By T. Scott Boatright
Lincoln Parish Schools employees will receive significantly larger “14th Checks” this year after approval by the Lincoln Parish School Board at the March LPSB meeting Tuesday night at the Central Schools Office.
Supplemental checks for faculty employees will be $7,452, a $1,340 increase over last year’s amount while support staff workers will receive a $3,726 check, up $670 from last year’s “14th Checks.”
That funding, derived from four different half-cent sales taxes as well as a portion of one property tax, are slated to be distributed on May 24.
The School Board also gave permission for Ruston High School band director and Federal Programs Director Dr. Sheila Nugent to solicit bids for the RHS Band and also approved closed spec and sole source procurement for new turf for T.L. James Field at L.J. “Hoss” Garrett Stadium.
Moss said the band instruments needed will be for the part of the band that performs at athletic events.
“That’s mainly brass and percussion instruments,” Moss said.
The funding will come from the last round of COVID-19 payments from the government that was targeted for that purpose.
In other business, the LPSB adopted a resolution designating April 22-26 as Support Personal Week and approved a motion for the annual distribution of Instructional Monies from the 1979 Sales Tax Collections for 2024-25.
The $69,550.25 will be divvied up based on enrollments at each school and will go toward supplies for art, physical education, libraries, music, periodicals and science.
An attempt was made last year for new turf Garrett Stadium but those bids were rejected, putting the matter to a temporary rest. Officials expect new turf for the stadium to cost in the neighborhood of $850,000.
During her report, Lincoln Parish Schools Chief Financial Officer Juanita Duke said that a recent audit showed three findings — the first because the audit report was late (state regulations required that report to be submitted by Dec. 31, 2023); filing of late meal reimbursement claims, a matter she said had already been resolved; payments to unvalidated food vendor payments from federal funds, a finding she said has also been already resolved.
