Moving forward we want to prioritize and increase the amount of time that the business manager spends on internal controls and processes at NACA. As such we have begun a search for an individual or firm that can spend at least 4-5 days a week at NACA while also maintaining the business support specialist role.

Moreover, we have implemented a training for all staff and especially directors around purchasing and records to ensure that the repeat audit findings from the past are mitigated and eliminated.

Task 3: Financial Statement - Provide the following information (in the table below) that is specific to your operational budget from the current fiscal year:

Fund Fund Name Example of Expenditures by Fund Percentage (%) Amount

1100 Direct Instruction

Teachers, EAs, Instructional Coaches, etc. 57.772% $2,229,560.12

2100 Student Support

Social Workers, Counseling, Ancillary Services, etc. 9.838% $379,687.63

2200 Instructional Support

Library/Media Services, Instructional-Related Technology, Academic Student Assessment, etc.

.003% $132.00

2300 Central Administration

Governance Council, Executive Administration, Community Relations, etc.

2.7229% $105,327.87

2400 School Administration School Administrator, etc. 11.097% $428,249.94

2500 Central Services

Business Manager, Human Resources, Printing, Technology Services, etc. 5.495% $212,077.03

2600 Maintenance and Operations

Maintenance and Operations of Buildings, Upkeep of Grounds and Vehicles, Security, Safety, Etc.

11.943% $460,902.93

Other Miscellaneous (Community Services)



Grand Total for June 30, 2020 $3,815,937.52

Total Amount of Operational Dollars Going Directly to Supporting Student Success (Includes Direct Instruction, Student Support, Instructional Support, and School Administration)

$3,037,629.69

NACA successfully pursues additional funding to support and sustain programming aligned with student support services, land based learning, social emotional learning, out of school time learning, and young men and boys support. One example is a private foundation grant that NACA secured in 2018, which provides $3.75M over 5 years to support our indigenous education, holistic wellness and identity development work. In addition, NACA receives state and federal grants such as Bilingual Multicultural Education, Indian Education, Title funds, School breakfast & lunch program, and Community Schools.

Task 4: Other Information, if school is transferring from NM Public Education Commission

Not Applicable

C. Organizational Performance

Task 1: Provide an Organizational Chart and a short, written description of how your organization operates. You may include examples of day-to-day activities. (1-3 paragraphs)

NACA’s organizational chart is arranged according to direct reports and evaluation responsibilities. This means that the executive director directly reports to the board, and the members of the organizational leadership team directly report to the executive director. Members of the OLT include heads of schools for elementary, middle and high school as well directors of respective departments that include: student support, operations, community relations, registrar, office management, out of school time, athletics, finance, college engagement, and special education. Each of these directors and heads of schools also may have direct reports.

School decisions and discussions function according to teams and items may move between these teams. These teams are the OLT (mentioned above), the instructional leadership team (ILT), teacher facilitators, grade level teams, content teams, student support core team, operations team, student council, equity council, parent/community group and an elders’ council. This team construction and decision making flow, while it requires time, allows for teams to be able to have a voice in school level decisions and discussions which means that school and community level culture is more aligned. For example, during the distance learning time, the operations team has taken the lead on



developing a safety protocol for distribution and tracking of Chromebook for students use. They have also used their meeting times to develop protocols and procedures for the implementation of safety orders related to COVID safety.



ouncil Please provide the following information for all Governing Council members:

Name Professional Occupation and affiliation to NACA

Role on Governing Council

# of Years on Governing Council

Tiffany Lee UNM -Associate Professor/Director American Indian Studies /Parent of alumni

President 14

Justin Solimon Partner/Lawyer - Johnson, Solimon, Barnhouse & Keegan

Vice President 14

Ayn Whyte Executive Director-Albuquerque Area Indian Health Board/Parent of current students

Secretary 6

Mike Mora Accountant Treasurer 1

Amber Hillis Accountant School Business Manager

Member ½

Emmet Yepa NACA Alumni Member 1

Andrew Quintana Accountant Member 2

Please provide the following information for all Finance Committee members:

Name Professional Occupation Role on Finance Committee Governing Council Member? Y/N

Mike Mora Accountant Treasurer Y

Amber Hillis Business Manager Committee Member Y

Corinne Teller School Business Manager Volunteer N

Anpao Duta Flying Earth

NACA Executive Director Committee member N



Please provide the following information for all Audit Committee members:

Name Professional Occupation

Role on Finance Committee

Governing Council Y/N

Mike Mora Accountant Treasurer Y

Amber Hillis Business Manager Committee Member Y

Corinne Teller School Business Manager

Volunteer N

Anpao Duta Flying Earth

NACA Executive Director

Committee Member N

Joseph Lucero Business Manager Vigil Group

Business Management Services

N

Task 3: Describe Your Governing Council Processes by complete Items 1-3.

Item 1: Please provide a copy of your most recent Open Meetings Act Resolution. (1-3 pages)

WHEREAS, The Governing Council of the Native American Community Academy (NACA) met in regular session at the NACA Main Campus on March 21, 2019, at 4:30 PM as required by law; and WHEREAS, Section 10-15-1(B) of the Open Meetings Act (NMSA 1978, Sections 10-15-1 to -4) states that, except as may be otherwise provided in the Constitution or the provisions of the Open Meetings Act, all meetings of a quorum of members of any board, council, commission or other policy making body of any state or local public agency held for the purpose of formulating public policy, discussing public business or for the purpose of taking any action within the authority of or the delegated authority of such body, are declared to be public meetings open to the public at all times; and WHEREAS, any meetings subject to the Open Meetings Act at which the discussion or adoption of any proposed resolution, rule, regulation or formal action occurs shall be held only after reasonable notice to the public; and WHEREAS, Section 10-15-1(D) of the Open Meetings Act requires the NACA Governing Council to determine annually what constitutes reasonable notice of its public meetings; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the NACA GC that: 1. All meetings shall be held at the NACA, 1000 Indian School Rd, NW, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 4:30 p.m., or as indicated in the meeting notice.



2. Unless otherwise specified, regular meetings shall be held each month on the third Thursday of the month. The agenda will be available at least seventy-two hours prior to the meeting from the Business Support Specialist, whose office is located at the UNM Law School Campus, Albuquerque, New Mexico. The agenda will also be posted on NACA's Main Campus, 1000 Indian School Rd, NW, Albuquerque, New Mexico, and on NACA’s website at http://www.nacaschool.org/.

3. Notice of regular meetings other than those described in Paragraph 2 will be given ten days in advance of the meeting date. The notice will include a copy of the agenda or information on how a copy of the agenda may be obtained. If not included in the notice, the agenda will be available at least seventy-two hours before the meeting and posted on the NACA’s website at http://www.nacaschool.org/

4. Special meetings may be called by the President of the GC or a majority of the members upon three days’ notice. The notice for a special meeting shall include an agenda for the meeting or information on how a copy of the agenda may be obtained. The agenda will be available at least seventy-two hours before the meeting and posted on NACA’s website at http://www.nacaschool.org/

5. Emergency meetings will be called only under unforeseen circumstances that demand immediate action to protect the health, safety and property of citizens or to protect the NACA GC from substantial financial loss. The NACA GC will avoid emergency meetings whenever possible. Emergency meetings may be called by the GC President or a majority of the members within twenty-four hours prior notice, unless threat of personal injury or property damage requires less notice. The notice for all emergency meetings shall include an agenda for the meeting or information on how the public may obtain a copy of the agenda. Within ten days of taking action on an emergency matter, the President will notify the Attorney General’s Office.

6. For the purposes of regular meetings described in Paragraph 3 of this resolution, notice requirements are met if notice of the date, time, and location is placed in newspapers of general circulation in the state and posted in the following locations: the office of NACA Main Campus and the NACA website. Copies of the written notice shall also be mailed to those broadcast stations licensed by the Federal Communications Commission and newspapers of general circulation that have made a written request for notice of public meetings.

7. For the purposes of special meetings and emergency meetings described in Paragraphs 4 and 5, notice requirements are met if notice of the date, time, place and agenda is provided by telephone to newspapers of general circulation in the state and posted in the offices of NACA’s main campus. Telephone notice also shall be given to those broadcast stations licensed by the Federal Communications Commission and newspapers of general circulation that have made a written request for notice of public meetings.

8. In addition to the information specified above, all notices shall include the following language: If you are an individual with a disability who is in need of a reader, amplifier, qualified sign language interpreter, or any other form of auxiliary aid or service to attend or participate in the hearing or meeting, please contact NACA’s Business Support Specialist at 505-266-0992 at least one (1) week prior to the meeting or as soon as possible. Public documents, including the agenda and minutes, can be provided in various accessible formats.

http://www.nacaschool.org/





Please contact NACA’s Business Support Specialist at 505-266-0992 a summary or other type of accessible format is needed.

9. The NACA GC may close a meeting to the public only if the subject matter of such discussion or action is accepted from the open meeting requirement under Section 10-15- 1(H) of the Open Meetings Act.

(a) If any meeting is closed during an open meeting, such closure shall be approved by a majority vote of a quorum of the NACA GC taken during the open meeting. The authority for the closed meeting and the subjects to be discussed shall be stated with reasonable specificity in the motion to close and the vote of each individual member on the motion to close shall be recorded in the minutes. Only those subjects specified in the motion may be discussed in the closed meeting.

(b) If a closed meeting is conducted when the NACA GC is not in an open meeting, the closed meeting shall not be held until public notice, appropriate under the circumstances, stating the specific provision of law authorizing the closed meeting and the subjects to be discussed with reasonable specificity, is given to the members and to the general public.

(c) Following completion of any closed meeting, the minutes of the open meeting that was closed, or the minutes of the next open meeting if the closed meeting was separately scheduled, shall state whether the matters discussed in the closed meeting were limited only to those specified in the motion or notice for closure.

(d) Except as provided in Section 10-15-1(H) of the Open Meetings Act, any action taken as a result of discussions in a closed meeting shall be made by vote of the NACA GC in an open public meeting.

Passed by the NACA Governing Council

Item 2: Describe the Governing Council’s role in the school’s strategic planning process (1 page)

The NACA Governing Council (GC) has a yearly retreat during the summer to reflect on previous school progress, to evaluate their own performance, conduct a policy review, and set goals for the following year. The GC utilizes committee work to provide support for the overall functions of the school. NACA’s GC has the Finance, Facilities, and Audit committees, which meet monthly and who engage in strategic planning for the future, for example, the Facilities committee is in the process of developing a gym to support NACA athletics (basketball, volleyball, personal wellness, and activities related to NACA’s mission). Recently, the GC has taken a more active role in ensuring that financial processes and procedure for overall financial health is fine tuned. The audit and finance committees represent how active engagement of GC members has been instrumental to the improvement of NACA’s finances.



Item 3: Describe the Governing Council’s process of evaluating the Principal/Director (1 page)

Annual Review Process and Timeline of Review Activity of Executive Director, Anpao Duta Flying Earth

August ● Executive Director sets goals at retreat for the upcoming school year ● ED provides a final work plan for the Governing Council to use in their assessment

September - April ● Provide an update at each GC meeting about progress on one goal ● Vary updates per goal each meeting ● Include quantitative data (attendance, grades, outcomes) and qualitative data

(student/staff feedback, events during the year) ● GC will provide informal, formative feedback during the year at each meeting ● Executive Director responds to feedback; continues progress on work plan ● Governance Council revises work plan if needed

May ● Executive Director provides Governing Council with final reports, data, and evidence

regarding work plan goals

June ● Governing Council provides formal, summative feedback on Executive Director’s work

plan progress and achievements

July ● Draft work plan for the following academic year presented to Governing Council

Appropriately, the GC does not get involved in the day to day operations, but has increased capacity on the board and stepped up involvement in the fiduciary responsibilities and financial operations at NACA. Similarly, the GC evaluates the performance of the Executive Director according to the timeline above, looking at multiple criteria and by looking at the overall performance of the school. Over the past term and under the leadership of Anpao Duta Flying Earth, NACA’s GC has engaged in more opportunities to hear from shared leadership at NACA. To this point, during monthly governing council meetings, faculty and staff leaders have begun to share information about the many programs and outcomes of the school with the GC. This has supported a more in depth understanding for the GC.



D. Facility

Task 1: Provide Facility Information and Documentation by completing items 1-3.

Locate your building E occupancy certificate (item 1) and lease or lease purchase agreement (item 2) and scan documents. Include these scanned documents in the appendix of your application.

Item 1: Provide a digital scan of the building E Occupancy certificate.

In the appendix are the digitals scans of E Occupancy Certificates for NACA’s two facilities at:

1) 1000 Indian School Road NW, and 2) 525 Buena Vista Dr. SE, CNM Education Complex Building.

Item 2: Include a description of your facility including lease and/or lease purchase agreement.

Starting in the 2019-20 school year, NACA operates out of two campuses.

- The K-8 campus is located at 1000 Indian School Road NW (main building) and 1100 Indian School Road NW (formerly Queen of Angels Chapel), on land that is operated by the 19 Pueblos of NM, a tribal government conglomerate.

- The 9-12 campus is part of a multi-story, joint use facility, in collaboration with Central New Mexico Community College (CNM) and the APS College and Career High School that is a unique partnership between district, charter, and higher education institutions.

The appendix includes the facility lease agreements for both campuses, as well as amendments to the leases.

Item 3: Describe your long-term plans to comply with NM state statute of being in a public building. Both campuses are the result of years of dialogue and plans between multiple entities. NACA has recently entered into a multi-year lease agreement for each site, as well as open conversation about long term sustainability and development to align to the needs of NACA’s education model that includes district and state level incorporation of requirements and compliance. At NACA’s main campus, the tribal conglomerate was able to establish itself as a public entity in order to open eligibility for NACA use and funding opportunities. NACA intends to remain at these facilities indefinitely.

Part 3 – Plans for the Next Charter (Self-Study)


Part 3—Plans for the Next Charter Term (Self-Study) Purpose: Looking Forward: Vision for the Next Five Years Instructions for Part 3: Please refer to the instructions online for complete details about completing this part of the application (Self-Study) on outlining your vision and plan for the next five years.

A. Performance Self Study/Analysis-Key Questions

Task 1: Discuss your school’s academic priorities over the next five years based on what you learned from your Self-Report about your students’ academic results over the past four years (1-3 pages)

NACA’s self-report regarding academic results led our leadership team to three academic priorities for the next five years. Those goals are centered on three big ideas: Academic Outcomes Aligned to Mission/Vision, Underserved Student Populations, and Sustaining and Revitalizing Curriculum for Native Literature/ELA Growth and STEM Growth.

Mission & Vision-driven Academic Priorities

1. Land-based Learning (LBL) & Healing (or place-based learning & healing) are integral in NACA’s focus on building our educational model of Indigenous Education toward the ends of holistic health, security in identity, and academic preparedness outcomes for students.

2. The continued growth and alignment of Indigenous Language Learning for NACA students will be based on the previously described SOLOM assessment.

Underserved Student Populations Priorities

1. English Language Learners make up 16% of our total student population, this is an increase over the 7% at last renewal (in 2015). NACA’s continuing professional development relationship with Dual Language New Mexico (DLNM) focuses on analyzing WIDA results to build sheltered instruction across the content areas for K-12 instruction, benefiting not just EL students but all students.

2. Students with Disabilities make up 24% of our total student population, this is also up from 2015 when SWD comprised 14% of the NACA population. NACA continues to make programmatic adjustments in two key areas with regards to SwD. First, our special education Math and ELA classes provide SWD specialized instruction in a research based structured program that is implemented with fidelity to ensure the development of needed skills to close academic gaps and support access to the regular ed curriculum. Second, NACA is working diligently to develop and build a



co-teaching model to support inclusive learning in middle and high school Science and History classes.

3. Native American Students make up 72% of our student population, Mixed race students now make up 19% of the population. Our previously described focus on community-led, culturally relevant and sustaining pedagogies and original curriculum design are focused on engaging student identity and ways of life into all coursework. Further, programming in NACA Student Support focuses on wrap-around services for students and families with the goal of bridging any home/school divide.

4. Socio-economically Disadvantaged Students make up 100% of NACA’s student population as determined by Free and Reduced Lunch status. Four percent of our students are homeless. NACA’s Student Support programming encompasses home-based, before-school, during school, and after--school opportunities for SeDS to access resources otherwise unavailable to them.

Sustaining and Revitalizing Curriculum for Native Literature/ELA Growth and STEM Growth Priorities

1. Given that the 2020-2021 school year was the school’s first with all thirteen grades represented, formal alignment articulation of ELA outcomes for students will be formalized in K-12 scope and sequence documents and used as the basis for elementary programming (Wonders and Core Values Curriculum) and refinements and as the starting point for 6th-12th grade UbD yearlong curricula and units in Native Literature and Indigenous History (for ELA standards). This alignment rests upon our ability to develop Culturally Sustaining and Revitalizing curriculum for our students as a vital, research-based strategy to engage students through their holistic connection to reading, writing, speaking, and listening and the demonstration of their learned knowledge in relevant products. Measurement of this goal is guided by NWEA MAP Growth reports and focused on growth of individual students per the Student Profile, Grade-levels as cohorts per the Grade-level Growth Report, and Achievement of both “high” and “low” performing students as reported on the NWEA NWEA Achievement Status and Growth Summary with Quadrant Chart.

2. In accordance with the number the above, formal alignment of Math and STEM outcomes for students will be formalized in K-12 scope and sequence documents and used as the basis for elementary programming (Eureka Math) and refinements and as the starting point for 6th-12th grade UbD yearlong curricula and units in Math (guided by Connected Math at 6-8 and College Preparatory Math at 9-12) and Science (for STEM and math standards).



● What main strategies will be implemented to address these priorities?

In addition to the vertical alignment for the K-12 curriculum in Math and ELA, NACA will use the guidance of our newly formed Equity Council to identify issues in equity across all subgroups identified above and ensure professional development for staff to include implicit bias, anti-racism, and restorative justice training. NACA will continue contracting with Dual Language NM to focus to develop skills in sheltered instruction according to WIDA outcomes for second language learners. A Council of Elders from the community will also be engaged to share with teachers’ knowledge and expertise to inform programming, curriculum and to continue building culturally excellent curriculum that maintains an emphasis on culture, language and identity, in alignment with our mission.

NACA was the recipient of a Community Schools Implementation Grant and will strengthen the number and types of integrated supports, expanded learning time and opportunities, family and community engagement, and collaborative leadership.

● What changes to the program will be made based on the analysis of the past four years?

NACA’s plans are to increase the quantity and quality of support provided to students with underserved populations described above (which comprise a growing proportion of the student body). The Indigenous Languages program plans to:

● continue building capacity for technology integration ● integrate literacy stations ● continue to improve Language and Culture festival ● improve Total Physical Response (TPR) methods ● continue with more opportunities for community visits ● continue to strengthen the elementary language program ● identify language nest assessments for elementary program

● How has data been used to set these priorities at your school?

In addition to measures of academic progress as determined by state required summative assessments (described and analyzed above) and short-cycle, formative data produced by NWEA MAP, NACA benefits from the NACA Inspired Schools Network annual School Review to provide timely, relevant qualitative and quantitative data. The school’s Instructional and Organizational Leadership Teams (ILT, OLT) use the information to refine measurable objectives for subsequent school years for both students and teachers/staff. The NISN School Review is comprised of:

1. A quantitative survey titled The QUAD that is completed by students, teachers, staff, administrators, families, and community partners and asks questions about NACA effectiveness tied directly to our mission-specific outcomes.

2. A qualitative, three-day on-site visit of the school by outside experts that includes



classroom observations, document analysis, teacher group interviews, student group interviews, administrator group interviews, and community group interviews.

Task 2: Discuss how systems and structures have been modified to support student achievement? (1-3 pages) Reflect on the academic performance of the following groups:

● The lowest-performing students ● Students with Disabilities - how do you plan to provide Special Education

Services? ● English Learners - How do you plan to provide English Learner programs and

services? NACA works to ensure curricular choices for students are research based and geared toward providing all students including SPED and EL students with appropriate opportunities to acquire grade level skills. The Instructional Leadership Team (ILT) is responsible for the identification of students who may need extra support and structures at NACA to be successful. Over the charter term (since 2016-17 SY), NACA has put into place additional supports for students including:

● NACA currently has Tier 3 classes in the areas of Math and Reading as part of the grades 6th-12th daily schedule. These specific classes are taught by teachers who are licensed in special education. The curriculum for both classes are research based and taught with fidelity. The curriculum utilized for the Reading classes is the Wilson Reading System, Fundations. This is a structured literacy program based on phonological research. The curriculum utilized for the Math classes is TransMath. TransMath is a comprehensive math intervention curriculum that targets middle and high school students who lack the foundational skills necessary for entry into algebra and/or who are two or more years below grade level in math.

● SWD in the elementary grade levels participate in pull out reading services utilizing the Wilson Reading System curriculum implemented with fidelity by a licensed special education teacher. NACA’s SWD have demonstrated growth in reading, math and written language with the support of the Tier 3 classes and have demonstrated the ability to apply their learned skills in their regular education classes which has increased their participation and progress in the regular ed curriculum.

● NACA’s plans moving forward in regards to strengthening special education supports and services include building and developing an effective co-teacher model in all history and science classes for 6th-12th as well as supporting a co-teaching model in the elementary grade levels.

● To address the needs of our lower learners, NACA has implemented the NM SAT process and has plans to review it relative to the state’s new Multi-Layered System of Supports (MLSS) guidance.



Discuss how systems and structures have been modified to support student achievement? Students who are Economically Disadvantaged and Ethnicity NACA is a Title 1 school with 100% students receiving Free and Reduced Lunch (based on the Community Eligibility Provision). NACA’s layers of support for students and their families have grown both in the quality and quantity over the past few years. NACA engaged in a needs assessment and asset mapping process with support from a PED community school planning grant. As a result, NACA’s focus has been refined to increase programming in the early years, expand the number of learning days, increase prevention programs out of the student support office, and enhance student and family engagement.

Early Years/Expanded Learning--NACA has administered the K-3 Plus program in 2018-19, and K-5 Plus in 2019-20 for an additional 25 days of learning for grades K-5, 6, and 9. This is in addition to continued offering of summer classes for students to make up credit, and a summer Bridge Program, helping students to transition to the next grade through additional summer learning and extracurricular activities offered over two weeks. NACA additionally uses this time to engage students in physical activity and healthy food choices, aligned with the YES Initiative.

Student Supports-- In addition to offering health education, including chronic illness education, classroom presentations on healthy lifestyle choices, the SS office runs several prevention programs including suicide prevention and a substance abuse prevention. The Hiyupo Alliance program intentionally supports boys and young men at NACA, with the goal for them to heal, grow, and thrive so they can become community leaders. Additionally NACA implements a restorative justice approach to behavior and engages in social emotional learning as part of the My Brother’s Keeper initiative, in collaboration with other community partners as part of the Out of School Time program.

Student engagement during school hours, and especially now during remote learning time because of COVID, is key to support students; therefore, NACA has increased support for student attendance. NACA has put in place a more robust tracking system for attendance, as well as attendance coaching for students.

To increase quality family engagement NACA involves parents in the languages program. Food distribution for families during the holiday season and now in the time of COVID, has increased to support families.

Question 1: How will your governing body be involved in monitoring academic performance and strategic planning, for the next five years? (1-3 paragraphs)

NACA’s GC will be intimately involved in understanding all accountability agreements and assuring clarity for how the performance framework aligns with the school’s mission, vision and goals NACA has set for itself. The GC, over the past several years, has grown in its capacity



for monitoring the school, it’s programs, and for gaining a more comprehensive picture of the school’s outcomes as it makes plans for the future. As mentioned earlier in this renewal, NACA participates in an annual school review process, through its partnership with NISN that provides qualitative evidence-based feedback from professional peers. This report reflects input from all stakeholders (students, parents, staff, and community partners) and along with other data and information, will help the GC fulfill its appropriate role in gauging NACA progress and goal setting as part of an annual cycle of school reflection and planning.

Question 2: How does your school enhance the APS School of Choice Portfolio? (1-3 paragraphs)

NACA is unique in Albuquerque and well-respected throughout New Mexico and nationally for its innovative programming, dedication to culturally relevant education, and positive impact on Native education in Albuquerque and beyond. It is the flagship school of the NACA Inspired Schools Network (NISN), an educational organization supporting leaders in Indigenous communities to develop a network of schools providing rigorous academic curriculum aimed at college preparation while also promoting Indigenous culture, identity, and community investment in education. Schools inspired by NACA have opened in and around the Navajo Nation, Las Cruces, Oklahoma City, Denver, Santa Clara pueblo and Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Current fellows at NISN come to Albuquerque from other parts of New Mexico, Minnesota, California, North and South Dakota, and southern Colorado and continue to learn from the innovations of our staff, program and mission-aligned practices. NACA’s swift pivot to provide online education during COVID and to further the vision of indigenous education through a land-based learning framework are a few examples of how NACA has been a leader within this network of schools.

Parents and caregivers have entrusted the education of their children to NACA staff and teachers for over 14 years, and have requested that we grow grades 6-12 to add an elementary program. 2020-21 marks the first year NACA is serving a full K-12 student population.

Examples of awards and designations NACA has received include: citation as a best-practices model for Indian Education by the New Mexico Public Education Department (2011); Native American Community Academy (NACA) Foundation recognized as a MetLife/National Association of Secondary School Principals Breakthrough School for work with low-income and at-risk students (2013 and 2017); recognized by Teach for America as a School to Learn From (2015), by Ashoka as a Changemaker School (2015), and by the National Education Policy Center at UC Boulder as a School of Opportunity (2019).

NACA staff, students and board members also play a critical role in Native Education at the local, state and national levels, and sit on boards, advisory groups and collaborations designed to transform the educational experience of previously disenfranchised students. As New



Mexico faces the challenge of providing equitable and relevant education to its low-income, EL, SWD and Native students, NACA provides inspiration and innovative models to showcase culturally and linguistically responsive curriculum and pedagogy, and be a school that heals and uplift the brilliance in our community.

B. Mission-Specific Goals and Indicators Instructions for section B: Please refer to the online instructions for complete details about Mission Specific Goals and Indicators.

Task 1: Provide at least two (2) mission-specific goals and indicators in the space below. (1-2 pages per goal) and Task 2: Provide a detailed rationale for the indicators you have chosen. Include data that you used to identify the need for setting this goal. Include any applicable state standard set for your indicator. For example: state graduation standard. (3 paragraphs)

Mission Specific Goal 1 – include the following (1-2 pages):

Indicators that will be measured and monitored, related to this goal 1. Student academic performance standard(s) being addressed

2. Standardized short-cycle assessment or standards-based instrument used to identify performance levels and proficiency of student

Goal 1 Holistic Wellness Using the 2020 QUAD results for holistic wellness as a baseline (see 2020 results below), and composite holistic wellness scores, students will agree with statements associated with holistic wellness on an annual survey administered at NACA.

Goal Rating Description of Target for this Performance Goal using a survey with 5 point Likert scale

Exceeds Standards Average survey results for statements of holistic wellness are 4.75 or above.

Meets Standards Average survey results for statements of holistic wellness are 3.75-4.74.

Does Not Meet Standards Average survey results for statements of holistic wellness are 2.75-3.74.

Falls Far Below Average survey results for statements of holistic wellness are below 2.75 on a 5 point scale.

NACA’s mission includes the goal of supporting students’ holistic wellness. NACA does this by utilizing a gauge of student wellness--the Wellness Wheel--with students, beginning in the elementary grades, throughout middle and high school. Teachers and advisors dedicate time during the school day for students to reflect on each of the four components of wellness, including: intellectual, social, physical and spiritual health. Students focus on their own self- assessment, then using results, set goals for themselves to increase personal wellness. NACA



dedicates resources toward supporting holistic wellness through the Student Supports Office, use of advisories to create a positive connection with one adult throughout the middle/high school years, staff professional development, the wellness courses offered in middle school, the out of school time programming, athletics program and the restorative approach to behavior. We know that when students are surrounded by supportive adults who espouse a growth mindset, who intentionally support holistic wellness and students are given opportunities to reflect on and discuss their own wellness, it will improve.

Given the many barriers facing Native children today, NACA has put into place multiple collaborative programs that help ensure that no child slips through the cracks and that all receive the physical, emotional, and nutritional support they need. Wellness Initiative and Programs include:

● Student Support Services ● First Nations Community HealthSource-School Based Health Center ● Prevention Programs ● Personal Wellness Classes ● NACA Food and Nutrition Policy ● Wellness Wheel ● Student Health Advisory Council (S.H.A.C.)

Student Support offers each student and family a variety of services to support them in achieving their goals in school, developing socially and emotionally, strengthening peer and family relationships, and by helping students to realize their role in the community. Some of the programs and services we offer include:

● Student Support Consultation- Which offers participants a chance to identify strengths, express concerns, and develop an action plan to support the student’s success at NACA.

● Education Groups– including student groups and in-classroom presentations focusing on mental health and wellness topics such as life skills, bullying, and healthy relationships.

● Case Management/Referral– Staff provides referrals and assistance to obtain resources and/or services for students and their family.

● Crisis Intervention- provided by staff who have specialized training to help students during a stressful or emotional overwhelming incident.

● Eagle Room– a peaceful, culturally-based meditation space provided for all NACA students, families and staff for self-reflection, meditation and prayer honoring our Native traditions. Students who are dealing with worry, stress, trauma, or any



emotional hurt may utilize this peaceful room anytime during or after school.

Additionally, we believe that if NACA students know who they are, where they come from, and develop a spiritual and emotional connection to land as their common relative and their mother, rather than experience land as resource or owned asset, then NACA students will be holistically healthier (physical, spiritual, social, emotional, intellectually). Recently, the NACA Foundation was gifted 50 acres of rural land a short 30-minute drive away in the Sandia Mountains. We anticipate that this land will be for use of NACA via school programming. As such, this will be developed into a student destination area for land-based cultural activities over time and will also provide space for students to engage in meaningful learning experiences to develop a relationship with the land—encouraging physical, mental, and spiritual health and wellness.

NACA administers multiple surveys to help gauge how well students are doing with regards to student social/emotional health and holistic wellness. These surveys will serve as baseline data for our goal to improve student wellness. Table 1 below shows student response to the QUAD survey using a 5-point Likert scale, where 5=strongly agree, 4= Somewhat Agree, 3=Not Sure, 2=Somewhat Disagree, and 1=Strongly Disagree. The baseline results listed below were gathered in March-May 2020. Despite the COVID interruption to the educational environment, NACA had an extremely high participation rate with this survey. The results below reflect a 96% participation rate with 283 student responses. The average score of all survey questions in the spring of 2020 was 3.97. Since the survey was administered, students have experienced COVID-19 stresses that are affecting the wellness of most individuals at this time. Our targets take into account past performance and the COVID context, which are likely to make maintaining the high levels of agreement difficult.

NACA QUAD Survey Results 2020

I feel that I have someone who expects me to do well. 4.56

I know what it takes to achieve my goals. 4.34

I understand my own unique identity. 4.28

I feel like I make responsible decisions while at school. 4.15

I feel confident in my ability to succeed at whatever I put my mind to. 4.11

I have the motivation to succeed. 4.00

I feel respected and heard in interactions with the staff. 3.97

I feel connected to a trusted adult at my school. 3.95

I feel good about myself. 3.93

I understand what it takes to make changes in my community. 3.93

I feel that I have the skills to resolve conflicts/disagreements with others. 3.88



I am aware of, and can explain, what I am feeling and thinking. 3.85

I feel respected and heard in interactions with my peers. 3.85

I feel that I have the skills and support to make changes in my community. 3.80

When something bothers me, I think before I act. 3.79

I spend most of my time on task. 3.78

How often do you think about your holistic wellness goals? 3.56

Mission Specific Goal 2 Identity

Using the 2020 QUAD results related to identity as a baseline (see 2020 results below) students will agree with statements associated with security in identity on an annual survey administered at NACA.

Goal Rating Description of Target for this Performance Goal using a survey with 5 point Likert scale

Exceeds Standards Average survey results for statements of security in identity are 4.75 or above.

Meets Standards Average survey results for statements of security in identity are 3.75-4.74.

Does Not Meet Standards

Average survey results for statements of security in identity are 2.75-3.74.

Falls Far Below Average survey results for statements of security in identity are below 2.75 on a 5 point scale.

A key component of NACA’s mission is that students become secure in their identity. We believe that if NACA students know who they are, where they come from, and develop a spiritual and emotional connection to land as their relative and their mother, rather than experience land as resource or owned asset, then NACA students will be holistically healthier (physical, spiritual, social, emotional, intellectually) and secure in their identity. NACA has representation from over 60 different tribes and as such, the programming, curricular, pedagogical approach and school values must be relevant despite the political, geographical, and cultural differences in identities. NACA’s curriculum and instruction is based on the intersection of identity through the lens of community. This sentiment is noted by multicultural educator, James Banks when he said,

“What I mean by transformation is helping kids to look at reality differently. For example, you can put Indians into the curriculum without really changing its structure. What Indians do you add? Typically, we add Sacajawea and other “good” Indians to the curriculum. But if



you really transform the curriculum—change its perspectives, change its assumptions—you might study Geronimo, who challenged the social and political structure.”

[Multicultural Education - History, The Dimensions of Multicultural Education, Evidence of theEffectiveness of Multicultural Education - Students, Cultural, Ethnic, and School - StateUniversity.com https://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2252/Multicultural-Education.html#ixzz6ZaBDZPLS].

In alignment with Banks, NACA implements an equity pedagogy, which assumes that students from diverse cultures and groups come to school with many strengths, and are imperative to lift them up. We believe a curriculum that does that well will result in students feeling secure in their identities.

NACA embraces core values to guide the school’s vision, they provide the common language to support the school culture as we balance an acknowledgement of the diversity in our school community and build a sense of belonging for all. Further, NACA provides students with multiple opportunities to experience people, places and activities that are unfamiliar. We believe that exposing students to people, places and activities will help them gain a greater sense of their own identity. We do this through multiple partnerships with other schools (in Albuquerque -South Valley Academy, Amy Biehl and outside of Albuquerque-the schools within the NACA Inspired Schools Network) and with community based organizations and other partners (La Plazita Institute, the NM Dream Team, New Zealand sister schools). Other examples of this: each year NACA’s 8th grade students take a trip to Washington DC and NACA’s Juniors/Seniors visit our sister schools in New Zealand. Being co-located at CNM and taking students on college visits is another strategy we employ.

NACA’s surveys address the degree to which NACA engages in and incorporates identity. The table below also comes from the most recent QUAD survey. Additional questions related to identity and core values--for students may be incorporated in the survey.

Survey Survey Question 2020 Avg

Family Member The school has provided opportunities for my child to engage in his/her cultural identity.

4.61

Administrator Student identity and incorporation of culture is embedded in classroom instruction.

4.38

Student I understand my own unique identity. 4.28

Administrator Our indigenous language models are high quality. 3.88

Student My school provides opportunities to learn my own language. 4.36

Student My school has helped me become a leader. 3.66

https://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2252/Multicultural-Education.html#ixzz6ZaBDZPLS

https://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2252/Multicultural-Education.html#ixzz6ZaBDZPLS



5. Financial System of Accounting Policies and Procedures (including Internal Controls)

Financial System of Accounting, Internal Control Structure, Policies and Procedures Pursuant to 6.20.2 NMAC, NATIVE AMERICAN COMMUNITY ACADEMY follows Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and NM State laws and regulations in accounting for all funds in its custody and control. The school utilizes an accounting program which accommodates the account structure (fund, function, and object code) and chart of accounts mandated by the Public Education Department. The school has hired a licensed Business Manager as required by 6.63.12 NMAC who ensures the appropriate use of public funds as required by law.

I) Introduction

NATIVE AMERICAN COMMUNITY ACADEMY has established and works hard to maintain an adequate internal control structure that ensures compliance with all applicable laws and regulations. Our internal control structure consists of the policies and procedures established to provide reasonable assurance that our objectives will be achieved. The NATIVE AMERICAN COMMUNITY ACADEMY administrative staff and Business Manager is committed to work with its Authorizer.

II) Control Environment

Our control environment represents the collective effect of various factors on establishing, enhancing, and mitigating the effectiveness of specific internal controls. These factors include the following:

● Management’s philosophy and operating style; ● NATIVE AMERICAN COMMUNITY ACADEMY’s organizational structure; ● The functioning of the Governance Board; ● Management’s control methods for monitoring and following up on performance, including internal

auditing; ● Personnel policies and practices; and, ● Various external influences that affect NATIVE AMERICAN COMMUNITY ACADEMY’s operations

and practices.

We have established our control environment so that it reflects the overall attitude, awareness, and actions of the Governance Board, management and others concerning the importance of control and its emphasis within NATIVE AMERICAN COMMUNITY ACADEMY.

III) Accounting System Our accounting system consists of methods and records that have been established to identify, assemble, analyze, classify, record and report NATIVE AMERICAN COMMUNITY ACADEMY’s transactions and to maintain accountability for the related assets and liabilities. We have focused on establishing methods and records to ensure the following:

§ All valid transactions are identified and recorded;



§ APTA Fund Accounting Software user access controls

§ Transactions are recorded on a timely basis and described in sufficient detail to permit proper classification for financial reporting;

§ The value of transactions is measured in a manner that permits the proper recording of their monetary value in the financial statements;

§ Accuracy is maintained when determining the time period in which transactions occurred to ensure that transactions are recorded in the proper accounting period; and,

§ Transactions and related disclosures are in the financial statements.

IV) Organizational Structure NATIVE AMERICAN COMMUNITY ACADEMY’ has devised, established and maintains an effective organizational structure to give appropriate consideration to ensure the following:

§ A system of measurement of, and accountability for employee performances, is in place;

§ A policy has been established in which the delegation of responsibility for employee actions is combined with sufficient authority to perform the assigned activities;

§ Budgets and financial reports are created and maintained;

§ There is adequate monitoring of activities at each level of the organizational structure; and

§ There is a system of checks and balances in place which separates incompatible activities to preclude absolute control by any individual or unit. This system also provides supervision by higher levels of management and for the monitoring of the overall school activities.

V) Control Procedures

Our control procedures are those policies and procedures in addition to the control environment and accounting system that management has established to provide reasonable assurance that specific objectives will be achieved. We have devised, established and continuously strive to maintain a structure of internal accounting controls to provide that the following are in place:

§ Segregation of responsibilities to ensure that the following duties are segregated: authorization to execute a transaction, recording the transaction, and custody of assets involved in the transaction;

§ A system of authorization and recording procedures to ensure that all transactions are properly approved and recorded;

§ Sound accounting practices are in place in the performance of duties and functions. This includes varied error-checking routines that are performed in connection with record keeping and comparing recorded amounts with existing assets and liabilities. Appropriate action shall be taken with respect to any differences;

§ Employees handling significant amounts of cash must be adequately bonded. Access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s authorization;

§ Receipts, checks or warrants, purchase requisitions, purchase orders, and vouchers shall be



sequentially pre-numbered;

§ Proper safeguards are in place to protect unused checks and other pre-numbered forms and cash that has not been deposited and other receipts;

§ All transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of the financial statements in conformity with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP); and,

§ Independent checks on performance and proper valuation of recorded amounts are being performed including clerical checks, reconciliations, comparison of assets with recorded accountability, computer-programmed controls, management review of reports that summarize the detail of account balances, and user review of computer-generated reports.

§ The school will have an appointed finance committee to help with the oversight and segregation of duties for the school.

§ A Chief Procurement Officer will be named for the school; this person will comply with the mandated Statutes for licensure.

A) Budgeting

i) Budget Development

(a) The Business Manager is responsible for developing the proposed budget, which covers all funds. The budget calendar is developed to include a meeting for community input.

(b) The prior year budget will be reviewed, and a budget to actual report will be developed. This report will be given to the Executive Director and Governance Board to review by the Business Manager.

(c) The Business Manager will consult with the Executive Director and Governance Board regarding the strategic direction of the budget for the upcoming year. The following will also be considered when developing the proposed budget:

(1) Current and expected growth patterns;

(2) The budget to actual report from the prior year; and,

(3) The Educational Plan for Student Success.

(d) Once the proposed budget has been developed, on an Excel spreadsheet, it is forwarded to the Executive Director for approval.

(e) The proposed budget is then presented to the Governance Board for approval in an open meeting.

ii) Budget Adjustments and Modifications

(a) Budget adjustments, which do not alter the total amount of the budget, include the following:

§ Intra-budget transfers, which are transfers between expenditure codes within the same



function.

§ Inter-budget transfers, which are transfers between expenditure codes outside of functions.

(b) Budget modifications, which do alter the total amount of the budget, include the following:

§ Budget increases, which increase the funds available for the current year.

§ Budget decreases, which decrease the funds available for the current year.

(c) There are no budget transfers allowed between funds.

(d) The Business Manager is responsible for preparing a proposal for all budget adjustments and budget modifications.

(e) The Business Manager will submit the proposed modified budget to the Executive Director for approval.

(f) Once approved by the Executive Director, the proposed modified budget is submitted to the Governing Council for approval at a scheduled meeting. If the changes are approved, the approval is noted in the meeting minutes. A budget adjustment request is then submitted either electronically or manually to the Public Education Department for approval.

(g) Once all approvals are in place, the Business Manager makes the approved changes to the budget in the Budget Module in the APTA financial system.

B) Purchasing

i) Requisition Processing

(a) The requisitioning employee completes a purchase requisition form.

(b) After all applicable information has been obtained, based on the procurement terms (see procurement process below), the requisitioning employee must sign and date the purchase requisition and forward it to the Executive Director for approval.

(c) The Executive Director or Senior Director of Academics will review the purchase requisition and either approve, change or deny the purchase during the weekly Finance meeting.

(1) If the purchase requisition is approved, the Executive Director or Senior Director of Academics will sign and date the purchase requisition to signify approval.

(2) If the purchase requisition is denied, the reason will be documented on the purchase requisition, the Business Office will make a copy of the denial to be filed, and the form will be sent back to the requisitioning employee.

(d) Once approved, the purchase requisition is forwarded to the Business Specialist to be entered into the Purchasing Module.



(e) The selected vendor must be entered into the system as follows:

(f) If the vendor is an existing vendor, their name is chosen from the vendor list.

(g) If the vendor is a new vendor, at a minimum the vendor name, federal tax ID number and 1099 designation must be entered.

(h) A W-9 Form Request for Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) and Certification should be requested for all new vendors.

(i) The original purchase requisition is then filed in the appropriate vendor file in chronological order.

ii) Procurement Process

(a) Goods and services under $5,000 may be obtained from the best obtainable source, considering cost, service, delivery, and prior use of similar goods. Although quotes are not required, they are strongly recommended in order to ensure the best obtainable price is achieved.

(b) For purchases of tangible items between $5,001 - $59,999.99 and services between $5,001 and $59,999.99, the requisitioning employee must obtain three quotes. The quotes can be either verbal or written. All quotes must be documented on the purchase requisition, and the chosen vendor must be noted. If the lowest bidder is not utilized, the reason for the selection must be documented on the purchase requisition. Any supporting documents relating to the bids must be attached to the purchase requisition.

(c) Competitive bids must be obtained on a request for proposal form and in accordance with New Mexico State Statute for purchases exceeding the following thresholds:

(1) Bids are required for tangible items estimated to cost more than $60,000.

(2) Bids are required for professional services estimated to cost more than $60,000.

(d) In all instances where it is possible, the “Piggy Back” process will be utilized in accordance with New Mexico State Statute Section 13-1-129 NMSA.

iii) Verification and Approval

(a) When the purchase requisition is entered into the system, a purchase order number is assigned to the purchase and a pre-numbered purchase order is automatically generated.

(b) Once the purchase order is generated, the Business Manager will verify the accuracy of the cost account by reviewing the purchase order within the Purchasing Module. If any changes are mandated, they are entered into the system at this time.

(c) The Business Manager is responsible for comparing the purchase order to the current budget to verify that the funds are available. During this verification process, the specific line within the budget that corresponds to the purchase must be considered rather then the total amount of the remaining budget.

(1) If the funds are not available, the purchase requisition is sent back to the Executive



Director with an explanation as to why the purchase order will not be processed.

(2) In order for approval, the Executive Director must sign off for approval.

(d) After the purchase order is complete, two copies are printed, a vendor copy and a file copy.

(e) The Chief Procurement Officer must sign both copies of the purchase order.

(f) The vendor copy is forwarded to the selected vendor to initiate the purchase and the file copy is filed in the Open Purchase Order file until an invoice is received.

iv) Exemptions from the Procurement Code

(a) There are several items that are exempt from the Procurement Code which are listed in Section 13-1-98, NMSA, 1978 Compilation. Those related to school districts include:

(1) Procurement of items of tangible personal property or services from another state agency or a local public body;

(2) Purchases of publicly provided or publicly regulated gas, electricity, water, sewer and refuse collection services;

(3) Travel or shipping by common carrier or by private conveyance or to meals and lodging;

(4) Contracts for public school transportation services are covered under regulation;

(5) Minor purchases consisting of magazine subscriptions, conference registration and fees and other similar purchase where prepayments are required;

(6) The issuance, sale and delivery of public securities pursuant to the applicable authorizing statute with the exception of bond attorneys and general financial consultants;

(7) Contracts for retirement and other benefits pursuant to Sections 22-11-47 through 22-11-52, NMSA, 1978 Compilation; and,

(8) Entertainers.

(b) When a purchase is exempt from the procurement code, or is a recurring purchase or a reimbursement payment, the normal purchasing process does not need to be followed. In any of these instances, the following procedures may be followed:

(1) For recurring payments, no purchase requisition, purchase order is required. The Business Support Specialist will enter the payment into the Accounts Payable Module during the invoice processing.

(2) For reimbursements or other items that are exempt from the procurement code, the requester must submit a reimbursement form and include itemized receipts to the Business Office.

Accounts Payable Processing



v) Receiving

(a) A designated individual at the school is responsible for receiving all purchased goods and performing the following steps when goods are received:

(1) Inspect the goods for visible damage in the presence of the carrier. Damaged goods should not be accepted.

(2) The employee will inspect all goods received and compare the items and quantities to the open purchase order or packing slip and initial upon receipt. If discrepancies are discovered, they are documented and investigated.

(b) The goods are delivered to the requisitioning employee.

(c) The packing slip is given to Business Office to be matched and maintained with the corresponding purchase requisition.

vi) Invoice Processing

(a) All invoices are forwarded to the Business Office. When an invoice is received, the Business Support Specialist will pull the corresponding purchase order from the open purchase order file, attach the document to the invoice.

(b) Accounts Payable will be processed on a bi-weekly basis.

(c) The Business Specialist is responsible for comparing the invoice, purchase order and receiving report. The following should be performed:

(1) Verify that all items shown on the invoice were received. Compare the items and quantities shown on the invoice to the items and quantities shown shipped or delivered on the packing slip.

(2) Verify that the total on the invoice is no more than the amount approved on the Purchase Order. If the total exceeds the limit, a Change Order must be created and the verification and approval process must be redone with the new total. The original PO must also be attached.

(d) The Business Specialist will enter all invoices to be paid into the Accounts Payable Module. APTA Fund software does not allow for duplicate invoice numbers.

(e) The check stock is maintained in a locked cabinet that must remain locked at all times. The Business Specialist will take the number of checks needed from the cabinet and lock it back immediately.

(f) The Business Specialist submits all entered invoices to the Business Manager for review.

(g) Once reviewed the Business Specialist will then print all checks on the Voucher Summary.

(h) The checks and supporting documents are forwarded to the authorized individuals to be signed.



(i) The signed checks are given to the Business Specialist to be mailed to the appropriate vendor.

(j) The payment vouchers and supporting documents are given back to the Business Specialist to be filed in the appropriate vendor files by date.

(k) Checks will be voided after one year of being on the outstanding checks list.

(l) The outstanding checks list will be reviewed every month by the Business Manager before the bank reconciliations are completed to ensure the stale dated checks are voided.

vii) Travel POLICY:

i. All travel requests must comply with the requirement set forth on the as per DFA Rule 95-1. Travel must receive prior approval from the Executive Director. Pre-approved travel shall entitle the employee payment as defined by the Department of Finance and Administration. Reimbursement shall be made for travel on public conveyance at the most economical rate available for the trip. In accordance with NMCA 2.42.2.11, pre-approved travel in a personal vehicle shall be reimbursed at the rate of 80% of the previous year’s Federal IRS rate of mileage reimbursement.

ii. Procedure

iii. Prior to travel, the employee must complete a Travel Request Form and submit it to the Executive Director, at least one month prior to travel. The approved Travel Request Form will then be forwarded to the business manager who will determine whether or not sufficient budget capacity and cash balance exist to make additional expenditures. If sufficient budget exists, the business office will issue a Purchase Order for anticipated expenditures. A per diem check will be given no earlier than five (5) days prior to travel for actual hotel expenses. Travel requests made by the Executive Director will be submitted to the Governance Council (GC) in a reasonable amount of time prior to potential travel that will provide the GC adequate time for consideration and approval. In accordance with NMAC 2.42.2.9, NACA will reimburse actual expenses for meals, not to exceed $30.00 per day in-state and $45.00 per day out-of-state. Itemized Receipts are required for hotel and meal expenses.

iv. Within five (5) business days following travel, the employee must complete an Expense Report and/or a Mileage Log to request reimbursement for all travel and mileage expenses. All receipts for out-of-pocket expenditures for transportation, registration and miscellaneous expenses are required for reimbursement. The expense report will be reviewed and approved by the Executive Director and forwarded to the business office for processing.

v. REIMBURSEMENT FOR OTHER EXPENSES:

Employees may be reimbursed for certain actual expenses in addition to per diem



rates.

Employees may be reimbursed for the following expenses provided that receipts for all such expenses are attached to the reimbursement voucher:

(a) taxi or other transportation fares at the destination of the traveler;

(b) gratuities not to exceed15%;

(c) parking fees;

(d) actual costs for travel by common carrier, provided such travel is

accomplished in the most economical manner practical;

(e) rental cars or charter aircraft, provided less expensive public transportation is

not available or appropriate. In order to be approved for rental car

expenses, the employee must show that the cost of renting a vehicle helps offset the cost of the hotel expense if a hotel is located next to the conference of which the employee is attending. For example, if the cost of the hotel is $100 per night compared to $200 for the sponsoring conference hotel for 3 nights ($200 x 3 = $600 OR $100 x 3 = $300 plus$100 for rental car = $400 total, this would justify the cost of a rental car);

(f) registration fees for educational programs or conferences, provided, if the fee includes lodging or meals, then no per diem rates shall be paid and only actual expenses paid by the employee and not included in the fee shall be reimbursed within the limits of 2.42.2.9 NMAC; and

(g) professional fees or dues that are beneficial to Native American Community Academy operations or mission.

(h) Under circumstances where the loss of receipts would deny reimbursement and create a hardship, an affidavit from the employee attesting to the expenses may be substituted for actual receipts. The affidavit must accompany the travel voucher and include the signature of the Executive Director or Governing Council.

C) Payroll

i) Employee Master File Maintenance

(a) The Executive Director is responsible for monitoring the firing of employees, authorizing salaries, initiating employment contracts and maintaining the staffing levels approved in the annual budget unless circumstances call for augmenting or diminishing staffing in accordance with upward or downward budget adjustments.

(b) The Governing Council is responsible for monitoring and evaluating the Executive Director. Salary will be determined by them in accordance with Section 22-10A-11 NMSA 1978.



(c) Business Office will create a master salary schedule with years of experience and education level that will align with the current year salary schedule to determine teacher salaries.

(1) All licensed personnel must provide transcripts, license and employment verification prior to start date in order to determine proper salary.

(d) Executive Director will approve the master salary schedule and this will be used to create contracts for the year.

(e) The approved employment contracts are entered into AptaFund Accounting software and the salary worksheets are prepared for payroll by the Business Office.

(f) The Head of School(s) is responsible for reporting absences of all staff employees to both the Executive Director and the Business Office. The Business Office will track all absences. Leave taken without sufficient leave balances are docked from the employee’s pay.

(g) All insurance and other deductions are submitted to the Business Office on the proper forms. Records of these deductions are kept in the personnel files.

(h) Access to personnel files and master files is restricted to authorized staff. All payroll information is kept in a locked filing cabinet and the computerized employee master files are password-protected.

ii) Direct Deposit

(a) A Direct Deposit Form must be completed and signed. A voided check must be attached to the Direct Deposit Form.

(b) All direct deposit documentation will be sent to the Business Office prior to the effective payroll.

(c) The Business Office will enter all direct deposit information into the Employee Management Module.

(d) The direct deposit documents are filed in the employee's personnel file.

iii) Time Sheets

(a) All hourly employees are responsible for preparing and signing a time sheet at the end of each period. The supervisor must approve timesheets before submitting to Business Office.

(b) Leave

(1) Before taking time off, employees complete and submit a leave request form to the Executive Director for approval. The Executive Director leave requests must be sent to the Governance Board President or Vice president for approval. If an employee misses work and a leave request was not completed prior to the absence, a form must be submitted immediately upon return. Leave that is taken without sufficient leave balances are docked from the employee’s pay.

(c) Employees are responsible for turning in their time sheets to the Business Office one day



prior to pay date.

(d) The Business Manager and Payroll Department receives all payroll documents.

(e) The Business Office performs the following tasks prior to entering information into the Payroll Module:

(1) Review each time sheet and leave request to ensure that the employee and the Executive Director or Senior Director of Academics signed it;

(2) Recalculate the time sheets; and, ensure that all documented leave is supported by an authorized leave request or an absentee report.

(a) The Business Office will enter all payroll information including hours worked, paid time off and any unpaid time off into the Payroll Module.

(b) The Business Manager reviews and ensures reasonableness and accuracy of the current pay period calculation and ensures that checks or direct deposits are not accidentally issued to terminated employees.

(c) All documents are forwarded back to the Business Office.

(d) If errors are discovered, the Payroll Department asks for the corrections to be made by the Business Manager before printing the checks.

(e) The check stock is maintained in a locked cabinet that must remain locked at all times. The Business Specialist will take the number of checks needed according to the payroll payments summary report from the cabinet and lock it back immediately.

(f) The Business Office will then print all checks and direct deposit slips listed on the payroll payments summary report. A check register will be printed.

(g) The checks, direct deposit slips, supporting documents and the check register are forwarded to the Executive Director or Senior Director of Academics to be signed.

iv) Payroll Reports

(a) Quarterly tax reports are prepared by the contracted Business Office and consist of the following

(1) Form 941 – Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return

(2) State Taxation and Revenue Report

(3) Worker’s Compensation Report

(4) SUTA (State Unemployment Tax)

(5) Annual Reports- W2’s, 1099’s and ACA Reporting

(b) Monthly tax reports are prepared by the contracted Business Office and consist of the following:



(1) Education Retirement Board Report (ERB)

(2) New Mexico Combined Reporting System (CRS) – State Withholding

(3) New Mexico Public Insurance Authority (NMPSIA)

(4) New Mexico Retiree Health Care (NMRHC)

(c) Per Pay Period

(1) EFTPS (Electronic Federal Tax Payment System)

(d) The contracted Business Office sends the completed reports to the Business Support Specialist for review. Once the Business Support Specialist reviews the reports, the reports are sent to the Executive Director to be reviewed and approved.

D) Capital Assets

i) Capitalization

(a) A capital asset shall be defined as any single item of non-expendable personal property, the cost of which exceeds $5,000 and has a useful life of more than one year.

(b) The cost basis of assets includes all charges relating to the purchase of the asset, including the purchase price, freight charges, and installation, if applicable.

(c) The cost of buildings includes all expenditures related directly to acquisition or construction. These costs include materials, labor, overhead incurred during construction, and fees, such as attorney’s fees, architect’s fees, and building permits.

(d) Expenditures incurred in connection with maintaining an existing facility in good working order are expensed as a repair if the cost is less than $5,000.

ii) Acquisitions

(a) The purchase of capital assets is initiated using the same policies and procedures as all other purchases. (See Purchasing Policies and Procedures)

(b) The Business Office is responsible for ensuring that all purchases that qualify as capital assets are properly coded during the purchase order approval stage of the purchasing process.

iii) Dispositions

(a) All dispositions will be processed according to the salvage process and in accordance with New Mexico State Statutes.

(b) After the salvage process has been completed, the Business Office deletes the item from the asset records and records the disposition.



(c) Missing or stolen assets are reported in writing to the Executive Director as soon as possible. Police report must be initiated by the Business Manager or Business Support Specialist or her designee.

(1) A police report must be filed for all stolen assets.

(d) If unrecovered, the Business Support Specialist or the Business Manager is notified in writing and the asset is then removed from the asset records.

iv) Asset Records

(a) The Business Office at the school maintains a detailed listing of capital assets; including the description, the date acquired, vendor, cost basis, useful life, depreciation information and salvage value.

(b) The Business Office at the school updates the general fixed assets account group when new assets are acquired, disposed of, lost or stolen.

(c) Annually (at minimum), the Business Office provides the Executive Director with a list of capital assets, including any quarter year acquisitions or disposals.

(d) The Executive Director will be responsible for designating an employee to perform a physical inventory and identify capital assets that are not on the listing.

(e) Any discrepancies noted by the school are reported to the Business Office as soon as possible. The Business Office will be responsible for reconciling any differences.

(1) At year-end, the Business Manager will reconcile the ledger account to the school’s inventory listing and make any necessary adjustments.

(2) The Business Manager is responsible for keeping adequate records on the depreciation lives, depreciation method used and accumulated depreciation for each fixed asset.

(3) Useful Life for:

(a) Equipment 3 Years

(b) Vehicles 7 years

(c) Buildings 20 years

E) Cash Controls

i) Cash Receipts

(a) The School’s Business Office staff and Student Activity Sponsors maintain a book of pre-numbered cash receipts.

(b) Coin, currencies, checks, money orders, and other forms of monies are received in the following ways:

(1) Received at the school by the staff they are responsible for turning in all



monies received on a daily basis to the School’s Business Specialist, Executive Director or Dean of Students. The School’s Business Specialist, Executive Director or Dean of Students is required to count all monies received in the presence of the staff and issue to the staff a pre-numbered cash receipt at that time.

(c) The cash receipts book has triplicate copies that shall be distributed as follows: original to payer; duplicate attached to the schools copy of the corresponding deposit slip; triplicate remains in the receipt book.

(d) If a receipt is voided, all copies shall be marked “VOID” and retained in the receipt book.

(e) All monies received must be kept in a locked drawer until they are deposited.

ii) Depositing

(a) All monies must be deposited into a checking account within 24 hours of being received.

(b) The Business Support Specialist is responsible for completing deposit slips.

(c) Deposits are made by the Business Office.

(d) A copy of the deposit slip, and all related cash receipts are filed together by date.

iii) Revenue Ledger

(a) All revenue entries are entered into the revenue ledger by the Business Support Specialist.

(b) Cash receipts issued from the School Business Office will be entered by referring to the triplicate copy of the cash receipt.

iv) Bank Reconciliations

(a) Bank reconciliation is performed on a monthly basis by the Business Manager.

(b) The bank statement is viewed online.

(c) The reconciliation will be completed on a monthly basis.

(d) All differences between Bank and Book will be posted in the month reconciled.

(e) The Executive Director will review and initial or sign the bank reconciliation after completion.

F) Student Activity Funds



i) Deposits

(a) Student Activity Funds are used to account for those resources owned, operated and managed by the student body, under guidance of a staff member or staff sponsor, for educational, recreational or cultural purposes. These funds are used for a wide range of activities that can include the school yearbook, student athletics or various student clubs.

(b) The staff sponsor must bring all monies collected to the Business Specialist for deposit by the end of the day of collection.

(c) Sponsors who fail to deliver funds to the School’s Business Support Specialist shall be reported to the Business Manager.

(d) The School’s Business Support Specialist will issue a pre-numbered cash receipt for the monies received, and record the receipt on a Student Activity Funds Log. The depositor is required to sign the log to signify the noted amount of deposited funds is accurate.

(e) Each check will be reviewed by the Business Support Specialist to ensure that the check is made out to Native American Community Academy.

(f) If a check is received that is not made out to Native American Community Academy, the Business Support Specialist will reach out to the issuer to request a new check.

(g) The School’s Business Specialist, Executive Director or Head of Schools will follow the normal deposit procedures when depositing Student Activity Funds.

(h) The Business Manager will reconcile the cash account on a monthly basis and report to the Executive Director.

ii) Disbursements

(a) Sponsors are responsible for submitting a requisition and all other appropriate documents to withdraw funds from their account.

(b) Sponsors are responsible for obtaining the Executive Director signature on the requisition, approving the withdrawal of funds, prior to submitting the request to the Business Office.

(c) Funds that are withdrawn shall be given to the adult sponsor; under no circumstances shall funds be released to individual students. Funds will be disbursed in the form of a check. Absolutely no cash will be given as a form of withdrawal.

(d) All excess change that results from a withdrawal shall be re-deposited in accordance with the deposit procedures above.



(e) When a prepayment must be made or a reimbursement is being claimed, the appropriate receipts or other supporting documents must be attached to substantiate the amount of the withdrawal. Again, funds that are not accounted for with receipts must be re-deposited.

(f) All goods purchased through Student Activities must follow the school’s procurement policies.

(g) Any balances remaining of the account name shall be carried over into the new fiscal year under the same account.

G) Journal Entries

i) All journal entries are made by the Business Manager. No journal Entries will be made by the Business Specialist.

ii) The Business Manager prepares a journal entry by completing journal entry form.

iii) The form, along with supporting documentation that justifies the journal entry is signed off by the Business Manager.

iv) The Executive Director must review the journal entry, ensure the accuracy of the account coding, enter the journal entry into the system and sign and date the journal entry form to signify that the entry was approved and posted.

v) Journal entry forms that have been approved are forwarded back to the school Business Office to be filed in the journal entry file in chronological order along with any supporting documentation.

H) Reporting

i) General Ledger

(a) The general ledger is a record containing the accounts needed to reflect the financial position and the results of operations of the school. Double-entry bookkeeping is utilized, and therefore the debits and credits in the general ledger equal.

(b) The school utilizes the New Mexico Public Education Department (PED) Uniform Chart of Accounts (UCOA).

(c) The Business Manager is responsible for maintaining the following journals:

(1) Cash Disbursement Journal

(2) Cash Receipts Journal

(3) Payroll Journal



(4) All other accounting data is summarized in the General Journal at month end

(d) These journals are all used to update the General Ledger (summary of accounts) at month-end.

ii) Financial Reporting

(a) All reports are generated by the Business Manager.

(b) The following reports are generated:

(1) Expenditure report

(2) Cash report

(3) Annual End of the year report

(c) All monthly and quarterly reports must be submitted to the state by the date due.

iii) Record Retention

(a) The school retains records in an orderly fashion, for time periods that comply with the State Records Retention Act.

(b) Filing at the school is performed and maintained by the School’s Business Specialist.

(c) Filing at the Business Office is performed and maintained by the Business Manager or the Business Support Specialist.

(d) All archived files, will be stored by category and date in filing boxes, and maintained in a locked room. The filing boxes will be clearly labeled indicating what files are in the box.

(e) The School’s Business Specialist are responsible for maintaining adequate and up-to-date records of where all records are maintained.

I) Account Reconciliations

i) Asset Account Reconciliations

(a) Asset accounts, which may include investments, inventory, prepaid expenses, travel advances, employee accounts receivable, etc., will be reconciled by the Business Manager on a quarterly basis. This reconciliation is necessary to make adjustments to the asset account to correct previous posting errors, to correct detail in the asset account as a result of the discovery of subsequent information about an account and other miscellaneous adjustments needed to bring the asset account



in agreement with the supporting detail.

(b) These asset accounts should first be reconciled to any supporting subsidiary ledgers. The subsidiary ledgers maintain the detail by individual transaction. All debt and credit entries to the individual subsidiary ledgers should be agreed to the total postings in the General Ledger for that period.

(c) Once the subsidiary ledgers have been reviewed, corrected and are deemed accurate, adjusting journal entries may be necessary to bring the General Ledger in agreement with the totals from the subsidiary ledgers. The information necessary to complete these adjusting journal entries will be uncovered during step #2 above.

ii) Liability Account Reconciliations

(a) Liability Accounts which may include payroll taxes payable, capital lease liability, accounts payable, etc., should be reconciled by the Business Manager on a monthly basis. This reconciliation is necessary to make adjustments to the asset account to correct previous posting errors, to correct detail in the asset account as a result of the discovery of subsequent information about an account and other miscellaneous adjustments needed to bring the liability account in agreement with the supporting detail.

(b) These liability accounts should first be reconciled to any supporting subsidiary ledgers. The subsidiary ledgers maintain the detail by individual transaction. All debt and credit entries to the individual subsidiary ledgers should be agreed to the total postings in the General Ledger for that period.

(c) Once the subsidiary ledgers have been reviewed, corrected and are deemed accurate, adjusting journal entries may be necessary to bring the General Ledger in agreement with the totals from the subsidiary ledgers. The information necessary to complete these adjusting journal entries will be uncovered during step #2 above.

(d) The Business Manager will maintain a separate file folder for each asset account, including reconciliations.

iii) Fund Balance Account Reconciliations

(a) Fund balance amounts represent the earnings that a fund has accumulated as a result of collecting more revenue that has been spent.

(b) A schedule should be developed at the end of the fiscal year summarizing the activity that gave rise to the fund balance. This schedule should identify the revenues and expenditures for each program and the related fund balance created. A budget should then be established to plan for the subsequent disbursement of a positive fund balance or for the collection of revenues to eliminate a negative fund balance.



(c) The following format can be used for reconciliation of the fund balance account:

Beginning Fund Balance (XXXXXXXX)

Current Year Revenues (XXXXXXXX)

Current Year Expenditures XXXXXXXX

Ending Fund Balance (XXXXXXXX)

iv) Expenditure Account Reconciliations

(a) Expenditures should be reconciled by the Business Manager on a monthly basis. This reconciliation is used to verify the amounts listed as expended in each account line item. It should reveal any data entry posting errors.

(b) The Business Manager will print a detailed general ledger for the year, listing all expenditure line items.

(c) All supporting documentation (expense voucher packages) will be examined to determine if each item was correctly posted to the appropriate general ledger account.

(d) A schedule will be developed for each account, listing the date, vendor, description and amount for each general ledger posting.

(e) The total listing of the schedule listing should agree to the general ledger balance.

VI) End of Year Reporting Financial Reporting

(A) Accounts Receivable

(a)Year-end accounts receivable will be recorded by completing the June RfR submission spreadsheet.

(b) Final RfR’s that are submitted at the end of June and beginning of July will be recorded on the spreadsheet.

(c)HB-33 and SB-9 deposits that are received in July will be recorded as accounts receivable.

(d) All awards received in July will be verified by the Business Manager to determine if the Grant period is for the current or previous fiscal year.

(B) Accounts Payable

(a) Invoices that are processed from July through September will be reviewed by the Business Manager to determine if the services were provided in the current



year or previous year.

(b) Invoices received in July through September for services provided in the previous fiscal year will be processed as Direct payments. Direct payments will reference the previous year’s Purchase Order and will be coded to the same account code.

(c) Once Direct Payments are issued, the Business Manager will compile a list of all accounts payable to submit during the audit.