Apr 11, 2025 | J-KOA April 2025 BOD Meeting

Attendees: Koya, Toni, Andrea, Devi, Lily, Oscar, Erin, Erik, Humberto, Kayla

Excused: Alexandria, Amy

Notes

• Icebreaker: one word about how you're doing followed by a word on where you're headed

  • Koya: Jumbled, Sharp/Focused

  • Andrea: Thrilled, Bed

  • Devi: Tired, to Innovation

  • Lily: Trying, Thriving

  • Oscar: One Direction, New Directions

  • Erin: Chaos, Progress

  • Erik: In-Limbo, Hopefulness

  • Humberto: Good, Planning

  • Kayla: Scrambled, Steady

  • Toni: Exhausted, Forward

• TEKS 2025-2026 planning including CUPS, APS, and ACC collaborations and joint J-KOA, SACNAS, and BGSA efforts (35 min)

  • CUPS Collaboration

    • Initial Plan: Work with their year 7 and 10 Students, help bring their students into the regional science fair/county fair

    • Current Ask: We would be teaching/facilitating their students instead of running our program with them 

      • $6000 allocated for our support

      • Working with 60 Students

      • Run a lecture, then a demo–2.5 hour sessions

      • Changes our context! We are not trained teachers

      • Do we want to continue with our collaboration? Modify?

        • Is there new restrictions?

        • Doable, but more clarity needed–if they’re changing our role, there needs to be more of a backbone provided from CUPS; otherwise it feels like more work on us that we’re not necessarily trained in

        • Do they have curriculum we’re expected to teach or do we need to develop our own curriculum?

        • Cups provides general topics and then we build around them–how early to we receive the topics?

        • What benefits would the 10th graders receive from this?

        • Would be more comfortable if we worked with just the 10th graders with their ask with future planning for the fair

        • We need a clear set of expectations and curriculum from CUPS, not simply a “it’s on the website” response

  • APS/ACC Collaboration

    • Hosted 2 science fairs that help students qualify for DMRSEF

    • Need help with Mentorship!

    • What we need help with to help with mentorship: Transportation!

    • Ideal location: Aurora Community Connections (ACC)

      • Would help with summer sessions like we have in the past

      • PI Training Program

      • Run TEKS out of ACC

        • MAX Service: 3 Schools to start

        • APS offers College Credit for certain program participation; up for consideration: help students earn college credit for participation in TEKS

  • Joint J-KOA, SACNAS and BGSA Efforts

    • Goal: Submit a Publication between all three organizations on Outreach/Communication (SACNAS), Mentorship (J-KOA) and Career Development (BGSA)

  • Nonprofit Status

    • Considering approaching ACC to be a sponsor while we work on establishing our independent status

    • Koya to establish plan and follow up with us 

• TEKS debrief on CSEF 

  • Jerry won a cash prize at State!!

• Dr. Maunakea visit: collaboration with PrIME and SACNAS with vote to approve funding (10 min)

  • Professor from University of Hawaii in their Cancer Dept

  • Asked us to welcome Dr. Maunakea on this day (May 23)

    • Lunch hosted by PRIME

    • Community gathering in the evening with orgs, 

    • Proposal: J-KOA to sponsor dinner; make lei to gift him with collaborative orgs

      • In Favor: All

      • Opposed: 0

• Storage update

  • Tabled for next meeting!

• Nominations and elections update: candidacy announcements and professional advisory council ratification and nomination (10 min)

  • Announcing candidates this month!

    • J-KOA, Aurora KOA, Bay Area KOA

    • You have until May 1 to accept or reject your nomination!

    • Email notifications for nominations will be sent out within 24 hours!