LINCOLN PARISH SCHOOL BOARD
Ruston, Louisiana
REGULAR SESSION
Tuesday, September 4, 2018 6:00 p.m.
The Lincoln Parish School Board met in Regular Session on Tuesday, September 4, 2018, 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 Ms. Debbie Abrahm, Mr. Otha Anders, Mr. Mike Barmore, Mr. Curtis Dowling, Mr. David Ferguson, Mr. Danny Hancock, Ms. Lynda Henderson, Mr. Trott Hunt, Mr. George Mack, Jr., Mr. Joe Mitcham, and Ms. Susan Wiley.
Ms. Lisa Best was absent.
President Mitcham called the meeting to order, and Ms. Abrahm gave the invocation. Mr. Barmore led in the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag. Mr. Mitcham welcomed those in attendance. He introduced Mr. Hunter Smith, newly elected board member representing District #7. Mr. Smith’s term will begin January 2019, replacing Mr. Hunt who chose not to run for re-election.
Upon a motion by Mr. Anders, seconded by Mr. Barmore, the Board unanimously voted to adopt the agenda as printed.
Upon a motion by Mr. Barmore, seconded by Ms. Henderson, the Board unanimously voted to approve the minutes of the Regular Session held on August 7, 2018, as submitted.
Following a month of studying two policy revisions, Lisa Bastion, Assistant Superintendent/Chief Academic Officer, asked board members to approve the proposed changes to the policy manual.
Upon a motion by Ms. Abrahm, seconded by Ms. Wiley, the Board unanimously voted to approve revisions to Student Dress Code – JCDB and Administration of Medication – JGCD.
George Murphy, Business Manager, proposed that the salary supplement checks for November 2018 be $3,000 for certificated personnel and $1,500 for support personnel, which were the same amounts as last year.
Upon a motion by Mr. Hancock, seconded by Mr. Dowling, the Board unanimously voted to approve the payment of salary supplements on November 16, 2018, in the amounts of $3,000 to certificated personnel and $1,500 to support personnel.
Rik Cason, Transportation Supervisor, requested permission to purchase four conventional buses and one special needs lift bus through the state contract process. He expressed this was to replace aging buses in the fleet. He also communicated that this purchase would continue to provide a safe and efficient bus service for the students of Lincoln Parish. The estimated total cost was $400,000.00, and funds would be taken from the 1993 millage allocated for the purchase of buses.
Upon a motion by Mr. Dowling, seconded by Mr. Mack, the Board unanimously voted to grant permission to purchase four new conventional school buses and one new special needs lift bus through the state contract process.
Superintendent Mike Milstead communicated that the Head Start building burned in October 2017, and we had been negotiating since that time regarding the insurance settlement. It had been a long process, but not rushing into a settlement had been to our advantage. The initial offer was $98.00 per square foot, approximately $2.6 million. By negotiating with the insurance company over a 10 month period, we were able to arrive at a final settlement of $220.00 per square foot, approximately $4.5 million.
Mr. Murphy acknowledged Ricky Edmiston, Supervisor of Auxiliary Services, for the speed in which his department secured and cleaned up the burn site. He also commended Mike Walpole, LPSB architect, for his time and diligence in going “line by line” with the insurance company making sure LPSB received a fair settlement. After a question by Mr. Anders regarding the time line for utilizing the funds from the settlement, Mr. Murphy reported the settlement must be used by September 4, 2020.
Upon a motion by Mr. Anders, and seconded by Barmore, the Board unanimously voted to accept the insurance settlement offer of $4,511,660.64 from FM Global received by email dated August 10, 2018. This settlement pertained to the destroyed Head Start facility which belonged to LPSB. The amount does not include expenses of $500,000 associated with the burn site.
James Payton, New Construction Coordinator, stated that most of the work on the RHS scoreboard was complete. At this time it was necessary to request formal permission from the Board to execute substantial completion on the project based on the recommendations of the architect after his preparation of the final punch list and other appropriate documents. An amount of $5,000 would be withheld from the final payment for punch list items. Substantial completion means the owner can use the scoreboard and the owner becomes responsible for insurance.
Upon a motion by Mr. Hunt, and seconded by Ms. Abrahm, the Board unanimously voted to grant permission and authorize the Superintendent, his staff, and the architect to execute the substantial completion documents for the scoreboard at Ruston High School.
Mr. Murphy reported the Board owns six different parcels of land and approximately 12.5 total acres that the administration was requesting the Louisiana State Mineral and Energy Board to facilitate executing oil, gas, and mineral leases. He introduced Lewis Jones, Assistant District Attorney assigned to the LPSB, who had prepared a resolution regarding the leases and was available to answer questions. There were no questions from the public or the Board.
Upon a motion by Mr. Hunt, seconded by Mr. Anders, the Board unanimously voted by roll call to approve the Resolution which was read in full by Mr. Murphy:
Resolution
Authorizing the Louisiana State Mineral and Energy Board to act on behalf of the Lincoln Parish School Board, to accept nominations, advertise for, accept and award bids, and execute oil, gas, and mineral leases and allow the Board President and/or the Superintendent to sign the Resolution on behalf of the Lincoln Parish School Board.
In the absence of Mr. Edmiston, Mr. Ricky Durrett, Secondary Supervisor, communicated that Choudrant High School had items that were no longer needed, 70 desks and 2 windows. He asked permission to declare the items as surplus.
After a motion by Ms. Henderson, seconded by Ms. Wiley, the Board unanimously voted to declare the items as surplus and dispose of them in accordance with state law and local policies.
Ms. Bastion asked board members to study two new policies, EBBB – School and Student Safety and JGCF – Behavioral Health Services for Students and the revisions to EBBC - Emergency/Crisis Management until the October meeting.
The State Department of Insurance had issued guidelines related to Uninsured Motorist coverage. Mr. Murphy communicated that each school system was required to include in board minutes a consent item authorizing the Superintendent to sign the Uninsured Motorist form; therefore, he asked the Board to adopt a Resolution authorizing the same.
Upon a motion by Mr. Hancock, seconded by Mr. Barmore, the Board unanimously voted to adopt the Resolution authorizing the Superintendent to sign the Uninsured Motorist form.
President Mitcham said the Finance Committee met prior to the start of the Regular Session at 5:45 p.m. He declared a time of public hearing for the proposed budget for year ending June 30, 2019.
In the absence of Chairperson Lisa Best, Mr. Mitcham said the Business Manager had presented the proposed budget to the Finance Committee. He turned the floor over to Mr. Murphy to summarize what was discussed.
Mr. George Murphy called attention to Exhibit “A” and pointed out the anticipated fund balance to be $29.6 million at year end, June 30, 2019. This included a deficit of $2,168,000. He stated there are a number of reasons for this and they are doing what they can to keep the deficient as low as possible. He noted there are things that need to be done this next year to keep this from happening again.
He asked for questions or comments. Mr. Murphy answered several questions and heard comments from the Board and the public.
Mr. Mitcham shared the Committee’s recommendation to adopt the proposed beginning budget for the year ending June 30, 2019.
The Board unanimously voted by roll call to adopt the 2018-2019 proposed budget as presented and grant permission for the administration to amend the budget as needed throughout the year and bring a final revised budget to the board for approval at year end.
The time for public hearing was closed.
Ms. Bastion reported things were going well with the start of the 2018-2019 school year, with few concerns or complaints. The beginning of school looked a little different this year with only 3 professional development days, adding 1½ days of instruction for the students. She stated numbers were down about 127 students compared to the same time last year with a little over 5,600 students as of August 31.
A personnel report was the next item on the agenda. Dr. Doris Lewis, Human Resources Director, voiced the following:
1. Retirement of Steve Barber, transition facilitator at Ruston High, effective January 7, 2019.
2. Resignation of the following:
Amy Owens, teacher at Cypress Springs, effective August 6, 2018;
Sandi Singleton, special education teacher at Glenview, effective August 16, 2018; and
Ashley Talbert, pre-k teacher at LPECC, effective August 6, 2018.
3. Employment of the following effective August 13, 2018, unless otherwise noted:
Matthew Sumrall, teacher at Cypress Springs, replacing Kendall Garner who resigned;
Kimberly Robison, teacher at Dubach Elementary effective August 20, 2018, new position due to increased kindergarten numbers;
Patrick Wright, teacher at I. A. Lewis, replacing Dalton Hamby who resigned;
Tammy Avery, family & consumer science teacher at Ruston High, replacing Mariam Stone who resigned; and
Mary deMarigny, ELA teacher at Ruston High, replacing Laura Thompson who resigned.
4. Point of Reference of Harryette Tinsley from business teacher to transition facilitator at Ruston High, replacing Steve Barber who is retiring, effective July 30, 2018.
5. Employment of Nicky Barham, maintenance technician at central office, effective August 20, 2018, due to a new position,
6. Point of Reference of Sammie Singleton, from Youth Rescue Center to custodian at Cypress Springs effective August 8, 2018, replacing Herbert Wilson who transferred.
7. Resignation of Tonya Scott, bus driver in the Ruston area, effective August 22, 2018.
8. Employment of Jacob Simmons, bus driver in the Ruston area, effective August 22, 2018, replacing Tonya Scott who resigned.
Mr. Payton narrated several photographs and gave the following construction update:
1. Work was continuing at the STEM site. This is a one year project and should be complete by June 2019. The facility will be used parish-wide. The grade beams are being installed and the slab should be poured by the end of September.
2. Six new light poles were to be installed at the Choudrant High School baseball complex, all are on site. Two 80’ poles have been installed, with four 70’ poles still to be installed. The job should be complete by the end of the week.
3. A Choudrant High School addition that is about six years old had damage to the fascia of the building due to poor design and construction. It had been constructed with nylon, mesh, styrofoam, and plaster. Birds had begun to peck holes, as much as three inches in diameter, which were unsightly and had caused water to run into the building. The fascia has been re-constructed using concrete, mesh, metal studs, and cement. Sheet metal had also been replaced that did not fit properly.
Sales tax collections for the first two months ending August 2018 were down 9.68%, according to George Murphy. Recoveries through audits year-to-date were $38,676.
Although June and July 2018 financial statements were included in packets, Mr. Murphy said he’d summarize the July report. The Total Fund Balance was down $4.8 million compared to July of 2017, but was up $1.4 million compared to June of 2018.
As of July 31, 2018, the Health Care Fund was down $67,900 and it was up $433,000 year-to-date. He stated he would be back next month to bring suggested changes to the plan.
In a Report of the Superintendent, Mr. Milstead said that:
1. As a reminder, the October 2 Regular Session of the Lincoln Parish School Board was scheduled at 10:30 a.m. in the library at Simsboro School. Board members would hear a brief message from Principal Rusty Farrar and there would be time to tour the school.
2. The Louisiana Department of Education had recognized Lincoln Parish, along with ten other parishes, as top growth districts. This meant that LPSB had grown students at a faster rate than other districts. Those numbers were impressive with 52% of students achieving mastery or on the road to mastery. LPSB was also in the top ten districts whose students with disabilities and economically disadvantaged students showed significant growth over the course of the year. This was a great achievement for our principals, teachers, and all of those that have a hands-on effect with our students.
3. LPSB was one of 16 districts in the state that qualified for a TIF grant, Teacher Incentive Fund, which allows us to incentivize those teachers that stay in the district. This year the funds were used for the Enhanced School Calendar teacher’s signing bonus and four newly hired teachers who completed a residency program in 2017-18. Performance bonuses totaling $215,400 would be issued this month to 269 returning teachers based on their impact on student learning in 2017-2018. The state set parameters and we could make adjustments as needed.
4. We were ready to move the Head Start to their new facility as soon as they are ready. We have made several offers to move them but it looks like it will be October or November. We were willing to use our manpower to accomplish the move for them. The Board voted last month to lease the facility to Head Start, any delays in the move are not because of LPSB. Head Start is not sponsored by Lincoln Parish School Board but we know these three and four year olds will be our students in the future and want to do our part for them. We stand ready to do our part to get Head Start moved.
5. He had visited several schools today and spoke with Glenview principal Jana Comstock. She stated this was the smoothest start of school she had ever had.
She attributed this 100% to the Extended School Calendar. Half of the students in her school did not need to relearn routine rules and procedures. This is yet another benefit of this program.
6. There was a one day United Way campaign held at the opening day convocation, our employees pledged over $80,000. This pledge makes LPSB a Leader District. All of these United Way monies stay in our area. He stated he was proud our district and issued kudos to the employees of Lincoln Parish School Board.
There being no further business, upon a motion by Ms. Abrahm, the meeting adjourned at 6:41 p.m.
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Mike Milstead, Secretary Joe E. Mitcham, Jr., President