Noles C. Duet
September 22, 2011
Victor Minos Ronsonet
September 26, 2011
The work-day requirements in Marian Fertitta’s life exceed a typical inbox-complete-outbox cycle; her high-rank in the public and private school systems make her one of Lafourche Parish’s leading officials on education, but the dual-based priority list carries with it a responsibility to avoid conflicts of interest, both perceived and real, no matter how trivial they may seem.
A member of the Lafourche Parish School Board, the superintendent of Catholic schools for the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux and the wife of a Lafourche councilman, Fertitta must carefully navigate every issue before her to avoid nefarious behavior or an overlap between her two posts, at least, that could be an outsider’s opinion.
Actually, it’s much simpler than that: She just needs to be wary of funding applications and abstain, or recuse herself, from voting on those matters, per a ruling by the state ethics board.
“To avoid any way that it might look like a conflict of interest, I just recuse myself if it’s something to do with funding for non-public schools,” she said.
Fertitta said she would abstain from federal grants concerning Title I or special education funding and state grants that include the diocese.
Some state grants received by the public school system are funneled to the diocese, and the potential of conflict is in that, hypothetically, Fertitta could use her standing as 1/15th of a public body to secure more money for the Catholic schools.
“Really, those kinds of grants, it is black and white what we can do and what we can’t do,” Fertitta said.
“There is X amount of dollars (allotted), so I wouldn’t have any input as to the amount that we would get, but I don’t want it to look like maybe there was some influence there.”
Prior to accepting the superintendent position, Fertitta requested an opinion from the Louisiana Board of Ethics, which informed her that the public and private posts were not mutually exclusive provided she exhibit caution in voting on inter-sector transactions and disclose her salary each year to the school board.
“The Code of Governmental Ethics would prohibit Marian Fertitta from participating in any matters that come before the Lafourche Parish School Board involving the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux,” the ruling reads.
While she serves on the school board, she must also earn wages for her position with the diocese, her salary cannot be affected by the relationship and she cannot hold a controlling interest in the diocese nor serve as an officer, director, trustee or partner.
Fertitta is not prohibited from participating in grant-funding discussions provided she discloses her position with the diocese, the ethics board ruled.
On motions before the school board, Fertitta has twice abstained from voting. Once was for the 2011-12 Title I Migrant Education Grant Application and Budget, and the second was on the Federal Programs Consolidated E-Grant Application and Budget for the same year.
Fertitta said she didn’t like the term “conflict of interest” because it casts a negative light on what she calls a positive partnership. Through her involvement in both the public and private education systems, Fertitta said she is able to apply what she learns from one to the other, facilitating a better environment on both ends.
“For example, the curriculums and the common-course standards that will be coming down, I have first-hand information (from the board) about those things,” she said.
“Then, some of the things that we’re doing in the Catholic schools, I’m able to bring those ideas back to the superintendent.”
Fertitta worked for Lafourche Parish Public Schools for 36 years, serving as a teacher, a coordinator and a supervisor. She retired from the system five years ago and became the assistant superintendent of Catholic schools with the diocese.
When Sister Immaculata Paisant retired earlier this year, Fertitta was promoted to superintendent and officially began work in that regard July 1.
Fertitta’s husband, Joe, serves on the Lafourche Parish Council, and all involved, the Fertittas and the Louisiana Ethics Administration, say the separation of the governing bodies does not lend to an authority-subordinate situation, and therefore they cannot forecast a conflict.
“On the council, we have very little dealings with the school board,” said Joe Fertitta, who is running for his fourth term on the council.
Tracy Barker, a staff attorney with the state’s ethics administration, said she couldn’t think of a hypothetical situation of conflict between the two governing boards.
“I don’t think the council has any oversight over the school board because they are a separate political subdivision,” Barker said. “You’d actually have to have a situation and then we would have to address it from that point. All I can say is they are separate political subdivisions, so right now there doesn’t appear to be any issue there.”
Marian Fertitta, right, Lafourche Parish School Board member, and Joe Fertitta, Lafourche councilman, swing in their garden dedicated to the memory of their son and grandson. ERIC BESSON
