(Photo by T. Scott Boatright)
By T. Scott Boatright and Kyle Roberts
There was some business passed during Tuesday night’s monthly Lincoln Parish School Board meeting, including approval of supplemental checks for system employees, but all of that was overshadowed by a cavalcade of opposition regarding a capital outlay plan regarding combining Hillcrest and Glen View back into K-5 schools.
That plan would eliminate the two Ruston elementary schools on the south side of the city – Ruston Elementary and Cypress Springs. Both buildings would be utilized for other purposes, including preliminary plans to move the LPSB central office to Cypress Springs.
A standing room only crowd spilling out of the meeting room into the sidewalk around the Parish Schools Central Office voiced strong opinions against that plan, which was approved during February’s Board meeting to be put before parish voters on April 29.
February’s vote of 7-4 in favor of the plans fell strictly along racial lines, with Black School Board members David Ferguson, George Mack, Linda Henderson and Danielle Williams voting against the plan and members Clark Canterbury, Donna Doss, Danny Hancock, Joe Mitcham, Hunter Smith, Gregg Phillips and Debbie Abram voting in favor of it.
Board member Otha Anthers left February’s meeting before that vote was held.
After that move during February’s meeting, Board members voted 9-2 in favor of sending the plans to voters in an election set for Saturday, April 29.
The first order of new business on the agenda for Tuesday night’s meeting was a presentation from the Coalition Against School Closures, co-chaired by Dr. Liz White and Rev. Terence Flucas, speaking against the plan.
What followed was 51 minutes of outcry from citizens in attendance along with discussion from Board members trying to alleviate those concerns.
White said when she made the request to be added to the meeting agenda, she believed it would be recognized as a request to reconsider February’s original vote. When discussion about potentially doing that was held Tuesday night, School Board Counsel Lewis Jones told Board members and citizens in attendance that couldn’t be done without amending the agenda, which had labeled the order of business as a presentation and not a request.
When a vote to potentially amend the agenda was finally held after long and often heated discussions, Board members voted 8-4 in favor of amending the agenda, with Henderson, Anders, Mack, Doss, Ferguson, Canterbury, Phillips and Williams voting in favor and Smith, Hancock, Abram and Mitcham voting no.
But because of Jones’ earlier statement saying amending the agenda had to be done unanimously to pass, that vote was to amend fell.
“They seemed hard and set on finding a way around reconsidering,” White said after the meeting. “We want transparency. We are all in this community together, and we’re trying to work together. Just like they’re talking about this ‘race thing,’ they are creating a larger race gap here and we are trying to close that.
“I was in school during the 1960s when integration came along. I know what we went through in those schools; shutting down multiple schools in the black community. And I still see some of those old buildings sitting up there as a sore in the community. (The LPSB) is promising certain things about these schools, but when they get out of those buildings, it’s going to be a different story.”
Williams asked more than once during the meeting if any studies regarding the plan such as traffic assessments had been conducted with Lincoln Parish Schools Superintendent Ricky Durrett answering no, adding such studies weren’t required to be done.
“With a project of this magnitude, they should have something on paper showing every aspect of a cost analysis,” White said. “Somebody should have done something to get an estimate on this thing. It doesn’t make sense to me.
“I want them to vote no. It’s not that we don’t want to support our schools; I know we have to pay taxes to support our schools. But I believe they did a tricky thing by putting the Ruston (athletic and facility upgrade money in the millage). That’s not right. Put Ruston as a piece by itself and let people vote on that.”
Mitcham, the LPSB president, said he feels the plan is the right move in looking
“I feel what the Superintendent is recommending is the best thing for our students, and that’s what I’m going on,” Mitcham said. “Looking down the road toward the future, consolidating schools is what we need to do. I think it will really help the kids.
“The best thing is to let it go to the public vote and let them decide.”
Durrett said he believes parish voters will get out and make the decision they feel is best for the school children of Lincoln Parish.
“My takeaway is that we go to an election on April 29, and we give all the people in Lincoln Parish School District No. 1 a chance to vote this plan up or down,” Durrett said. “It’s our job to get out and educate people on what we’re trying to do, why we’re trying to do that and then let all of them decide on April 29.
“That’s the only way I believe we’re going to know if the majority of the community supports it, or do they not? And if they don’t then we’ll do something different, or we’ll leave it like it is. And if they do, then we’ll move forward with it. I think that’s the fairest and best way to find out what the entire district wants.”
For Rev. Flucas, the goal will be to move communication to the public at large regarding the April 29 vote.
“Obviously the meeting did not go our way tonight,” Flucas said. “We were here to let the school board know that we are not in favor of this consolidation plan. Since the school board refused to reconsider its decision to consolidate four elementary schools, then we just have to get out to the community and encourage people to vote against the proposition on April 29th. We need to take it to the community and let them know that it’s not in the best interests of our community.”
The School Board did come to one unanimous vote – approving supplement pay checks that will be presented to employees in May with faculty members receiving a one-time $6,112 payment and support staff employees receiving a $3,056 additional check.
