By T. Scott Boatright
The Lincoln Parish School Board (LPSB) passed its budget for the newly started school year during its September 2026 meeting Thursday night at the Central Schools Office.
But the process wasn’t easy and did not come without contention.
The nearly hour-long portion of the meeting devoted to the budget began with LPSB Finance Committee Chairman George Mack saying that in lieu of having the Finance Committee make a recommendation on the budget, it voted to present the recommended budget to the full board to discuss and decide on.
Lincoln Parish Schools Chief Financial Officer Juanita Dukes then gave a nearly 50-minute presentation of the $70,964,958 budget that includes $103,196,219 in revenues and $95,341,452 in expenditures, with an estimated beginning fund balance of $70,286,295 and an estimated ending fund balance of $70,964,058 on July 30, 2027.
As Dukes wrapped up her presentation, LPSB member David Ferguson said that in a future presentation, he’d like to know how the new school configuration and closing of the Lincoln Parish Early Childhood Education Center (LPECC) affected the budget.
“Did it increase the teachers’ salaries and benefits?” Ferguson asked. “I think that taxpayers need to know because they’re still concerned about closing the school. So they need to know how this affected the budget and what it’s going to protect in the future. They need to know.”
Lincoln Parish Schools Superintendent John Young told Ferguson that better data should be realized by the end of the school year in terms of what that cost would be.
“The majority of that (cost) is going to be school reconfiguration,” Young said. “You’ll see that there’s also a principal we added to our alternative school for students who have behavioral issues — we added an assistant principal. So the cost doesn’t show right now.”
LPSB member Danielle Williams then asked Dukes about a $10.3 million unassigned fund balance showing on the proposed budget.
“This is in the general fund,” Dukes said. “We have different fund balance classifications because the State Standards Board requires us to designate and state that. It is an unreserved, undesignated fund balance. It’s not restricted by a grant to be used in a special way. It’s not a balance that is tied to a property tax proposition.
“With the MFP formula, the more funding we’re given through the MFP formula is put into what they call a Level 4 formula where it’s tied to performance strings that we have to control. But the majority of that fund is a block grant that can be extended to operations. It’s pretty wide open as to its purpose.”
Williams then asked about how the numbers for another fund balance were derived, with no specifics given.
“Those funds, we’ve paid for those for several years now,” Dukes said. “That goes toward the Parishwide Capital Projects Fund. As you see, we have fund balances in our general fund and our special revenues fund. These balances are transferred over to meet capital needs if we need them as our bond funds are winding down for the Simsboro, Ruston and Choudrant districts.
“These funds give a little bit of extra funding to the Board to be able to do activities that come up. For instance, there’s some routine maintenance like replacement of track and field, turf fields — things that come up every so many years. This creates that balance to be able to plan to do those things.”
Williams then asked where there is a plan for capital projects that weren’t listed in the proposed budget.
“I know Mr. Young intends to do some planning on that,” Dukes responded. “We have a plan with the bond issues that we have for the Ruston school districts. Those plans were implemented.”
Young said that such plans would have to be brought before LPSB committees.
“We have a long-range planning committee that needs to be revamped. Hopefully, within the next couple of months we’ll bring all the projects we have on a master plan for capital outlay. But typically, we’ll have five to seven years where we’ll plan. Ruston Elementary is not getting any younger and what our schools will look like down the line. That fund balance will not take care of that, so we’ll have to have a really good plan going forward.”
Williams then asked when the budget had to be passed, and Dukes told her that state law requires it to be passed by Sept. 15 and that a 50% budget could be passed by then in order to continue operations.
“My vote is going to be no until I see the plan,” Williams responded.
Mack then asked if the matter could be tabled until a special-called meeting by Sept. 15 to give LPSB members more time to study the budget, saying members did not have sufficient time to study it. But School Board members could not come up with a time when all members could be present for such a meeting.
LPSB member Joe Mitcham then made a motion to go ahead and pass the budget anyway.
After that motion was seconded, a roll call vote was held. With board member Brooks the only LPSB member not at the meeting, the budget passed by a vote of 8-3, with Ferguson, Williams and Juan Hooper casting the three dissenting votes.
When Mack, the only Black LPSB member to vote yes, cast his vote, Ferguson said, “Sold out again.”
Mack quickly fired back, “Speak for yourself.”
LPSB President Gregg Phillips said he believes the budget will all work itself out.
“I think the shortness of the time of us receiving the proposed budget because of some delays in reporting that caused Ms. Dukes to be a little behind her normal time in presenting the information to us created a little stress.
“But it’s going to be fine moving forward.”
Young said he realizes there are some things some board members want to see done before getting to a final budget.
“I think you’ll see more finance committee meetings and more general discussion, especially with the public, before we get to vote on making possible revisions. I think that’s something that I’ll work on for the next board (after the November elections) and this Board as some finish out their terms.
“There has to be a little bit of discussion internally before we get to the final, finished product and I think we’ll see more of that in the future.”
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