2006 enrollment is up; Board considers land buy

By KERI CHAMPION

Staff photo

LAPLACE – St. John the Baptist Parish schools is contemplating the possibility of reimbursing parents for certain types of school supplies and fees purchased by families.

The measure, proposed by Board Member Matthew Ory called for a committee to be formed to study what kinds of fees families are being asked to pay and whether they were appropriate requests by the schools.

The Board voted in favor of the motion 11-0.

Fees to be studied include registration fees and additional classroom expenses and supplies other than what parents were originally instructed to purchase for their children. The committee will examine what it is the schools should be paying and what the parents should be paying.

&#8220We should really think on why we didn’t solve this problem 20-30 years ago,” commented Russ Wise. &#8220Instead we are asking parents to pay for toilet paper, paper plates and paper towels that are actually school supplies and should be provided by schools.”

A proposal to start negotiations on the purchase of a piece of property for the future site of a new elementary school was also discussed. The motion was passed by a vote of 10-1 to begin negotiations on the possible land purchase. The site location was identified and chosen for consideration by Clarence Triche. &#8220The purchase of the land could alleviate some problems at St. John, Lake Ponchatrain and LaPlace Elementary,” said Triche.

Wise objected to the land site near Montague on the south side of Airline, citing concerns that there weren’t enough residents in the area to build a school there and transportation could be costly.

However, a developer has recently put a deposit down on the land adjacent to the proposed school land acquisition and could put a new development in the area.

Robert R. Schaff, Supervisor of Child Welfare & Attendance, said his office hopes to &#8220redouble the effort to try and get all of our kids in school, and more importantly to get them there promptly.

&#8220The truancy policy was in effect from day one and counselors were given a no-show form and told to immediately call these children’s homes,” Scheff said.

&#8220All of our schools have a school truancy contact, which after five unexcused absences will call a parent in and have a documented conference informing them of truancy law and an acknowledgement sheet that both the parent and child must sign. Students and parents are informed of the consequences of truancy at that time which may include a fine of $250, 30 days in jail, or both,” Scheff said.

A sixth unexcused absence will result in the family being referred to a Truancy panel by the counselor and a seventh requires an appearance at Informal Truancy Court.on the East Bank. If families are found guilty in court, parents must pay up to $250 in fines or 10 days in jail. Children are then put on probation, explained Scheff.

An eighth unexcused absence requires that the family go to formal court in Edgard, Scheff said and families could receive additional fines and jail time.

Scheff also stated that Child Welfare workers are cracking down on &#8220historically truant” children early on. &#8220Any kids on our lists last year who describe as &#8220historically truant have had letters sent to them already and a database keeps track of displaced students in our system to see if they are still in the parish.

&#8220It is a combined effort from the DA’s office, the judicial system and the Sheriff’s office. We will be picking up school-age kids like never before, even if they’re not in uniform and bringing them to the schools,” said Scheff.

&#8220As of Thursday, August 17th enrollment in parish public schools was at 6223, an increase of 199 students over day six last year, and we are still getting a steady stream of parents and students coming in to enroll,” said Superintendent Michael Coburn. Early figures show elementary school enrollment was 4023, up 138 from last year with the biggest enrollment gains at Lake Ponchatrain and LaPlace elementary schools. Non-public school enrollment was down.

School board members also unanimously approved a proposal for insurance coverage to be continued with the current provider at an increased premium rate. According to F. K. Boughton the rate has more than doubled because of Hurricane Katrina and property replacement in St John schools.