Central Community Schools

School Board Meeting

08/14/2023 06:00 PM

Central Administrative Office

11576 Sullivan Road

Central, LA 70818

MEETING MINUTES

Voting Members

Roxanne Atkinson, Board President

Dr. G. David Walker, Vice President

Jason Leaphart, Board Member

Nick Carmena, Board Member

Mike Davis, Board Member

Michael Hooper, Board Member

Carol Norwood, Board Member

1.        Call to Order

Chairperson Roxanne Atkinson called to order the Regular School Board Meeting of the Central Community School Board on Monday, August 14, 2023 at the Central Administrative Office, at 6:00 P.M.

2.        Prayer

Prayer led by Ron Erickson

3.        Pledge

4.        Roll Call

Tracy Barnes conducted a roll call. The following persons were present:  Roxanne Atkinson, Nick Carmena, Mike Davis, Michael Hooper, Jason Leaphart, Carol Norwood and David Walker.  A quorum was present.

5.        To consider approval of the minutes from the Regular School Board Meeting held on Monday, July 10, 2023 and take appropriate action.

A motion was made by Mr. Hooper and seconded by Ms. Norwood to approve the minutes from the Regular School Board Meeting held on Monday, July 10, 2023. There being no objections, the motion passed.

6.        To receive the Superintendent's report on personnel. (Dr. Fountain)

Board members received a report of one (1) Retirement. This was a report only and required no action.

Board members received a report of ten (10) Resignations. This was a report only and required no action.

Board members received a report of twenty-five (25) Appointments. This was a report only and required no action.

Board members received a report of eight (8) Reassignments. This was a report only and required no action.

Board members received a report of one (1) termination. This was a report only and required no action.

a.        Administrative Contracts

Board members received a report of one (1) Administrative Contract. This was a report only and required no action.

7.        To receive a report from the Human Resources/Policies Committee Meeting held on Monday, July 31, 2023 and take appropriate action regarding the following:

a.        1st Reading of the following proposed New and Revised policies:

Committee members received a 1st Reading of proposed New and Revised policies. This was a 1st Reading only and required no action.

1.        Policy E-1.1g - School and Student Safety (Revised)

2.        Policy E-3.1b - Carpool and Bus Line Safety (New)

3.        Policy G-3.10 - Continuous Learning (New)

4.        Policy H-2.1 - Student Attendance (Revised)

5.        Policy H-2.1a - Student Absences and Excuses (Revised)

6.        Policy H-3.5a - Corporal Punishment (Revised)

b.       Pupil Appraisal Facilitator Job Description

The committee recommended approval of a Pupil Appraisal Facilitator Job Description as presented by the staff. A motion was made by Ms. Norwood to approve the committee's recommendation. There being no objections, the motion passed.

c.        2023-2024 Employee Handbook

The committee recommended approval of the Employee Handbook for the 2023-2024 School Year. A motion was made by Ms. Norwood to approve the committee's recommendation. There being no objections, the motion passed.

d.       2023-2024 Personnel Evaluation Plan

The committee recommended approval of the Personnel Evaluation Plan for the 2023-2024 School Year. A motion was made by Ms. Norwood to approve the committee's recommendation. There being no objections, the motion passed.

8.        To receive a report from the Finance Committee Meeting held on Monday, July 31, 2023 and take appropriate action regarding the following:

a.        Updated Stipend Schedules

The committee recommended approval of the updated Stipend Schedules as presented by the staff. A motion was made by Mr. Hooper to approve the committee's recommendation.

A motion was made by Dr. Walker and seconded by Mr. Leaphart to adjust the Baseball, Softball, Volleyball, and Boys & Girls Basketball stipend to all be at 16.6%. There being no objections, the motion passed.

b.       Paraprofessional Salary Schedule

The committee recommended approval of a $2,800 salary increase for paraprofessionals. A motion was made by Mr. Hooper to approve the committee's recommendation. There being no objections, the motion passed.

c.        Support Staff Salary Schedules

The committee recommended approval of extending the Support Staff Salary Schedules from step 25 to step 30. A motion was made by Mr. Hooper to approve the committee's recommendation. There being no objections, the motion passed.

d.       Updated Student Fees

The committee recommended approval of the updated Student Fees collected at each school as presented by the staff. A motion was made by Mr. Hooper to approve the committee's recommendation. There being no objections, the motion passed.

e.        Presentation regarding 403b options for employees

The committee recommended approval of the selection of Voya as the vendor for our 403(b) provider. A motion was made by Mr. Hooper to approve the committee's recommendation. There being no objections, the motion passed.

9.        To receive a report from the Facilities/Equipment Committee Meeting held on Monday, July 31, 2023 and take appropriate action regarding the following:

a.        Update of Facility Projects

Committee members received an update on facility projects. This was a report only and required no action.

b.       Discussion and input regarding the possible sell of school board property for the construction of a City Hall and additional parking.

Committee members discussed and received input regarding the possible sell of school board property for the construction of a City Hall and additional parking. This was a report only and required no action.

10.     To consider approval of an engagement letter and planning audit committee letter from Hannis T. Bourgeois, LLP and take appropriate action. (Dr. Fountain)

A motion was made by Mr. Hooper and seconded by Dr. Walker to approve the engagement letters for auditing services provided by Hannis T. Bourgeois. There being no objections, the motion passed.

11.     To consider approval of a list of Qualified Disciplinary Hearing Officers and take appropriate action. (Dr. Fountain)

A motion was made by Mr. Davis and seconded by Ms. Norwood to approve the list of Qualified Disciplinary Hearing Officers. There being no objections, the motion passed.

12.     Superintendent's Report

We had a fantastic opening of schools last week. We held our 17th Convocation at Greenwell Springs Church last Monday. We had amazing entertainment from our gifted theater students performing a number from the Newsies musical. The speaker was outstanding, and I think all of our teachers and staff left the Convocation more excited for the year than when they arrived. That is the goal. We did receive LEAP results a couple of weeks ago. These are individual results and what percentage of our students scored at each achievement level. We are excited that we rated #2 in the state with 50% of our students in grades 3-8 and HS scoring in the Mastery and Advanced levels. Other highlights: We ranked #1 in the state for Economically Disadvantaged students scoring Mastery & Advanced in grades 3-8 + HS; We ranked #1 in the state for Students with Disabilities scoring Mastery & Advanced in grades 3-8 + HS; We ranked #1 in the state for female students scoring Mastery & Advanced in grades 3-8 + HS. Here are CIS ranks based on percentage of students scoring Mastery & Advanced: 3rd grade Science and Social Studies ranked #1; 4th grade Science ranked #1; 4th grade ELA, math, & social studies ranked #2; 5th grade ranked #1 in all four core subjects: ELA, math, science, social studies. CMS Highlights based on percentage of students scoring Mastery & Advanced: 6th grade math ranked 2nd; 7th grade ELA and math ranked #1; 7th grade science ranked #2; 100% of 8th grade Algebra students scored Mastery & Advanced. CHS Highlights based on percentage of students scoring Mastery & Advanced: Geometry ranked 4th; Biology ranked #2 (up from #7 last year). Wildcat College Update: 103 of the original Wildcat College cohort last year (Class of 2026) are still in Wildcat College. 53 students have earned 9 credit hours. The rest have earned 6 hours, and will be taking a Sociology CLEP test this month to earn the additional 3 hours. This year’s cohort (Class of 2027) has 99 students. August Committee Meetings will be held on Monday, August 28th at 5:15.

13.     Announcements

a.        Committee Meetings - Monday, August 28th

b.       Next Regular School Board Meeting will be held on Monday, September 11^th

14.     Adjourn

A motion was made by Dr. Walker to adjourn the meeting. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.