The Vernon Parish School Board met in regular session at 10 a.m. Thursday, August 1 in the School Board Central Office.
Tim Ward, Finance Director, reported bids had been opened for the nearly $5 million renovation project at Rosepine Elementary. The apparent low bid of $4.915 million came from Pat Williams Construction in Leesville. District 7 (Rosepine) Board member, John Blankenbaker, asked the Board to add the motion to accept the bid at the next Board meeting Tuesday, August 6, in order to review the bids.
Lisa Lohman and Anne Smith with the Curriculum Department debuted a video from Derek Toro of Leesville High. Toro is the Career Tech Educator and was on a family vacation in Florida. He spoke to Board members about the special programs in the Vernon system that allow students to earn credentials in fields that will offer them jobs right out of high school. Lisa Haymon, Principal of Leesville High, and Vernon Parish Superintendent, James Williams spoke highly of Toro’s efforts on behalf of students across the parish. This summer marked the first year of the Elevate Your Summer program and featured students from Simpson, Hicks, Hornbeck, Anacoco, and Leesville in attendance. A commercial drone class will be offered this fall and interest is high. This training will cover FAA regulations for drones and current drone technology.
The Vernon system signed the newest agreement for a credentialed program following today’s meeting. The Firefighter Training Academy is an undertaking with the Leesville and the Fort Johnson Fire Departments. They have already accepted students into the first set of classes. Hornbeck High School will host this program, but much of the training and field work will take place using Fort Johnson facilities.
Anne Smith introduced Ms. Leigh Lansdale, who reported on the changes in pupil progression for the 2024-25 school year. The Board placed the Pupil Progression Plan on the agenda for the next meeting. Smith also talked about new state laws in effect this year. Third grade students may be retained if certain levels of progression are not met. Based on numbers from last year, 154 Vernon students would not have met the state requirements for advancement. In a related matter, the Vernon system will begin high-dosage tutoring in grades K-5. This involves bringing in credentialed tutors for 10 weeks of intense instruction three times per week in 30-minute sessions. The student-to-teacher ratio in this tutoring is 4-1. The State will fund the program. Vernon has 2,692 students and will receive $332,000 to facilitate the tutoring program.
Lohman told Board members that LEAP scores are out for grades 3-8. There are two other factors in determining a school’s accountability, and Lohman told the Board she would have an overview for them in November.
Joey Bartz (Personnel) and Raymond Jones (Maintenance) gave an update on new policies to coincide with state regulations for smoking, home-schooled athletes, truancy, electronic devices, suspensions/expulsions, and child abuse. The Board added that to the agenda for the August 6th meeting.
Ms. Leslie Ortiz with Special Education and Title 1 Programs reminded Board members that their input is welcomed on the Special Education Advisory Council. They will be meeting shortly to plan upcoming school year events for Vernon Special Ed students. Ortiz gave a favorable report on the special education literacy coach who helped raise test scores for Leesville Junior High and Vernon Middle School students. That program will expand to 30 minutes per day, five days per week this year. Thirteen of the 16 Vernon schools have Title 1 programs. Anacoco, Leesville and Rosepine do not because of their high achievement scores and state rankings.
Superintendent James Williams reminded the public that Board meetings are now live streamed on the internet. The next meeting of the Vernon Parish School Board is scheduled for Tuesday, August 6, at 10 a.m.