CROWLEY, LOUISIANA

JULY 1, 1999

1) The Acadia Parish School Board met on this the 1st day of July 1999, at 5:00 p.m., in regular session, with President John H. Quebodeaux presiding. Members present were Lyle C. Johnson, Ezora Proctor, Kitty M. Valdetero, Wadie H. Bias, Woody M. Marceaux, John A. Suire, Nolton J. Senegal, Sr., Roland J. Boudreaux, Rodney J. Trahan, Johnnie L. Smith, Charles F. Daigle, Shirley F. Vige', Dr. Robert McManus, and Secretary-Treasurer Dr. Marietta W. James. Members absent were Lynn Shamsie and Paul K. Bellon.

President Quebodeaux asked for the cooperation of all board members in working together, especially the Vice-President.

2&3) Trever Thibodeaux, a student at North Crowley Elementary School, delivered the prayer and led the Pledge of Allegiance. Trever is a D.A.R.E. Graduate, 1994 Junior International Rice Festival King, a member of Peer Mediators, Student Council, 4-H Club, and was chosen Student of the Year. Trever maintained a perfect 4.0 in academics for five consecutive years and perfect attendance in school for three years. He is active in gymnastics, sports, and enjoys putting World War II model airplanes together. He attends the First Baptist Church in Rayne where he participates in Royal Ambassadors, children's choir, and the drama team. Trever is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Bobby Thibodeaux.

4) The agenda was revised by adding Opening Item 5a (RECOGNIZE DR. HUEY MCCAULLEY, CANDIDATE FOR BESE DISTRICT 7 MEMBER); since the Budget/Finance Committee did not meet due to a lack of a quorum, the wording "recommendation from the Budget/Finance Committee" was deleted on Routine Items 6-20; Routine Item 20a (CONSIDER RECOMMENDATION OF THE PERSONNEL/INSURANCE COMMITTEE TO HIRE A PARAPROFESSIONAL FOR THE ALTERNATIVE SCHOOL) Was added; Routine Item 20b (CONSIDER ADOPTION OF BUDGET FOR FY 1999-2000) was added; Routine Item 20c (RECEIVE INFORMATION REGARDING COVERED WALKWAYS AT CHURCH POINT ELEMENTARY AND

CHURCH POINT HIGH SCHOOL) was added; Routine Item 20d (CONSIDER RECOMMENDATION FROM PERSONNEL/INSURANCE COMMITTEE REGARDING FUNDING SOURCE OF ADULT EDUCATION/TESTING SECRETARY) was added; Consent Item 5 (CONSIDER REQUEST FROM MARTHA GOSS SCANLAN, TEACHER AT CHURCH POINT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, FOR SABBATICAL LEAVE FOR THE 1999-2000 SCHOOL YEAR, FORREST AND RECUPERATION) was added, upon motion by Mr. Johnson, seconded by Dr. McManus, and carried by a unanimous voice vote.

5)              Reading of the minutes of the June 7, 17, and 21, 1999, meetings was dispensed with (copies of minutes were sent to each member prior to this meeting) and June 7 minutes were corrected on (Routine Item 17) to record Mr. Daigle opposing the recommendation regarding bids for Crowley High School permanent classroom walls; (Routine Item 17b) to record Mr. Johnson opposing the recommendation regarding increasing meal prices and additional staffing for school food services warehouse; (Discussion Item 17a) to record Mr. Quebodeaux voting once; (Discussion Item 1) to strike Mr. Privat's suggestion that the APSB not initiate any legal action at this time; and to correct date of special board meeting to June 21, upon motion by Mrs. Proctor, seconded by Mr. Senegal, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the minutes of June 7, 1999, were approved as corrected.

Minutes of June 17 were approved as corrected in the opening sentence to change January to June, upon motion by Mr. Trahan, seconded by Dr. McManus, and carried by a unanimous voice vote.

Minutes of June 21 were corrected (Item SS3) to record Dr: McManus making a substitute motion not an amendment, and (Item b) to omit the words "the Vice-President does not have to give up his/her seat in order to run for president", upon motion by Mr. Senegal, seconded by Ms. Valdetero, and carried by a unanimous voice vote.

President Quebodeaux, Vice-President Suire, and Superintendent James will review the tapes to clarify wording regarding Mr. Privat's comments concerning the Alternative School building and revisions to election of Board officers, and comments will be included in the minutes verbatim.

5a) Dr. Huey McCauley announced his candidacy for the District 7 seat on the BESE board. He will provide more information to the Board at a later date.

6) Mrs. Sandy Doguet, principal, made a presentation of GIFT (Guaranteed Individualized First Teaching) a program at Church Point Elementary School. She detailed how learning has been enhanced through this program and showed test results since the program was implemented. She asked for continued support from the Board for such programs, then answered questions. 7) Mr. Ray Blum, teacher, presented information and showed a video production by students of Rayne High School's television program: Rayne, Alive! They now have the capacity to create and produce televised programs directly from the school. He answered questions from the Board and discussed future plans for this program. President Quebodeaux commended both Mr. Blum and Mrs. Doguet for sharing these positive educational stories.

Dr. McManus announced that a former educator of Acadia Parish, Mr. Andrew Pousson, passed away this morning. He was remembered in a moment of silence.

Upon motion by Ms. Valdetero, seconded by Mrs. Proctor, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, Routine Item 20e (CONSIDER BUS DRIVER APPOINTMENTS IN CHURCH POINT, BASILE, AND CROWLEY) was added to the agenda.

Upon motion of Mr. Trahan, seconded by Mr. Vige', and carried by a unanimous voice vote, Routine Item 14 was moved up to Routine Item la.

In the absence of Mr. Privat, President Quebodeaux appointed Mr. Marceaux as parliamentarian for this meeting.

ACTION ITEMS

1) President Quebodeaux suggested conducting a goals meeting to establish measurable goals for the Superintendent and central office staff. Ms. Valdetero motioned and Mr. Daigle seconded to hold a goal setting meeting for this purpose. Ms. Valdetero indicated that the report recently issued by USL and I Acadia had many good suggestions regarding this matter.

Mr. Daigle motioned and Mr. Marceaux seconded to schedule this meeting July 21 at 5:00 p.m. Then Mr. Daigle motioned and Mr. Marceaux seconded to amend their motion to schedule this meeting on July 28 at 5:00 p.m. in the boardroom of the APSB. The amended motion carried by a majority voice vote (Mr. Boudreaux opposed). President Quebodeaux asked each Board member to bring to this meeting one good suggestion regarding measurable goals.

Upon motion by Mr. Johnson, seconded by Ms. Valdetero, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, Routine Item 9 was moved up to Routine b.

ROUTINE ITEMS

1) Superintendent James reported that there were four applicants for Assistant Principal at Church Point High School and she recommended Mr. Harvey Ward for the position. Several board members raised questions about the weight given to interviews when selecting administrators. Upon motion by Mr. Smith , seconded by Mr. Daigle, and carried by a majority voice vote (Ms. Valdetero and Mr. Marceaux opposed; Mr. Boudreaux abstained), Mr. Ward was appointed Assistant Principal at Church Point High School. Mr. Ward was recognized and commended by the Board.

1a) was #14 Mr. LaFosse introduced Ms. Colleen Fullilove, representative of Tudor Publishing regarding Curriculum Designer's instructional curriculum software. She explained the process used to develop curriculum guidelines for Acadia Parish and answered questions of the Board.

Mr. LaFosse and Mrs. Jill Doga also added comments to this presentation and answered questions of the Board. The cost is $39,406 for the curriculum designer and $59, 260 for skills bank, a total of $98,266. The annual update fee of 15 % is $5,511. This would be purchased with LEARN grants and E-Rate rebates. Ms. Valdetero suggested that the annual update fee be paid with technology funds. Upon motion by Mr. Johnson, seconded by Mrs. Proctor, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the Board approved purchasing Curriculum Designer and skills bank software now with LEARN grants and E-Rate rebates. The third module, Student Tracking, will be considered in January. Upon motion by Mr. Johnson, seconded by Ms. Valdetero, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the ongoing costs will be funded from the enhanced technology portion of the general fund.

b) was 9 Bids were received and opened for milk, dairy products, juice products, and bread. Two bids were received for milk , dairy products, and juice. Upon motion by Ms. Valdetero, seconded by Mr. Johnson, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, low bid from Foremost Dairy, allowing the choice of containers for juice was accepted by the Board.

Two bids for bread were received and opened. Upon motion by Mr. Johnson, seconded by Mr. Daigle, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, low bid from Holsum Bakery was accepted by the Board.

At 7:43 p.m., upon motion by Mr. Johnson, seconded by Mr. Senegal, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the Board recessed for a five-minute break. Upon motion by Mr. Senegal, seconded by Mr. Suire, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the Board reconvened at 7:50 p.m.

2) Upon motion by Mr. Trahan, seconded by Mr. Boudreaux, and carried by a majority voice vote (Mr. Senegal opposed), the Superintendent's recommendation to renew the performance contract for Mrs. Ellan K. Baggett for four years was approved.

3) Ms. Dianna Guidry provided information showing results of the Spring 1999 LEAP tests in Acadia Parish. She fielded questions from the Board regarding test results and new testing requirements from the state. Ms. Guidry was commended for her presentation.

4) Dr. James provided a letter from Ms. Danna Susan Phillips requesting waiver of R.S. 17:1187 requirement to return to work after sabbatical leave due to hardship. Mr. Boudreaux motioned and Mr. Johnson seconded to deny the request and have Ms. Phillips return the funds to the APSB. Discussion followed regarding the merits of this request. The motion to deny failed by a roll call vote of 9 to 3

YEA:Johnson, Marceaux, Boudreaux

NAY:Proctor, Valdetero, Suire, Senegal, Trahan, Smith, Daigle, Vige', McManus ABSENT:Shamsie, Bellon

Upon motion by Dr. McManus, seconded by Mr. Senegal, and carried by a majority voice vote (Mr. Boudreaux and Mr. Johnson opposed), Ms. Phillips was granted a waiver of R.S. 17:1187.

5)  Upon motion by Mr. Daigle, seconded by Mrs. Proctor, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, policy changes for Alternative School were approved as presented last month.

6) Upon motion by Mr. Daigle, seconded by Mr. Smith, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, Mr. Scott Speyrer was granted permission to purchase a second activity bus with athletic funds for the athletic department at Church Point High School.

7) Upon motion by Mr. Smith, seconded by Mr. Trahan, and carried by a majority voice vote (Ms. Valdetero abstained), the Superintendent was authorized to advertise for a mineral lease of Section 16, Township 11 South, Range 1 East (south of Crowley). Minerals are owned jointly with Vermilion Parish. A simultaneous bid opening will be conducted by the Budget/Finance Committee on August 5, 1999, at 6:00 p.m.

8) Four bids were received, opened, and tabulated for APSB Official Journal for FY 1999-2000. Upon motion by Mr. Senegal, seconded by Mr. Trahan, and carried by a majority voice vote (Mr. Quebodeaux abstained), the low bid from the Rayne-Acadian Tribune was accepted.

9)              This item was moved to b.

10)            Upon motion by Mr. Boudreaux, seconded by Dr. McManus, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the lowest bid meeting specifications and indicated as preferred products was accepted for paper and cleaning supplies.

11)            Upon motion by Mr. Boudreaux, seconded by Ms. Valdetero, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the lowest bid meeting specifications and indicated as preferred products was accepted for large and small equipment.

12)            Upon motion by Mr. Johnson, seconded by Mr. Marceaux, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, unrestricted donations from Crowley High athletic boosters will be used to supplement the salary of an additional coach at Crowley High School.

13) Mr. Michael Leonards gave an overview of significant changes and increases during the year in the Drug Free Schools and Communities programs. Mr. Eric Stutes explained some of the new efforts funded by these grants. They include programs such as Character counts, Here's Looking at You 2000, Conflict Resolution, Boys' Town, Violence Prevention, and Dealing with Anger. Hardware including bus cameras, two-way radios and metal detectors have also been purchased. Several training sessions have already been held this summer. Mr. Stutes and Ms. Brenda Francis answered questions of the Board. Both were commended for their efforts to provide drug education and violence prevention. Upon motion by Mr. Daigle, seconded by Mr. Vige', and carried by a unanimous voice vote, changes to Drug-Free Schools and Communities budgets were approved.

14)       This item was moved to 1 a.

15) Upon motion by Mrs. Proctor, seconded by Mr. Senegal, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the recommendation of the Technology/Instructional/Federal Programs Committee was accepted, and the use of classroom based technology funds for 1999-2000 was approved.

Corrected 16)    Upon motion by Dr. McManus, seconded by Mr. Daigle, and carried by a at the Aug. 2, meeting. (four opposed)

voice vote, the recommendation of the Personnel/Insurance Committee was accepted and renewal of casualty and liability insurance for 1999-2000 was approved. Uninsured motorist coverage was excluded.

Corrected 17)     The Personnel/Insurance Committee recommended establishing the salary of the School at the Aug. 2, meeting.

Food Service purchasing clerk at pay grade 240, and Warehouse Supervisor I classification was recommended for the School Food Service warehouseman. Dr. McManus motioned and Mr. Daigle seconded to accept the recommendation of the Personnel/Insurance Committee. Mrs. Ruth Miller indicated that she felt the recommended pay grades were not adequate. Discussion followed. Upon motion by Mr. Senegal, seconded by Mr. Trahan, and carried by a unanimous scheduled voice vote, this matter was tabled until the next meeting.

18) Upon motion by Dr. McManus, seconded by Mr. Johnson, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the recommendation of the Personnel/Insurance Committee to hire an additional special education teacher at Iota Middle School was approved.

19)       Upon motion by Mr. Suire, seconded by Ms. Bias, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the recommendation of the Personnel/Insurance Committee to hire an additional special education aide at Crowley Kindergarten was approved.

20) The Personnel/Insurance Committee recommended hiring three additional child specific aides, one at Mire Elementary, one at Estherwood Elementary, and one at North Crowley Elementary a one-on-one assistant as requested by Mr. Michael LeBlanc. Mire and Estherwood will be funded with general funds, and North Crowley will be funded with special education funds. Upon motion by Ms. Valdetero, seconded by Mr. Johnson, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the recommendation of the Personnel/Insurance Committee to hire three additional child specific aides was accepted and approved.

20a) Upon motion by Mr. Daigle, seconded by Dr. McManus, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the recommendation of the Personnel/Insurance Committee to hire a paraprofessional for Alternative School to serve as cafeteria clerk and run the computer lab to allow time for other teachers to teach physical education, was accepted and approved.

20b) Mr. Michael Leonards discussed all budgets for the 1999-2000 year. He gave an overview of MFP funding for the upcoming year. The projected deficit for general fund is estimated to be $2,291,300. Upon motion by Ms. Valdetero, seconded by Mr. Vige', and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the Budget for FY 1999-2000 was adopted.

20c) Mr. Daigle reported that covered walkways will be constructed at Church Point Elementary and Church Point High schools at a cost of approximately $15,000. Bond construction funds will be used to fund this improvement.

20d) Upon motion by Dr. McManus, seconded by Mr. Suire, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the recommendation of the Personnel/Insurance Committee was accepted and the adult education/testing secretary position shall be funded equally from Title I and Adult Education funds.

20e) Dr. James recommended Mr. Pat Daigle for bus driver for a Church Point area route. Mr. Smith motioned, and Mr. Daigle seconded to accept the Superintendent's recommendation. Mr. Senegal offered a substitute motion, seconded by Mrs. Proctor, to appoint Mr. Martin Guillory instead of Mr. Daigle. The substitute motion failed by a majority voice vote. The main motion passed by a majority voice vote (Mr. Senegal opposed) and Mr. Daigle was appointed as bus driver in the Church Point area.

21)             Mr Senegal motioned and Dr. McManus seconded to combine the duties of Adult Education Supervisor and Testing Coordinator and change the salary index to 1.60 from 1.53.

Questions were asked about the merits of increasing this index. Upon motion by Mr. Boudreaux, seconded by Ms. Valdetero, and carried by a majority voice vote, this matter was tabled until the next scheduled meeting.

22) Upon motion by Mr. Senegal, seconded by Mr. Boudreaux, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the recommendation of the Personnel/Insurance Committee to appoint Mr. Carl LeJeune as Acadia Parish liaison for the Louisiana Board of Ethics was approved.

23)           Mr. Smith motioned and Mr. Senegal seconded to table, the Board Size Committee's recommendation. The motion to table passed by a roll call vote of 8 to 6.

YEA: Proctor, Bias, Suire, Senegal, Smith, Daigle, Vige', McManus

NAY: Johnson, Valdetero, Marceaux, Quebodeaux, Boudreaux, Trahan

ABSENT:        Shamsie, Bellon

24) President Quebodeaux provided copies of the form used to place items on regular board meeting agendas and reminded board members to submit items for agendas at least seven days prior to each board meeting.

DISCUSSION ITEMS

1) Mr. Johnson indicated that the matter regarding rental of space at the Alternative School/School Food Service property to TCA Cable TV may involve discussion of performance of employees and recommended going into executive session. President Quebodeaux stated that both employees (superintendent and business director) had been served notice that this discussion may occur. Again, Mr. Johnson suggested having discussion in executive session. Both Dr. James, superintendent, and Mr. Leonards, business director, opted for open session.

Mr. Johnson felt that this was a serious matter which deserved attention of the Board. Discussion followed among board members. Mr. Boudreaux recommended that for this action these two employees be reprimanded by Mr. Carl LeJeune, personnel director. Others indicated that they should have been informed of the rental, but would have approved the transaction. Dr. James read a statement regarding her actions in renting space to TCA Cable TV. Previously, Mr. Leonards had provided a written explanation of facts surrounding this matter. After more discussion , President Quebedeaux asked board members if they were aware of any policies which had been violated by either of these employees. He received no response, no one indicated any such violation. Mr. Carl LeJeune addressed the Board and stated that he was not in a position to take disciplinary action against his immediate supervisor, the superintendent.

President Quebodeaux suggested that all board members become more familiar with

board policies. He suggested that the board periodically review the APSB Policies and Procedures Manual and recommend changes as needed.

CONSENT ITEMS

Upon motion by Mr. Senegal, seconded by Mr. Daigle, and carried by a unanimous voice vote, the following action was taken by the Board.

1          Approved personnel assignments and changes, since the last meeting.

2          Received sales tax report showing a year-to-date decrease of 4.13%.

3          Granted request to Elizabeth Harson, teacher, North Crowley Elementary, for sabbatical leave for the 1999-2000 school year for rest and recuperation.

4          Granted request to Jeannette V. Shepherds, teacher, Head Start, for leave without pay from May 18, 1999, to August 18, 1999.

5          Granted request to Martha Goss Scanlan, teacher, Church Point Elementary School, for sabbatical leave for the 1999-2000 school year for rest and recuperation.

CLOSING:

Mrs. Proctor called attention to recognition given to Ms. Wadie Bias who was recently selected as one of the women putting their stamp on Acadiana.

There being no other business to come before the Board, upon motion by Mr. Trahan, seconded by Mr. Marceaux, and carried, the meeting adjourned at 10:25 p.m.

s/                                                            

John H. Quebodeaux, President

ATTEST:

s/                                                             

Dr. Marietta W. James, Superintendent