ROBERT B. ROAN

PHOTO 1: Fifth Ward Elementary School Principal Jacquline Forest stands with prisoners from the St. John the Baptist Parish Jail after thanking the inmates for their efforts in refreshing the interior of the Reserve school with a new coat of bright sunshine yellow paint. (Staff Photos by Robert B. Roan)
RESERVE – When the approximately 455 students of Fifth Ward Elementary enter the school building on the first day of the new schoolyear, the Mighty Panthers, with improved standardized test scores in hand, will be immersed in a bright sunshine yellow courtesy of a contingent of St. John the Baptist Parish prisoners. The pre-K through sixth-grade boys and girls will walk along hallways awash in a fresh coat of saffron-toned paint and cooled by a new air conditioning system. Work began in the fully enclosed educational center near River Road almost as soon as the last bell rang in May and the inmates, about 40 per day, began to coat the interior walls with acrylic for a five-day period which ended Friday. To Jacquline Forest, Fifth Ward’s principal for seven years, the prisoners’ presence and efforts are a testament to the forward thinking of incoming School Superintendent Michael Coburn and Sheriff Wayne Jones. A way of giving something long-lasting and positive for men who would normally either be idle or clearing the area thoroughfares of tall grass and refuse. PHOTO 2: jail trustys Sheldon Davis, left, and Vincent Williams paint the office windows’ borders. The men said they were proud to provide the students with an aesthetically improved academic environment and they appreciated the opportunity to give something positive back to the community. “I think it is wonderful, the men coming here and showing enthusiasm for the work,” said Forest, a member of the final graduating class in 1969 of Fifth Ward High School – the site on which the present elementary school’s structure was constructed. “I told them how much I appreciated what they were doing and how they were improving the students’ learning environment for a long time to come. PHOTO 3: St. John the Baptist Parish Jail inmates John Byers, foreground, and Jeff Boggs, touch up the baseboards of a hallway in Fifth Ward Elementary School in Reserve as part of a program Sheriff Wayne Jones calls a “win-win program” for the school system, the parish government and the prisoners. Approximately 40 of the supervised inmates painted inside the school each day for a five-day period. See related story on Page 1B. (Staff Photo by Robert B. Roan) “The new paint will hopefully give the children a brighter feeling and a sense of pride in their school. I know the boys and girls will be excited to see it when they come back in mid-August.” Prior to painting the 38 classrooms and office areas, the men, many of whom had trusty status, moved all of the desks, file cabinets and chairs into the hallways and out of splattering range. With the numerous windows and doors open to the summer humidity, the work was difficult and allthewhile rewarding for men who are temporary wards of the parish yet often permanent members of the surrounding River Parishes and south Louisiana community. “I am glad I am getting to do this because it is constructive and it helps the youngsters,” Vincent Williams, a New Orleans resident and parish jail trusty, said. “I’ve had my days but these kids are just coming up. They have their whole lives ahead of them and maybe this will help them learn. “Some people might say this is just a fresh coat of paint, big deal,’ but if it gives them some pride in their school then it’s a good thing.” Fellow trusty, Reserve resident Sheldon Davis, added as the two prisoners painted a series of window borders a deep chocolate brown, “We cut grass five days a week and sometimes before we have even left the area we just cut somebody drives by and throws out a bag of trash. That’s discouraging. “But this is encouraging. It makes most of us feel good we are giving something back to the community and to the kids. “I think Sheriff (Wayne) Jones should be thanked by the residents for this program because it is a good and positive thing any way you want to look at it.” School Board member Patrick Sanders dropped by the school, which is located in his district, to see first-hand the effort provided by the inmates and the colorful results realized by the work. He echoed sentiments expressed by Forest concerning the cost savings inherent with jail labor and the importance of the cooperation exhibited by the school system superintendent and the sheriff. “This is a great program for so many different reasons, one of which is the amount of money it saves the district and how we can use the savings to make a difference in another area,” Sanders said. “It is a wonderful example of governmental agencies working together for the greater good of the community and its children. “The children in this school dramatically improved their test scores, over and above the expectations, and while the painting is not directly related, it is a tangible reward for the boys and girls and their efforts in the classroom.”