Schools Continue to Do More With Less

School budgets continue to get cut – so much now that there’s little fat left, but now, we’re trimming bone.

But performance in schools continues to go up locally – a sure sign that our educators are as skilled as ever.

Local schools continue to figure out ways to do more with less – a sign of the times as sales tax figures remain down, which, along with state-issued cuts, has hampered significantly the money that is in the schools’ coffers.

Despite the cuts, each local school district has stood tall. Terrebonne earned a 98.2 performance score for the past year, while Lafourche generated a mark of 102.3.

Both numbers are up. Terrebonne had a 95.1 the year before, while Lafourche sat at 102.2. Those numbers are issued by the Louisiana State Education Department.

“I think it shows just how hard we are working and it’s vindication in a way that the things we are doing are correct and are for the better of the kids and our district,” Terrebonne Schools Superintendent Philip Martin said when the numbers were released in November. “We are so proud of our teachers and we are so happy to have made the improvement that we made – especially at this time, because we all know that education has had a lot of adversity to deal with over the past several years.”

LAFOURCHE SCHOOLS

In Lafourche, the past year was progressive, but also tumultuous at times, as well. Voters in the fall narrowly failed to pass a sales tax increase which would have funded a pay increase for educators in the parish, while also helping to offset a budget shortfall.

This will lead to more cuts for the parish in the 2018-19 school year, according to Superintendent Jo Ann Matthews.

Plans are being made right now to figure out what can be cut and where. There is even ongoing chatter about the Lafourche School Board shrinking in size to help offset the deficit. But it’s not all bad news.

The 102.3 score in Lafourche gives the district an A-Grade – one of just a handful of districts in Louisiana to earn such a distinction.

On top of that, several individual schools in Lafourche earned an A-Grade, as well, which Matthews said puts a smile on her face.

“We have worked so very hard for this,” Matthews said after a board meeting when the numbers were announced. “We are happy with the improvements and hope to continue to see more progression and improvements in the future.”

In addition to the in-class success, Lafourche is also expecting a significant jump in facilities upgrades in 2018 – especially in athletics.

When voters red-flagged the tax hike for teacher pay, they renewed an already-existing millage, which goes to schools for campus maintenance and facility upgrades throughout the parish.

During the lead-up to the election, school officials promised that, if renewed, the money the millage creates, would go to fund field turf for all three public high school football fields. Bids have been collected for the turf and sketches have been made. Barring setbacks, the plan right now is to begin work in the spring.

“This will be huge for our district,” Central Lafourche football coach Keith Menard said. “We need the fields badly. The grass we have just can’t handle the workload that we put on the fields. It’s a hazard. It’s a safety hazard.”

TERREBONNE SCHOOLS

Terrebonne schools made a sizeable leap forward in 2017. The 3.1-point jump marked one of the largest leaps of any school district in Louisiana in the past year – something that Martin said he and his staff are most proud of.

Terrebonne missed an A-Grade as a district by just more than a point.

“We are very happy,” Martin said. “We didn’t quite get the A that we sought to get, but we got close, so now, we just have to keep on pushing forward and keep making improvements. I think we are all confident and can see now that we are heading in the right direction.”

Unlike Lafourche, Terrebonne teachers did recently get a pay-hike, which has moved the school district up the scale when it comes to average starting salary in Louisiana – a huge recruiting tool when trying to attract young teachers who graduate from Nicholls State University or other places. With that hike, Terrebonne has been able to lower its number of uncertified classroom teachers, which Martin thinks is part of the reason for the hike in performance score.

Individual success stories filled the parish and millions of dollars’ worth of scholarships were given to area students. One student, H.L. Bourgeois’ Valente Hernandez Bautista Jr., earned more than $1 million in scholarships alone.

Athletically, Terrebonne Parish schools cruised in 2017.

The Ellender girls’ basketball team won the State Championship and the boys’ team was close, losing in the final seconds of the State Championship Game to finish as runner-up.

On the playing fields in the fall, several other Terrebonne schools fared well with Terrebonne High posting a successful football season and many others logging successful years and playoff runs. •