LINCOLN PARISH SCHOOL BOARD
Ruston, Louisiana
REGULAR SESSION
Tuesday, November 10, 2020 6:00 p.m.
The Lincoln Parish School Board met in Regular Session on Tuesday, November 10, 2020, at 6:00 p.m. at the STEM Center, 525 Tarbutton Road, Ruston, Louisiana. Board members present were Mr. Otha Anders, Ms. Lisa Best, Ms. Donna Doss, Mr. David Ferguson, Mr. Danny Hancock, Ms. Lynda Henderson, Mr. George Mack, Jr., Mr. Joe Mitcham, Mr. Hunter Smith, and Ms. Susan Wiley.
Ms. Debbie Abrahm was absent; Dr. David Gullatt arrived late.
President Mitcham called the meeting to order and welcomed guests. Ms. Doss gave the invocation, and Ms. Henderson led in the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag.
Upon a motion by Mr. Anders, seconded by Ms. Doss and Ms. Wiley, the Board 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 6, 2020, and Special Called Sessions held on October 19, 2020, and October 21, 2020, as printed.
Brandon Sutherland, Communications Coordinator, remarked that the Lincoln Parish School system has some of the most remarkable students in the state and even the nation. For what he believes is the third year in a row, he has the distinct pleasure and privilege of presenting a student who has scored a perfect 36 on the ACT. Mr. Sutherland introduced Eli Watson, a senior at Choudrant High School. Eli has earned the distinction of being among the most elite groups in the entire country. According to those at ACT, such an achievement is not only significant, but is also rare. Only 3/10 of 1% of all test takers earn the top score. Statistics show that among high school graduates across the United States in the class of 2020, just over 5,000 out of more than 1.6 million students who took the test earned such a score. Mr. Sutherland shared many of Eli’s accomplishments including his recognition last month as a National Merit Semi-Finalist, he plans to attend a service academy, and pursue a career in the US Military. President Mitcham expressed the Board’s pride in Eli’s achievements.
Dr. Gullatt entered the meeting.
Following a month of studying two new policies and eight policy revisions, Lisa Bastion, Chief Academic Officer/Assistant Superintendent, asked board members to approve the proposed changes to the policy manual.
Upon a motion by Ms. Doss, seconded by Mr. Hancock, the Board unanimously voted to approve new policies BCAD – Teleconference/Remote Participation in School Board Meetings and EFC – Business Continuity and Technology Disaster Recovery. The Board also voted unanimously to approve revisions to CED – Employment of Superintendent, DJE- Purchasing, DJED – Bids and Quotations, GBDA – Employment of Retired Personnel, IDFAB – Sports Injury Management and Concussions, JBH –Attendance Reports for Student Drivers, JGC – Student Health Services, and JGCE – Child Abuse.
James Payton, New Construction Supervisor, shared that the administration was prepared to accept a bid for the Ruston High School Eco Car building but Architect Mike Walpole recommended the administration reject the bid due to miscommunication with the Louisiana State Licensing Board of Contractors. Mr. Walpole was present and explained that since the school board has a licensed plumber and electrician on staff, the original plan was to self-perform the work in those two disciplines during the rebuilding period. On October 1, Mr. Walpole had a conversation with a compliance officer at the State Licensing Board and shared what we were planning to do. He said that Superintendent Milstead received a letter from the Louisiana Licensing Board, two days after the bids were opened, stating that if LPSB self-performed those tasks they would be acting as a contractor wherein a license would be required. In the letter, the Licensing Board cited a law stating that a governmental entity is prohibited from holding a contractor’s license. Mr. Milstead shared that this was not the information that Mr. Walpole had been given and it was no one’s fault, and certainly not Mr. Walpole’s. Mr. Walpole suggested that the Board reject the bid and re-advertise, for the third time, for bids for the Eco Car building.
Upon a motion by Mr. Hancock, seconded by Ms. Best, the Board unanimously voted to reject the bid of $340,000 submitted by Vista Construction.
Upon a motion by Ms. Henderson, seconded by Mr. Anders, the Board unanimously voted to re-bid the Eco Car building project with the contractor providing plumbing and electrical components in the bid.
Juanita Duke, Chief Financial Officer, noted that she had been working with David Charpentier, VP of Brown & Brown Insurance, on the 2021 health plan renewal. Mr. Charpentier would present the renewal and update on the ongoing plan review at the December board meeting. She reported Mr. Charpentier’s first recommendation concerning the 2021 Medicare Advantage Plan for retirees is to offer optional participation in the plan for retirees enrolled in Medicare Part A & B. Effective with January 1, 2021 renewal, eligible retirees may choose to enroll in either the school board’s Self-Funded Retiree Health Plan or the Medicare Advantage Plan. She said that this change was recommended to maintain consistency with Medicare Advantage Plan enrollment guidelines followed by the State Group plan. This change does not eliminate the requirement that retired members must enroll in both Medicare Part A & B when they first become eligible to do so, in order to retain coverage under both health plans offered by LPSB.
Ms. Duke voiced that the second recommendation would lower monthly premiums for retirees who choose the Medicare Advantage Plan. In addition, the Specialty Drug Benefit in 2021 will be $100 co-pay, with a maximum out-of-pocket for prescriptions of $2,500 per person, which is a significant improvement in the plan. Issues with Preferred and Retail pharmacy benefits have been eliminated with both participating Preferred and Retail pharmacy benefits now having the same co-pays. She said that the medical benefit will remain the same with $0 member co-pay, except for a $50 co-pay for each emergency room visit and a $35 co-pay for high cost imaging. Medical out-of-pocket maximums will remain $1,000. Ms. Duke then answered several questions from Dr. Gullatt.
Upon a motion by Dr. Gullatt, seconded by Ms. Doss, the Board unanimously voted to approve the recommendations for retiree premiums and participation in the Medicare Advantage Plan that Ms. Duke shared.
President Mitcham reported that on Monday, October 19, 2020, interviews for the position of Superintendent were conducted in a Special Called Session. After analysis, evaluation, and consideration of both applicants by each board member, the Board voted on October 21, 2020, to recommend Mr. Ricky Durrett for negotiations with the President and Vice President of the Board along with counsel, Jon Guice. Mr. Mitcham stated that after conferring with Mr. Guice and Vice President Henderson the three of them met with Mr. Durrett and decided on a proposal of a two and one-half year contract with a base salary plus car allowance. The offer was confirmed with the other members of the Executive Committee, Mr. Anders and Mr. Hancock.
Mr. Mitcham reminded board members that there was a copy of the full contract in their board packets. He called on Mr. Guice for additional comments. Mr. Guice shared that the contract was quite similar to the current superintendent’s contract with the exception of items added by the State Legislature and the incentive provisions that have been added. He also added that the amounts are consistent with districts of similar size.
President Mitcham explained that incentives were built into the contract, these are not part of his salary, they are extra if Mr. Durrett meets these goals and challenges. In any year in which the Lincoln Parish School District obtains the performance grade of an “A”, he will receive an extra $2,000. Mr. Mitcham also said there is one school with a “D” and three schools with a “C” grade. If Mr. Durrett can raise each one of those schools, Mr. Durrett would receive $500 per school to raise the letter grades. In addition, in any year that the district ACT average equals or exceeds 20, Mr. Durrett would receive an extra $500; the district average is currently 19.8. Likewise, if in any year the district ACT average for a minority subgroup average equals or exceeds 17.5, he would earn $500. Mr. Mitcham stressed that these incentives were not part of the base salary.
Mr. Mitcham noted that also included in the contract were periodic evaluations, which has been the case in the past. After some discussion, it was decided that the first evaluation would be in June 2021. President Mitcham next addressed the decision to offer a two and one-half year contract. This would get the contract back to expiring at the end of a school year, when it is easier to get a larger pool of applicants. Also with a two-year contract, that contract would have expired right in the middle of an election year; the Board could quite possibly be hiring a new superintendent with a brand new Board all at the same time, which would not be good.
Upon a motion by Mr. Anders, seconded by Ms. Best, the Board unanimously voted to ratify a contract of two and one-half years with Mr. Ricky Durrett as Superintendent, effective January 1, 2021, through June 30, 2023, with a base salary of $145,000. In lieu of providing an automobile, Mr. Durrett shall provide his own vehicle, and the Board shall pay him an additional $620 per month. Such sum shall cover in parish travel and the maintenance and upkeep of the vehicle used by the Superintendent in the performance of his duties hereunder.
The Superintendent shall also be responsible for providing his own automobile insurance with minimum liability coverage of $100,000/$300,000, which policy shall name the Board as an additional insured.
President Mitcham congratulated Mr. Durrett and stated that as of January 1, 2021, he would officially be the new Lincoln Parish School Board Superintendent. He also thanked Ms. Henderson and Mr. Guice for their help.
Ms. Duke reported that the IRS requires the adoption of a written plan document that governs the administration of cafeteria plan benefits, much like the 403b plans. She is requesting the Board adopt a resolution regarding this matter.
Separately, the School Board’s Employee Health and Dental plans are on a calendar year period from January 1-December 31. The current LPSB Flexible Benefits Plan document sets the cafeteria plan participation year as the 12-month period February 1-January 31. Because the Board’s health and dental plans operate on a calendar year cycle are included in cafeteria plan benefits, the administration is recommending an amendment be made to theLPSB Employee Flexible Benefits Plan document to change the cafeteria plan year to a calendar year period starting January 1, 2022, and for the 2021 cafeteria plan year to be a short plan year from February 1, 2021, to December 31, 2021.
Upon a motion by Ms. Wiley, seconded by Mr. Hancock, the Board unanimously voted to adopt a resolution to approve the previously amended Lincoln Parish School Board Flexible Spending Plan document, inclusive of all prior amendments to date.
Upon a motion by Mr. Smith, seconded by Dr. Gullatt, the Board unanimously voted to adopt a resolution approving amendment changes to be effective February 1, 2021, to set a shortened cafeteria plan year for 2021 and change the annual start date of the cafeteria plan to January 1 each year thereafter starting January 1, 2022.
Debbie Pender, Technology, Data, and Security Coordinator, shared that the Lincoln Parish Technology Department was requesting permission to release an E-Rate request for proposal for Wide-Area Network (WAN) and Internet Access. The Federal Communications Commission governs the E-Rate Program, the FCC would pay 90% of the cost, and the district would pay its portion of 10%. In the proposal, the district is asking for a full-fiber managed WAN that also includes response time and support. Ms. Pender said the current contract expires June 30, 2021, and she hopes to see a decrease in cost because the current contract was seven years old. She stated that Seth Grigsby was present if anyone had questions, there were none.
Upon a motion by Ms. Doss, seconded by Mr. Hancock, the Board unanimously voted to approve the request to post E-Rate Requests for Proposals (RFPs).
Ms. Duke stated the Cooperative Endeavor Agreement (CEA) with the Ruston-Lincoln Chamber of Commerce expires on December 31, 2020. For the immeasurable value of the benefits received for the $650 membership fee, the Administration recommended the adoption of the one-year CEA, which was an annual request and had been reviewed by the Board’s attorney, Lewis Jones.
Upon a motion by Mr. Hancock, seconded by Ms. Henderson, the Board unanimously voted to adopt the Cooperative Endeavor Agreement with the Ruston-Lincoln Chamber of Commerce.
Ricky Edmiston, Supervisor of Auxiliary Services, verbalized that with the advent of COVID-19 in March 2020, U.S. society had witnessed dramatic changes. He thanked the maintenance department and custodial staff who continue to make our schools safe and clean for students and teachers. They have been on the frontline along with teachers to improve the learning environment. He opined that the installation of UV lighting in HVAC systems in Lincoln Parish would make the air cleaner and extend the life of the AC units because the lights would clean the coils. He also said LPSB personnel would install these and the expected cost of the initial UV lighting package would be around $60,000 -$70,000. He went on to say that the bulbs would need to be replaced every two years and the cost would be approximately half of the entire UV lighting package. Mr. Smith requested Mr. Edmiston to provide, at the next meeting, information regarding research done on the benefits of installing UV lighting in air systems.
Upon a motion by Dr. Gullatt, seconded by Ms. Doss and Ms. Best, the Board unanimously voted to advertise for bids to purchase ultraviolet lights to be installed in the air conditioning systems of each school. Lincoln Parish personnel would install these UV lights and the funding source would be security money from the fire insurance fund.
Director of Human Resources, Dr. Doris Lewis, continued with a personnel report. She communicated the following information:
1. Employment of Michael Sutton, math teacher at Ruston High School, effective October 19, 2020, replacing Brooke Bishop who resigned.
2. Point of Reference/Transfer of Brittany Shambro from teacher at Dubach School to teacher at Glen View effective October 10, 2020, due to increase in student numbers.
3. Resignation of Rhonda Sampson, custodian at I. A. Lewis, effective October 8, 2020.
4. Disability Retirement of Ora Reed, custodian at Dubach School, effective October 3, 2020.
5. Retirement of Robert Kranz, bus operator in the Choudrant area, effective October 28, 2020.
6. Employment of Quintana Atkins, cafeteria technician at Choudrant Elementary effective October 23, 2020, replacing Antoinette Collins who transferred.
Ms. Duke reported that October was a great month for sales tax collections. For the month ending October 31, 2020, collections were up 15.2% compared to the same month last year. This was due mainly because of hurricane recovery from Hurricane Laura. Collections were up 7.23% year-to-date, according to Ms. Duke.
Moving on to the August and September 2020 Financial Updates, Ms. Duke said that the August insurance transfer fund within the General Fund showed $1.78 million in transfers year-to-date. This represents funds collected from other local tax funds and then paid to the Health Insurance Fund for the employer cost-share for General Fund and School Food service employee insurance benefits. The total unassigned fund balance was 19.36%. She noted that compensation for the fiscal year paid through August does not include payment of 9-month employee salaries and benefits, which began in September. Moving next to the September Financial Update, Ms. Duke reported the general insurance transfers to date were $2.672 million. She noted that a fourth page was added to the financial report to include the 2020 sales tax fund. There have been no collections yet; the first collections will be on the November report for October collections. She also added Medicaid Programs to the report. These are funds generated to support nursing and therapy services for students in the district. The unassigned general fund balance for September was 15.57%. This dropped because payment of all nine-month salaries began in September.
Ms. Duke noted that the health plan was doing well this year. Costs were down almost $1 million for the first nine months of the year. This is due in part to implementing the Medicare Advantage Plan and deferrals of elective services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Total net assets were $1,782,000 year-to-date. She added that the plan has done well this year. Mr. Milstead reminded board members that costs could increase once members began to feel comfortable having elective procedures again. He also stated that changes that have been made to the health plan have been a huge positive, going forward it will just get better.
In a Report of the Superintendent, Mr. Milstead said that:
1. It continues to look like we will get a District Performance Score and School Performance Score next fall. The federal government gave a waiver this year but it looks like that will not be the case next year. We knew we would be tested but after the most recent Superintendents’ session, it looks like there will be an assigned score. We hope that becomes a baseline for us. Scores could be lower because of COVID and some students getting behind. If we could establish a baseline that would be great.
2. Ms. Duke and Evan Alvarez would be going to Baton Rouge this coming Friday for a hearing regarding Raeford Farms’ tax-exemption that we did not support. They have appealed that and the appeal process has been delayed due to recent hurricanes. LPSB has hired Hammons and Sills to assist with the appeal process. He feels good about the appeal.
3. The annual LSBA Convention would be held March 7-9, 2021, at the Shreveport Convention Center. It will also be offered virtually for those that are interested.
4. There have been spikes in COVID numbers in neighboring parishes but we have not experienced that. We consider ourselves very fortunate. Today only 1.91% are quarantined or isolated because they have COVID or had close contact. Only 2.31% have been quarantined or isolated since August. We have some elementary schools with 0 cases. Ms. Bastion shared that the 1.91% represents only 103 students. There have only been 125 students that have tested positive for COVID. She said that they are learning that it is not spreading in classrooms but in outside activities such as church and weddings. She is very pleased with our numbers and proud of our schools.
Dr. Gullatt shared that he recently attended an LSBA Trailblazer session in Alexandria. It was the first LSBA on-sight training held since COVID. It was very well attended and informative. An Assistant Superintendent from the State Department was one of the presenters. Dr. Gullatt agreed to bring a Planning Guidebook to all board members that was shared in the presentation. The Guidebook contains planning that guidance counselors must go through and information on promotion policies. The presenter wanted school board members to see the work that principals, assistant principals, and guidance counselors do in high schools to guide students towards a college education, a high-tech education, or whatever path they will choose when they graduate. The work sometines begins before the freshman level.
Mr. Anders expressed thanks for phone calls and thoughts following the death of a relative.
There being no further business, upon a motion by Ms. Best, the meeting adjourned at 7:03 p.m.
_______________________________ _______________________________
Mike Milstead, Secretary Joe E. Mitcham, Jr., President