LINCOLN PARISH SCHOOL BOARD
Ruston, Louisiana
SPECIAL CALLED SESSION
Tuesday March 17, 2020 10:00 a.m.
The Lincoln Parish School Board met in Special Called Session on Tuesday, March 17, 2020, at 10:00 a.m. in the Board Room of the Lincoln Parish School Board Office, 410 South Farmerville Street, Ruston, Louisiana. Members present were Mr. Otha Anders, Ms. Donna Doss, Mr. David Ferguson, Dr. David Gullatt, Mr. Danny Hancock, Ms. Lynda Henderson, Mr. George Mack, Jr., Mr. Joe Mitcham, and Mr. Hunter Smith.
Ms. Debbie Abrahm, Ms. Lisa Best, and Ms. Susan Wiley were absent.
President Joe Mitcham called the meeting to order and gave the invocation. Dr. Gullatt led in the Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag.
Upon a motion by Mr. Anders, seconded by Mr. Hancock, the Board unanimously voted to adopt the agenda as printed.
President Mitcham turned the floor over to Superintendent Mike Milstead.
Mr. Milstead shared with the board members that a copy of a Resolution was placed in their portfolios. It addresses issues regarding the closing of all Louisiana schools. The resolution gives the Superintendent some emergency powers for a temporary piece of time that would allow the district to meet the educational needs of our students to the extent that we can. He explained that it also addresses the needs related to providing two meals a day that the students have come to expect. He offered to read the lengthy resolution in full. After some discussion, President Mitcham suggested each board member read it silently. The Declaration is printed below in its entirety.
LINCOLN PARISH SCHOOL BOARD
DECLARATION OF PUBLIC EMERGENCY
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COVID-19
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WHEREAS, on December 31, 2019, officials in China alerted the World Health Organization (“WHO”) to several cases of an unknown respiratory illness primarily concentrated in the City of Wuhan, Hubei Province; and
WHEREAS, after further investigating the illness and ruling out the recurrence of other previously known viruses, officials, on January 7, 2020, announced the discovery of a new virus belonging to the coronavirus family of viruses (“COVID-19”); and
WHEREAS, over the following weeks, the Chinese government began to report additional cases of the virus, evidencing a propensity of the virus to spread throughout China and beyond; and
WHEREAS, by January 30, 2020, approximately eighteen countries, outside of China, were reporting cases of the virus, causing the WHO to declare the virus a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern;” and
WHEREAS, over the following weeks, the virus continued to spread to nations around the globe, infecting thousands of individuals; and
WHEREAS, on March 11, 2020, the WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak a “Global Pandemic;” and
WHEREAS, on March 11, 2020, the Governor of the State of Louisiana declared a “Public Health Emergency” over the coronavirus outbreak; and
WHEREAS, on March 13, 2020, the President of the United States of America declared a national emergency due to the coronavirus outbreak; and
WHEREAS, in an attempt to combat the spread of the virus, the Governor, on March 13, 2020, ordered the closure of all public elementary and secondary schools in Louisiana, beginning on March 16, 2020 and ending on April 13, 2020; and
WHEREAS, many children depend on the services of the Lincoln Parish School Board for essential services such as the provision of healthy meals; and
WHEREAS, while the cancellation of school will hopefully serve to combat the spread of the virus, such cancellation may put children at risk of not receiving enough healthy meals during the prolonged closure; and
WHEREAS, the spread of the virus and its impact on the everyday lives of the School Board’s students, faculty, staff, and their family members requires the School Board to take unprecedented steps to combat the spread of the virus and to serve the children of Lincoln Parish; and
WHEREAS, the sudden closure of all schools until April 13, 2020 or later has also caused confusion and concern to employees of the school district about their ability to continue to be able to support their families through receipt of compensation from the School Board.
NOW, THEREFORE, the above recitals considered, the School Board desires to utilize its assets in the fight against the coronavirus, as more fully set forth below.
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AND NOW, CONSIDERING THE FOREGOING, THE SCHOOL BOARD HEREBY DECLARES AS FOLLOWS:
BE IT DECLARED, that the Lincoln Parish School Board hereby declares a public emergency due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus.
BE IT FURTHER DECLARED that, notwithstanding any policy or rule to the contrary, the School Board hereby confers emergency powers upon its Superintendent of Schools, for purposes of leading the School Board’s response to the outbreak. Such emergency powers include, at the sole discretion of the Superintendent:
(1) The authority to enter into any agreement or contract, without any further Board approval, for the purchase of materials, equipment, supplies, or services for sanitation, cleaning, technology, and other Covid-19 related services and supplies on behalf of School Board.
(2) The authority to supply and arrange for the delivery of meals to all children of the parish, eighteen (18) years of age or younger, at no costs to the child or his/her family.
(3) The authority to continue to pay school employees their regular compensation during the period schools are closed. Employees on leave for a work related injury shall continue to receive workers compensation indemnity benefits as their regular compensation.
(4) The authority to adjust curriculum, work schedules, compensation, emergency pay, and staff assignments without any further Board approval. Regular compensation for employees receiving workers compensation benefits shall be their current indemnity benefit payments.
(5) The authority to adjust the school calendar.
(6) The authority to apply to BESE, LDOE, and/or USDOE, or any other governmental body for waivers of regulations or requirements, the compliance of which is impacted by COVID-19.
(7) The authority to apply for waivers, grants, reimbursements, aid, and other Covid-19 related matters on behalf of the School Board.
(8) The authority to provide non-mandatory, supplemental educational resources to students.
(9) The authority to waive certain employee leave previously approved and scheduled to be taken during the period of this closure, excluding sick leave used for workers compensation.
(10) The authority to take any other action reasonably necessary to implement the above directives.
BE IT FURTHER DECLARED that the Superintendent is required to report, in writing and at reasonable intervals, to the School Board as to the amount of expenditures made pursuant to this Declaration, as well as, the actions taken by the Superintendent pursuant to this Declaration.
BE IT FURTHER DECLARED that, in accordance with the Governor’s declaration, any bidding requirements of the Louisiana Public Bid Law (La. R.S. 38:2212 et seq.) applicable to any purchases related to the School Board’s response to the coronavirus outbreak are hereby suspended; however federal procurement rules shall apply for related purchases to be made under the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) declaration number EM-3459, in addition to other federal guidelines for the incident period that began January 20, 2020.
BE IT FURTHER DECLARED that this Declaration shall remain in effect until withdrawn by the School Board.
BE IT FURTHER DECLARED that notice of the provisions contained herein shall be published in the official journal of the Lincoln Parish School Board within ten (10) days hereof.
THIS DECLARATION is adopted by the Lincoln Parish School Board, at a Special Meeting held on the 17th day of March, 2020 in Ruston, Louisiana.
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Mike Milstead, Board Secretary Joe Mitcham, Board President
Several questions were asked by the media and Board members and were answered by Mr. Milstead and Lisa Bastion, Assistant Superintendent/Chief Academic Officer. Upon a motion by Dr. Gullatt, seconded by Mr. Anders, the Board unanimously voted to adopt the Resolution/Declaration of Public Emergency regarding the Governor’s Proclamation to close all Louisiana schools.
In a Report of the Superintendent, Mr. Milstead said:
1. The regular session board meeting on April 7 would no longer be at Dubach School. It would be held at the Central Office, at 6:00 p.m.
2. Food Services would continue to prepare meals this week and next. No meals would be served the week of Spring Break. Meals would resume the following week. Harryette Tinsley, Food Services Supervisor, was doing an awesome job.
3. We do not have the capability to provide distance learning to all students. It becomes a legal issue if you provide for some and not for others, you have violated their civil rights. It becomes problematic to provide accommodations for special needs students when providing distance learning.
4. Resources are provided online, if students or parents have access to a computer.
5. The central office would be open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 12:00. There would be minimal staff on hand and only the lobby would be open to the public.
6. There will be no cuts in pay for any employee. All employees will receive their regular pay.
7. There will be no athletic contests or practices while schools are closed.
8. Employees have been told not to enter any of the buildings this week. All building are being disinfected.
9. The Louisiana Department of Education is doing a super job keeping us updated with conference calls daily.
10. The Sales Tax Collection vote will be July 25, 2020, instead of May 9.
11. LSBA notified us today that the training hours conducted in February had officially been approved.
Mr. Milstead demonstrated on the smartboard how easy it was to navigate the Lincoln Parish School Board website. He specifically pointed out the resources section. There are numerous sites posted for students and parents to utilize to keep the students engaged over the next three weeks.
There being no further business, upon a motion by Dr. Gullatt, the meeting adjourned at 10:22 a.m.
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Mike Milstead, Secretary Joe Mitcham, President