LINCOLN PARISH SCHOOL BOARD

Ruston, Louisiana

REGULAR SESSION

Tuesday, November 4, 2014   6:00 p.m.

The Lincoln Parish School Board met in Regular Session on Tuesday, November 4, 2014, at 6:00 p.m. at the Lincoln Parish School Board, 410 South Farmerville Street, Ruston, Louisiana.  Members present were Ms. Debbie Abrahm, Mr. Otha Anders, Mr. Michael Barmore, Ms. Lisa Best, Mr. Curtis Dowling, Mr. Danny Hancock, Ms. Mattie Harrison, Ms. Lynda Henderson, Mr. Trott Hunt, Mr. Eddie Jones (arrived after the meeting began), Mr. George Mack, Jr., and Mr. Joe Mitcham.

No board member was absent.

President Anders called the meeting to order.  The invocation was given by Mr. Mitcham, and Ms. Abrahm led in the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag. 

Mr. Eddie Jones entered the meeting.

Mr. Anders welcomed board members, staff, members of the media, and special guests.

Upon a motion by Mr. Barmore, seconded by Ms. Harrison, the Board unanimously voted to adopt the agenda as printed.

Upon a motion by Mr. Hancock, seconded by Ms. Best, the Board unanimously voted to approve the minutes of the Regular Session held on October 7, 2014.

Superintendent Danny Bell said the school system has moved through another year of accountability.  He was proud of all of the principals and their school leadership teams who work very hard along with their fine staffs.  Mr. Bell was especially elated to recognize a dynamic leader whose school scored well and made her eligible to receive a monetary performance award.    He presented a check to Lisa Bastion, principal of Choudrant High School, which was a top gain school.  Her 7^th – 12^th grade school maintained an “A” letter grade and grew 5.7 points.  Mr. Bell expressed his pride in the six-year veteran and her staff’s extra-ordinary efforts and the incredible job they are doing.  Mrs. Bastion thanked the Superintendent and Board for their recognition of Choudrant High School and said it was her pleasure to work in Lincoln Parish. Mr. Anders was also delighted to commend Mrs. Bastion and her faculty and staff.  He read quotes from a few staff members describing how she truly cares about each student and their success while engaging and inspiring her teachers.  Mr. Anders charged the called educator to continue to do the great things she’s doing for the students at Choudrant High School.

In the fall of each year, results of spring testing are released.  Accountability Coordinator, Donna Doss, explained how school performance scores were calculated for the different grades/schools following a year of fully aligned Common Core state standards and PARCC testing.  After noting that Glen View Elementary and Hillcrest Elementary shared their receiving schools’ (Cypress Springs and Ruston Elementary) letter grades, she communicated the following:

                                                School                         Letter Grade

                        Choudrant Elementary                           B

                        Choudrant High School                          A

                        Cypress Springs Elementary                  C

                        Dubach School                                      C

                        Glen View Elementary                           C

                        Hillcrest Elementary                               D

                        I. A. Lewis                                             B

                        Ruston Elementary                                D

                        Ruston High School                               B

                        Ruston Junior High                                B

                        Simsboro School                                   B

Letter grades throughout the district remained fairly steady with one school, I. A. Lewis, moving from a “C” to a “B,” and Hillcrest Elementary and Ruston Elementary were only 7/10 of a point from a “C.”  She explained that elementary schools with grades 3 - 7 are not eligible for bonus points, making it more difficult for them to improve their letter grades.  Additionally, scores for schools with grades 9 – 12 are calculated with four 25% parts:  assessment, ACT, graduation index, and graduation rate.  The District Performance Score increased from 94.2 to 94.3 and earned Lincoln Parish an upper “B,” the #2 slot in the Northeast Region of Louisiana, and #3 in the Northern Region of Louisiana.  Ms. Doss commended the principals and their staffs as they diligently strive to provide all students with a quality education.

                        Following that, Sherry Boyd, Elementary Supervisor, shared what is being done to work on weaknesses in the elementary area.  Ricky Edmiston, Secondary Supervisor, shared what is being done in the social studies area of the 6^th through 12^th grades.  Emily Howell, teacher at Ruston High, spoke about the English portion, and Brenda Lofton, teacher at Ruston High, explained plans for teaching math.  All of them assured the Board that teachers and administrators are studying, collaborating, and working extremely hard to meet the imposing challenges of the Common Core state standards and the PARCC testing.

Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Programs, Mary Null, continued with a personnel report.  She communicated the:

                        1.              Retirement of Sonja Walker, principal at Ruston Elementary, effective December 1, 2014. 

                        2.              Points of Reference/Transfers of:

Amy Brister, from Coordinating Teacher to Interim Principal at Ruston Elementary effective December 1, 2014; and

Mandy Brown, from Teacher to Interim Coordinating Teacher at Ruston Elementary effective December 1, 2014.

                        3.   Employment of Vonda Madden as Secretary at Ruston Elementary effective January 4, 2015, replacing Natasha Ellis who transferred.

                        4.   Employment of Melissa Owens as Custodian at Cypress Springs effective October 20, 2014, replacing Howard Drayton who retired.

                        5.   Resignation of Bus Driver in the Dubach area, Al Williamson, effective October 16, 2014.

                        6.   Resignation of Arlene Simonton, Technician at Glen View, effective October 17, 2014.

                        7.   Employment of Trayson Hargrove as Technician at Glen View effective October 27, 2014, replacing Arlene Simonton who resigned.

                        Mr. Anders and Mr. Bell congratulated Sonja Walker on her retirement and thanked her for providing outstanding dedication and 28 years of service to the children in the school system.  Mr. Bell introduced the following faculty members at Ruston Elementary who were in attendance:  Amy Brister, Jasmine Hall (Curriculum Strategist), and Mandy Brown. 

                        Sales tax collections for the month ending October 31, 2014, were $1,419,928 which was up 14.39% compared to the same month last year and 7.86% year-to-date, according to George Murphy, Business Manager. For the month, $41,953 was recovered by audits which was up 127% year-to-date. In the 1967 and 1979 sales tax fund, $645,422 was collected, and $774,506 was added to the 1993 and 2000 funds.  He said the primary reason for the increase in the monthly sales taxes was oil and gas exploration, which may or may not continue.

                        Moving on to the September 2014 financial update, Mr. Murphy said the Total Fund Balance was down about $800,000 from the previous month and $1.6 million compared to September 2013. The general fund was up to $3.3 million.  As already reported, the sales tax funds were doing well.  Monies will begin to come in for the ad valorem funds toward the end of the year.

George Murphy noted the self-insured health care fund was down $165,326 for the month of September 2014, but up $1,164,846 year-to-date.

In a construction update, David Crowe, Coordinator of Auxiliary Services, narrated pictures of the Cypress Springs and I. A. Lewis renovation and construction projects that were progressing well.

                        A draft of a seven page Capital Outlay Plan was distributed by Superintendent Bell.  He said the plan, which was being unveiled prior to consideration by the Building and Grounds Committee later in the month, was developed with input from the principals.  Building and ground improvements and additions for the thirteen schools and the purchase of buses were charted for the next five years.  Without including items from the 2013 Ruston School District #1 bond issue, the total proposed expenditures by year were:

                                    Year                             Total Expenditure

                                    2014                                $3,381,200

                                    2015                                $3,712,000

                                    2016                                $1,938,000

                                    2017                                $1,891,000

                                    2018                                $1,894,500   

                                    2019                                $1,775,000     

                        Making his annual request to purchase new buses to continue to provide a safe and efficient bus service for the students and to adequately meet the demands of extracurricular activities was James Payton, Transportation Coordinator.  He estimated six buses to cost $450,000, and said if approved, monies would be taken from the 1993 millage allocated for the purchase of buses.  Mr. Payton was proud to note that 75% of the fleet of buses was ten years of age or less.

                        Upon a motion by Mr. Dowling, seconded by Ms. Henderson, the Board unanimously voted to grant permission to advertise for bids for the purchase of six new conventional school buses.

Three bids were opened on October 30, 2014, for the lighting for the Ruston High baseball field.  David Crowe communicated that the bidders were Albritton Service Company, Wye Electric, and UCS Power Utility Construction, LLC.  Albrittons was determined as the low bidder with a base bid of $149,500 and an additive alternate bid of $23,500.  Because the total was slightly under what was originally believed to be bid for the project, acceptance of Albritton’s bid would also permit the erection of new poles, racks, fixtures, and provide ample lights to bring the lumens to an acceptable level for evening play; therefore, Mr. Crowe asked the Board to accept their base bid and alternate.

Upon a motion by Mr. Jones, seconded by Ms. Abrahm, the Board unanimously voted to accept the low base bid of $149,500 with an additive alternate of $23,500 submitted by Albritton Service Company for a total of $173,000 for the Ruston High School baseball field lighting project.

            Revision of ten policies, ABCC-Term of Office, BCBB–Notification of School Board Meetings, BCBD–Agenda Preparation and Dissemination, BCBK–Executive Sessions, BCBH–Minutes of School Board Meetings, EDD–School Bus Scheduling and Routing, GBRJ–Substitute Personnel, ID–Curriculum, JBC–School Admission, and JBH–Attendance Reports for Student Drivers, and the addition of one new policy, IFA–Instructional Materials, were voiced by Mary Null.  She asked board members to study the proposed policy changes until the next meeting.

            As a result of ongoing renovation and construction projects throughout the parish, several items of surplus property have accumulated.  In addition, Mr. Crowe indicated the storage facility is over crowded with old school furniture, old model TV’s, kitchen items, a snack vending machine, and other equipment.  In order to make room for the remainder of the maintenance supplies at the storage facility, he asked permission to declare the afore-mentioned items as surplus and dispose of them.

                        Mr. Murphy said there was also some scrap metal and other items in the back of the Central Office that he’d like to add to the list of surplus property.

                        Upon a motion by Ms. Best, seconded by Mr. Mitcham, the Board unanimously voted to declare the above-mentioned items as surplus and dispose of them in accordance with board policy, state bid law, and in a prudent manner.

                        After one question and a motion by Ms. Best, the meeting adjourned at 7:08 p.m.

_______________________________   _______________________________

Danny L. Bell, Secretary                        Otha L. Anders, President