LINCOLN PARISH SCHOOL BOARD
Ruston, Louisiana
REGULAR SESSION
Tuesday, June 7, 1994 6:30 p.m.
The Lincoln Parish School Board met in Regular Session on Tuesday, June 7, 1994 at 6:30 p.m. in the Board Room of the Lincoln Parish School Board Office, 410 South Farmerville Street, Ruston, Louisiana. Members present were: Mr. Wayne Barfield, Mrs. Loyace Braggs, Dr. Marty Beasley, Mr. George Mack, Mr. Jim Kessler, Mr. Rob Shadoin, Mr. Calvin Wilkerson, Ms. Ann M. Boyd, Mr. Paul Woodard, and Mr. Allen Tuten.
Absent: Mr. David Wright and Mr. Andy Shealy.
Mr. Wayne Barfield, vice president, called the meeting to order in the absence of board president, Mr. David Wright. The invocation was given by Mr. Rob Shadoin.
Mr. Barfield welcomed guests and members of the staff and media who were present.
Upon a motion by Dr. Marty Beasley, seconded by Mr. Paul Woodard, the board voted unanimously to adopt the agenda as printed and distributed.
Upon a motion by Dr. Marty Beasley, seconded by Mrs. Loyace Braggs, the board voted unanimously to adopt the minutes of the Regular Session held on May 3, 1994 and the Special Called Session held on May 16, 1994, as distributed.
Prior to the meeting of the board, retirees of the Lincoln Parish School System for 1993-94 were honored with a reception in the lobby of the school board office and, at this point in the meeting of the board, they were presented with certificates of appreciation as follows:
NAME SCHOOL YRS. IN LINCOLN TOTAL
Robert Smith Central Office (supervisor) 35 35
Harriet Acklin Hillcrest (teacher) 15 24
Dottie Ferrington A-E. Phillips (teacher) 13 34
Shirky Henderson Alma Brown Elem. (teacher) 36 46
R. A. Laney A. E- Phillips (teacher) 34 40
Elmira McCarty A. E. Phillips (teacher) 20 30
Mary Jo Newell Ruston High (teacher) 24 25
Ruthie Dade Choudrant High (custodial) 22 22
Jerry Howard Ruston High (custodial) 24 24
Kittylu Fuller Dubach High (school lunch) 25 25
Jerry Howard Ruston Schools (bus driver) 29 29
Bill Riley Ruston Schools (bus driver) 19 19
Upon a motion by Mr. Allen Tuten, seconded by Ms. Ann M. Boyd, the board voted unanimously to ratify the poll vote taken on May 4, 1994 requesting permission to send Letters of Continued Employment for the 1994-95 school year, as presented by Ron Suggs.
The board served as a Committee of the Whole and the following personnel items were addressed:
1. Dr. Cobb presented background information on the selection process followed in the recommendation of Mr. Howard Whitlock as the new Supervisor of Transportation, effective July 1, 1994.
He told the board that the Interview Committee consisted of the following members: Ron Suggs, Charles Owens, Sandra Henderson, Ronald Crawford, and Randy Moore.
The top three (3) applicants were: Howard Whitlock, Roy Barlow and Track Kavanaugh.
Upon a motion by Mrs. Loyace Braggs, seconded by Mr. Paul Woodard, the board voted unanimously to approve the recommendation of the Interview Committee, with concurrence of the Superintendent, in naming Mr. Howard Whitlock as the new Supervisor of Transportation, effective July 1, 1994.
Upon a motion by Mr. Allen Tuten, seconded by Dr. Marty Beasley, the board voted unanimously to grant the Superintendent permission to advertise and interview for the position of principal of Ruston Elementary School according to the following timelines:
Advertise: June 8 - June 22, 1994
Interviews: June 27 - June 29, 1994
Recommendation: July 5, 1994
2. As a point of references Mr. Suggs made the board aware of the following staff change:
John Wallace, social worker/Pupil Appraisal, transferred to Transition Coordinator (new position), effective August 5, 1994
3. Upon a motion by Mr. Jim Kessler, seconded by Mr. George Mack, the board voted unanimously to accept the following faculty resignations:
a. Cathy Dalme as itinerant art teacher, effective June 1, 1994
b. Reneah Doherty as special education teacher at Cypress Springs, effective June 1, 1994
c. Jane Rice as teacher at I. A. Lewis, effective June 1, 1994
d. Carla Roundtree as speech therapist at Lincoln Center, effective June 1, 1994
e. Geoff McCracken as social studies/coach at Ruston High, effective June 1, 1994
4. Upon a motion by Mr. Paul Woodard, seconded by Ms. Ann M. Boyd, the board voted unanimously to approve the following requests for leave without pay for the 1994-95 school year:
a. Debra Carter, itinerant speech therapist for Lincoln Parish Schools
b. Karen Taylor, teacher at Ruston Elementary School
c. Diane Sistrunk, counselor at Ruston High School
5. Upon a motion by Ms. Ann M. Boyd, seconded by Mr. Paul Woodard, the board voted unanimously to approve the letter of resignation submitted by Charissa Barrett, SFS 5-hour technician at Hillcrest, effective June 1, 1994, as presented by Brenda Theodos.
6. Upon a motion by Mr. Allen Tuten, seconded by Mr. Jim Kessler, the board voted unanimously to approve the letter of intent to retire, effective June 1, 1994, submitted by Kittylu Fuller, SFS manager at Dubach High School, as presented by Brenda Theodos.
7. Upon a motion by Mr. Jim Kessler, seconded by Mrs. Loyace Braggs, the board voted unanimously to employ Sandra Flowers as SFS cafeteria manager at Dubach High School, effective August 19, 1994, as presented by Brenda Theodos.
8. Upon a motion by Mr. George Mack, seconded by Ms. Ann M. Boyd, the board voted unanimously to accept the letter of intent to retire submitted by Jerry Howard, bus driver/custodian, effective June 30, 1994, as presented by Charles Owens.
An update on Sales Tax receipts was given by Pam Roy, business manager for Lincoln Parish Schools. She reported that receipts in the '67 and '79 sales tax funds for the month ending May 31, 1994 reflected an increase of $34,765.78 or 18.9% over the same month last year. Receipts for the year are up $235,195.70 or 9.8%. The 1993 sales tax fund reflected an increase of $20,859.46 or 18.9% over the same month last year. She reminded the board that salary supplement checks will be given to employees on July 15, 1994 from both the '79 and '93 sales tax funds.
Following the report on sales tax receipts, Mrs. Roy reported on the financial status for the month ended April, 1994. She indicated that all fund balances are in good shape at this time.
A report on test scores for the 1993-94 school year was given by Ron Suggs as follows:
CAT YEARLY COMPARISON
(NATIONAL MEDIAN PERCENTILE OF TOTAL BATTERY)
GRADE 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994
1 64.2 71.2+
2 70.8 69.0 66.6 67.6 72.7+
3 62.7 63.7 62.0 70.4 66.4
4 49.7 57.1 55.1 66.0 70.9+
5 59.5 58.5 63.5 69.2 70.0+
6 60.2 59.2 56.8 56.9 55.5
7 56.0 58.3 54.1 51.8 55.1+
8 64.4 60.1 58.3 53.2 55.5+
LEAP YEARLY COMPARISON
AREA 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 SWE AVG.
LA 3 94 95 98 93 96+ 90
M3 96 97 98 95 97+ 89
LA 5 95 95 96 95 94 87
M5 94 96 98 97 97= 89
LA 7 87 92 93 89 88 86
M7 92 90 87 86 90+ 81
LA 96 94 96 91 93+ 88
MATH 95 97 90 85 88+ 78
WRIT 98 98 92 91 93+ 89
SCIENCE 94 96 92 90 92+ 89
S.S. 95 95 94 94 94= 89
Mr. Suggs told the board that teachers do not focus a great deal on test scores. They do a good job of teaching during the year and test scores take care of themselves as evidenced by the excellent scores as given above. He also told the board that these scores represent all students in every category. The single most important contributing factor in producing these scores is the classroom teacher.
Dr. Cobb spoke concerning his appreciation to both students and teachers as well as principals and other persons responsible for making the overall environment conducive to learning and producing these excellent scores. Lincoln Parish Schools have a continuing history of excellence.
Upon a motion by Mrs. Loyace Braggs, seconded by Mr. Paul Woodard, the board voted unanimously to approve the low bid that met specifications for the purchase of materials and supplies for the 1994-95 school year as shown below:
Company Submitting Bid 200 Cases Toilet Tissue
Butler Paper Company Price Per Case $20.98
Total for 200 Cases: $4,196.
35O Cases Paper Towels
Price Per Case $ 8.60
Total for 350 Cases: $3,010.
Louisiana Teacher's Supply 15,000 Thermal Masters
Price Per 1,500 $4.49
Total for 15,000: $6,735.
Mickey Mays Office Supplies 12,000 Reams Copy Paper
Price Per Ream $1.58499
Total for 12,000 : $19,019.88
E. Lee Young Gasoline & Diesel
Unleaded Regular .0494
Unleaded Plus .0494
Unleaded Premium .0494
Highway Diesel .0494
Off-Road Diesel .0494
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Upon a motion by Dr. Marty Beasley, seconded by Ms. Ann M. Boyd, the board voted unanimously to adopt the revised final budget for 1993-94 to reflect changes in anticipated revenues and expenditures as presented by Pam Roy, business manager for Lincoln Parish Schools.
In the Report of the Superintendent, Dr. Cobb addressed the following items:
1. He called the board's attention to a letter sent to U. S. Senators & Representatives, addressing our concern on the proposed health insurance.
2. LSBA Day at the Legislature will be held on Tuesday, June 14. Several of our board members indicated plans to attend.
3. He also called attention to the current edition of the Chapter I newspaper, EXPRESS.
Following comments and observations from several board members, the meeting was adjourned at 7:50 p.m.
Gerald W. Cobb, Secretary David Wright, President