ERIK SANZENBACH / L’Observateur / October 25, 1999

RESERVE – Thursday night’s St. John Parish School Board meeting wasmarked by several achievements and awards for both faculty and students.

Superintendent Chris Donaldson announced three teachers have been selected as teachers of the year in St. John Parish. These three are alsonominated for State and National Teacher of the Year Award. The threewinners are: Joy Landry, Elementary Teacher of the Year at Garyville/Mt. Airy MagnetSchool Coy Boe, Junior High Teacher of the Year at Glade, Leon Godchaux Junior High and East St. John High. Chermaine Roybiskie, High School Teacher of the Year at West St. JohnHigh School Donaldson also announced that school nurse Pam Pourciau was certified as a National School Nurse, one of only four such certifications in the entire state.

Wilbert Ocmond, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction, announced that fifth-grade teacher Donna Roehl at the Garyville/Mt. AiryMagnet School was awarded a $225 grant from the Challenger Learning Center. The grant will fund a simulated space shuttle mission to a cometfor her fifth-graders.

Ocmond also announced that two students had won the Governor’s Mansion Foundation Art Project. East St. John ninth-grader Marilyn Lambert andGaryville Magnet School seventh-grader Joshua Keating were chosen to represent St. John the Baptist Parish on the Governor’s Mansion ChristmasTree. Lambert and Keating will be invited to the Governor’s Mansion topaint their winning artwork on ornaments that will be placed on the Christmas tree in the mansion. Each student received a commendationadorned with their artwork on it from the school board.

In another matter, school board member Matthew Ory and Donaldson announced that all 12 public schools in the parish will receive new American flags, being donated by Rep. Billy Tauzin.Donaldson said this is something that he has wanted to do for a long time.

“Our present flags are in really bad shape,” he said.

Board member C.J. Watkins brought up another item that is in bad shape – d school band uniforms. According to a survey done by Brenda Butler,director of secondary education, all 253 band uniforms for all the schools are in very poor shape.

The last time uniforms were bought was in 1991, and the price then was $80,000.

The school board told the superintendent and Butler to get estimates for new uniforms. School board member James Madere suggested banddirectors get together and buy the uniforms in bulk in order to get a lower price.

Watkins chastised the administration for not keeping tabs on the condition of the uniforms. He said an inventory of the not only band uniforms, but ofall school uniforms, must be implemented.

“Let’s keep up accountability of this,” Watkins said. “Let’s stop wastingthe people’s money.”Ory echoed Watkin’s sentiments, saying he wants to see the purchasing procedure for the uniforms. He suggested schools start a maintenanceschedule for the uniforms.

“Let’s see if we can prolong the life of these uniforms,” Ory said.

Watkins also suggested the new band uniforms be made so that they won’t be so hot for the students during the months of August and September.

In another matter, Donaldson urged everyone to volunteer for the Glade School HOSTS Mentoring program. He himself had just helped out a studentthat afternoon.

“It was well worth the effort and time,” Donaldson said.

HOSTS is an acronym that stands for Helping One Student To Succeed, and the Glade School has been awarded a grant to help out students who need tutoring in math. Anybody can be a mentor, and you don’t need to be a whizin math, according to the superintendent.

“I’m not that great in math, but I didn’t have any trouble at all, ” Donaldson said.

Anyone interested in being a mentor can go to the Glade School every Thursday between the hours of 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.

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