By David Vitrano

L’Observateur

RESERVE – St. John the Baptist Parish Superintendent Courtney Millet opened her Education Update, presented to the School Board Thursday, with the words, “Our vision has remained the same over the past three years.”

According to the presentation, that vision is to “create an excellent education system for all students in St. John the Baptist Parish.”

For her part, Millet touted gains made by the district over the past three years in school ratings as well as standardized test scores. Currently, there are no schools in the district rated academically unacceptable, and LEAP test scores last year were the region’s highest and surpassed the state average by 6 percent.

Although the percentages are impressive, Millet stressed, “What is important … is these students passed.”

She said the high rate of promotion will go a long way toward reducing the number of overage students in the parish.

Millet said she has been delivering a similar presentation to area organizations and public officials including Parish President Natalie Robottom. It is all part of a push to get voters behind a millage renewal that will be on the Oct. 2 ballot.

“It takes a village to raise students, but it takes money, too,” said Executive Director of Business and Finance Felix Boughton.

In two weeks voters will go to the polls to decide whether to renew over 14 mills in property taxes, the bulk of which go toward paying school salaries.

Boughton pointed out that school millages in St. John are the lowest in the region, despite the fact that one mill in St. John generates a fraction of the revenue that it does in neighboring St. Charles Parish. He also pointed out that the vote is merely to renew existing millages and not to create new taxes.

In other business from Thursday’s meeting, the board discussed the bus mechanic contract, which is set to expire on Dec. 31. Currently the system uses an outside contractor to perform maintenance on the buses. Board member Russ Wise suggested the board consider bringing the function in house.

“We can’t continue to operate as we did in 1964,” said Wise.

Ultimately, the board voted to table the matter until the next meeting.

Also, during the presentation of personnel changes, board member Albert Burl asked about the hiring of a new secretary at Emily C. Watkins Elementary School.

Millet explained that the new hire was replacing a retiring secretary and that she was one of the late hires whose contracts were not renewed at the end of the last school year.

She said that whenever possible vacant positions are being filled with people from that list.