LINCOLN PARISH SCHOOL BOARD
Ruston, Louisiana
REGULAR SESSION
Tuesday, May 8, 2007 6:00 p.m.
The Lincoln Parish School Board met in Regular Session on Tuesday, May 8, 2007, at 6:00 p.m. in the Board Room of the Lincoln Parish School Board Office, 410 South Farmerville Street, Ruston, Louisiana. Members present were Mr. Otha Anders, Mr. Michael Barmore, Ms. Lisa Best (arrived after the meeting began), Mr. Curtis Dowling, Ms. Mattie Harrison, Ms. Lynda Henderson, Mr. Trott Hunt, Mr. Eddie Jones, Mr. Jim Kessler, Mr. George Mack, Mr. Ted McKinney, and Mr. Joe Mitcham.
No board member was absent.
President Otha Anders called the meeting to order and the invocation was given by Mr. Hunt. Ms. Henderson led in the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag. Mr. Anders welcomed board members, staff, members of the press, persons of special recognition, state champions, members of the interview committee, and others present for the meeting.
Upon a motion by Mr. Barmore, seconded by Mr. McKinney, the Board unanimously voted by roll call to adopt the agenda after deleting one item of New Business, Contract with Architect for Choudrant School District No. 6 Capital Improvements.
Upon a motion by Mr. Kessler, seconded by Mr. Jones, the Board unanimously voted to approve the minutes of the Regular Session held on April 10, 2007, as submitted.
The Outstanding School Support Employee Awards Program provides an opportunity to honor outstanding employees in the elementary, middle, and high school levels who support and provide leadership in the operation of non instructional activities within the school system according to Superintendent Danny Bell. He reviewed the selection procedure and presented plaques to the following in order to recognize their contributions to the Lincoln Parish School System:
Aleshia Smith Elementary Paraprofessional at Lincoln Center
George Bolton Junior High Custodian at Ruston Jr. High
Arthur Thomas High School Maintenance in all schools
Otha Anders offered congratulations to the hard working support employees for their roll in the educational system.
Recognizing the first 5A state champions for Ruston High School (RHS) in softball was a pleasure for Secondary Supervisor, Ricky Edmiston. He offered congratulations to the girls and shared their record and details regarding their trek to the finals. Mr. Edmiston commended them for their hard work, dedication, discipline, team work, and for coming together to make it happen. He thanked the coaches for stepping up, working hard, being dedicated, and taking the girls to the state championship. He was elated to present Head Coach Ricky Goulart with a plaque in recognition of his team’s accomplishments. In addition he introduced Assistant Coaches Amanda Ortigo and Linda Fowler to those present.
Coach Goulart thanked the Board for the recognition and said the girls definitely deserved it. For the senior girls this was a culmination of four years of hard work. An abundance of talent has come through the RHS softball program; however, these girls came together to win the championship as a team. He was pleased to introduce the team.
Mr. Bell and Mr. Anders voiced congratulations to the coaches, the girls on the team, and to their parents. They verbalized their appreciation to the team for representing the board and school district quite well.
Ms. Best arrived for the meeting as the team departed.
Bids received for the RHS capital improvements program were opened and reviewed on April 24, 2007. Mr. Owens indicated that three qualified bids from Traxler, Lincoln Builders, and Triad were received. Traxler came out as low bidder with a base bid of $7,763,000 as well as the three additive alternates, $109,000 for #1, $191,000 for #2, and $370,000 for #3; therefore, he asked for acceptance of their base bid and the three alternates.
Architect on the Project, Mike Walpole, said the system was fortunate in the bids in his opinion. The bids including the additive alternates were actually about 1% less than the cost estimate he prepared back in December 2006. He was pleased with the bids and with the contractors. Traxler, the low bidder, is familiar with the work as they have been successful with four (counting this job) out of the six that have been bid. They have done good work up to this point, in his opinion, and he has no reason to believe that they wouldn’t do a good job on this project as well. It was also his recommendation that the base bid and the three alternates be accepted.
Upon a motion by Mr. Mack, seconded by Mr. Jones, the Board unanimously voted to accept and approve Traxler Construction Co., Inc., as the low bidder and contractor for ”r;Project E,” Ruston School District capital improvements program, and to include additive alternates #1, #2, and #3 in the acceptance.
In order to comply with the Louisiana Election code, the Board must canvass the results of the unsuccessful Choudrant School District No. 6 bond and millage special election on Saturday, May 5, 2007, according to George Murphy, Business Manager. Total votes cast were: 440 IN FAVOR OF and 749 AGAINST Proposition No. 1; therefore, it was DEFEATED by a majority of 309 votes; and, 441 IN FAVOR OF Proposition No. 2 and 731 AGAINST Proposition No. 2, therefore, it was DEFEATED by a majority of 290 votes.
Upon a motion by Ms. Best, seconded by Mr. Jones, the Board unanimously voted to canvass the returns and declare the results of the special election for the Choudrant School District No. 6 on Saturday, May 5, 2007.
A foundation is being formed to oversee and ensure that the proceeds from the sale of Lincoln General Hospital are expended in an appropriate manner to benefit the citizens of the parish. Mr. Anders communicated that the Board, the Policy Jury, and the parish mayors have been asked to select an individual to represent their agency or group on the foundation board. The appointment would be for the next four years or unless otherwise stipulated by the foundation’s representative or by-laws. He shared his and the superintendent’s recommendation of Mrs. Jo Tatum, who served as a board member in the recent past and is also a retired school nurse.
Upon a motion by Ms. Best, seconded by Mr. Dowling, the Board unanimously voted to appoint Mrs. Jo Tatum to serve as the representative for the Lincoln Parish School Board on the Lincoln Parish Health Foundation Board.
Making her annual request for permission to distribute letters of continued employment on the last day of school was Director of Instruction, Personnel, and Special Programs, Mary Null.
Upon a motion by Mr. Jones, seconded by Ms. Henderson, the Board unanimously voted to grant permission to distribute letters of continued employment for the 07-08 school year.
The Board served as a Committee of the Whole and the following Personnel Committee agenda items were considered after Mary Null presented items 1.-4. and School Food Service Supervisor, Earlene Jackson, presented 5.-8.:
Four qualified applicants were interviewed by Donna Doss, Ricky Edmiston, Foster Harris, Barbara Kirkland, and Charles Owens for the principal positions at Dubach High and Ruston High.
Chairman of the Interview Committee, Mary Null, said the top three highest scoring applicants for Dubach High and the top two highest scoring applicants for Ruston High in numerical order were:
Dubach High - Judy Mabry, Cecil Barham, and CheKelah Weaver
Ruston High - Mike Milstead and Cecil Barham
She shared the unanimous recommendation of the Interview Committee and Danny Bell to name Judy Mabry principal of Dubach High and Mike Milstead principal of Ruston High.
Upon a motion by Ms. Harrison, seconded by Mr. Mitcham, the Board unanimously voted to name Judy Mabry principal of Dubach High and Mike Milstead principal of Ruston High effective July 1, 2007.
President Anders welcomed the twosome to the positions, wished them well, and said the Board is behind them as they carry out their job descriptions. He challenged them to the task of improving every aspect of their schools.
Superintendent Bell said the difficulty of the principals’ job is well known. He has some initiatives that are hopefully going to be moving the schools forward. While a great faculty is also needed, the principal must be a hard worker, creative, and a thinker in order to make sure that all students are reaching their potential and that none slip through the cracks. He challenged all of the principals in attendance to be that kind of principal.
1. Retirement of the following:
Barbara Barham, English teacher at Ruston High, effective May 28, 2007.
Nina Boddie, school secretary at I. A. Lewis, effective September 22, 2007.
3. Resignation of the following:
Lindsey Crawford, English teacher at Dubach High, effective May 28, 2007.
Helen Sears, special education aide at Lincoln Center, effective May 25, 2007.
4. Points of Reference/Transfers of the following:
Remonia Hudson from RHS to a new pre GED/options counselor slot at Career Academy, effective August 1, 2007.
Paula Pardue from RHS to a new secondary/academic coordinator position at the central office, effective July 1, 2007.
Diana Humphries from Simsboro High to counselor at Ruston High, effective August 1, 2007, replacing Remonia Hudson who transferred.
Angie Taylor from Simsboro High to school secretary at Ruston Junior High, effective August 2, 2007, replacing Marjorie Berguson who retired.
5. Retirement of Lynell Bryant, school food service technician, effective May 25, 2007.
6. Resignation of the following school food service employees:
Darcie Guidry, clerk at Hillcrest, effective April 10, 2007.
Karen Welch, clerk at Simsboro, effective May 24, 2007.
7. Point of Reference/Transfer of the following school food service employees effective August 16, 2007:
Nancy Calhoun from RHS to technician at Hico replacing Lynell Bryant who retired.
Glenda Samuel from Cypress Springs to technician at Ruston Elementary replacing Debra Jordan who transferred.
Debra Jordan from Ruston Elementary to technician at Cypress Springs replacing Glenda Samuel who transferred.
Julia Norman from Cypress Springs to technician at RHS replacing Sheri Roane who transferred.
8. Employment of the following effective August 1, 2007, unless otherwise noted:
Theresa Roane as manager/clerk at Dubach High, effective June 1, 2007, replacing Denise Thomas who resigned.
Dana Rushing as clerk at Hillcrest replacing Darcie Guidry who resigned.
Sherri Roane as clerk at Simsboro replacing Karen Welch who resigned.
Debbie Staples as clerk at I. A. Lewis replacing Regina Rice who transferred.
Jan Smith as technician at Hillcrest, effective August 16, 2007, replacing Dana Rushing who promoted.
Upon a motion by Mr. Dowling, seconded by Mr. Barmore, the Board unanimously voted to accept the 2. - 8. personnel recommendations as presented.
Mr. McKinney brought a packet of materials for each member back from the NSBA convention he recently attended in California. He summarized the experience and said in conclusion that he highly recommended that the Board develop a policy for sending a representative to the meeting each year. He believes the exposure and knowledge are worth the expense.
Mr. Hunt and Mr. Jones suggested that the Board proceed with Mr. McKinney’s recommendation to begin a process of attendance at the NSBA convention. Mr. Anders said that the matter would be looked into.
At this point in the meeting Jim Kessler thanked the voters in the Choudrant School District who supported propositions in the recent bond issue and millage election. He also commented on what he perceived to be the cause of their defeat.
Sales taxes collected for the period ending April 30, 2007, totaled $1,413,641. This was a 27.09% increase from the previous month in the previous year. Year to date the collections were up 18.54%. Recoveries through audits for the month were $46,653 which brought the year to date total to $493,295. Compared to last year the fund was up 69.258%. For the month $642,565 was collected in the ’r;67 and ’r;79 fund and $771,076 was collected in the ’r;93 and ’r;00 fund.
Moving on to the financial statement for March 2007, Mr. Murphy called attention to a spreadsheet which showed all of the funds for the year. The General Fund was up $3,797,323 year to date. The 5 mill maintenance fund was up $268,689. The child nutrition fund was close to the amount that was budgeted for the year. The’67, ’79, ’93, and ’00 sales tax funds were all doing well this year. The ’93 and ’00 ad valorem tax funds were both showing positive balances at the time. Dubach, Ruston, and Simsboro M & O funds were also showing positive ending fund balances.
In a Report of the Superintendent, Mr. Bell said:
1. His scheduled meeting with Interim State Superintendent of Education, Paul Pastorek, and other superintendents from North Louisiana brought Mr. Pastorek’s focal points to light. They include high school redesign, pre-kindergarten expansion, teacher pay increases, and pay increases based on performance. Mr. Bell noted that he was against the hold harmless monies benefiting some parishes through the MFP calculations. The superintendent plans to be more accessible to the parish-wide superintendents and to make a sustainable impact on public education in the state. His interim appointment ends in January 2008.
2. Even though a grant application has been submitted, he hasn’t heard if the system will be receiving LA 4 funds for a pre-kindergarten class at Simsboro. It would be a pilot program while waiting for Pastorek to reduce some of the prekindergarten restrictions. He is also looking at adding an additional prekindergarten class within the Ruston District through Title I. He’s formed an advisory group that will start meeting later in the week to look at prekindergarten in the district and where the system might need to go
3. That a reception for 06-07 retirees would be held prior to the June 5 board meeting at 5:45 p.m. in the lobby.
4. A graduation schedule was included in packets and members are invited to attend.
5. Choudrant boys will play in the baseball playoffs at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, May 11, in Alexandria. As a result school at Choudrant Elementary and Choudrant High School will be dismissed for a half day on Friday.
Following brief comments, the meeting adjourned at 7:39 p.m.
________________________ __________________________
Danny L. Bell, Secretary Otha L. Anders, President