EPSB sets one meeting for December

By: CARISSA HEBERT
Managing Editor

The Evangeline Parish School Board had a short meeting Wednesday night and set one meeting for the month of December.

Superintendent Toni Hamlin said the staff would return Monday, December 1, and have until noon to complete the agenda for the regularly scheduled meeting on December 3. She asked the meeting be scheduled for Wednesday, December 10. The board agreed. This will be the only meeting for December since parish schools and the central office will be closed for two weeks for the Christmas holiday schedule.

After the bills were approved, some board members questioned the invoices from Laidlaw (the company, now known as First Student, which oversees the parish’s transportation). Peggy Foreman asked about maintenance fees and learned fees for oil changes and parts are paid for through the maintenance portion of the board’s contract with Laidlaw. Nancy Hamlin asked if the fuel bills only consisted of fuel utilized by the school board. She learned invoices are scrutinized by the staff to make sure mileage, gallons, etc. are correct. And Superintendent Hamlin also looks over bills and then signs them.

Forman referred to one invoice in the packet that had two tickets subtracted from the fuel bill. She pointed out two tickets were not being paid.

Amy LaFleur, business manager, said the driver must sign off on each invoice if the vendor wants to be paid. Otherwise, she said the invoice is sent back to the vendor, which was the case in the instance.

Superintendent Hamlin said staff members were gathering information in preparation of the December 15, court date with U.S. Magistrate Tucker Melancon. She said this included information for one co-worker who had been hospitalized but was beginning to improve. She said the board’s attorney in this matter, Bob Hammonds, would be working with the staff December 10, and December 11, as they prepared for court. She added Hammonds would probably discuss the case with the board at its December meeting.

She also promised board members would be reminded of the hearing as it drew closer. When asked how long did she believe this hearing would be, she said probably two-and-a-half to three days. She said it was her understanding board members were mandated to be in court on Monday at 10 a.m. She said Judge Melancon had requested to address them on Monday.

Wayne Dardeau, board president, said he had been on a conference call with Paul G. Pastorek, state superintendent of education, earlier in the day. He said Pastorek discussed accountability and the number of dropouts in Louisiana. Dardeau said Pastorek said we were losing 18,000 students per year and 45,000 of those dropouts were freshmen. He also learned in the call there was a push statewide for school board members to have term limits.

In other business, the board:

•Approved its minutes of the November 5, meeting.

•Agreed to canvass the voters’ returns for the November 4, special election in Ward One.

•Approved personnel matters.