Ecton Lawrence "Ji" Billiot Jr.
July 7, 2008
Jaime Pineda
July 11, 2008
Terrebonne Parish School District Superintendent Ed Richard Jr. received a “satisfactory” rating on his evaluation from the school board last week.
Richard would not make public the board’s composite 60-question evaluation form or discuss it on the record.
By law, school board members are not allowed to reveal how they rated the superintendent’s performance. One board member did say what goes into making the decision.
“If I feel like he is at least making progress toward the stated goals he put forth to the board a year ago, then he’ll get a satisfactory vote,” said Roger “Dale DeHart. ” If I feel he hasn’t done that, then he won’t.”
Board members could have given the superintendent a rating of “satisfactory,” “needs improvement” or “unsatisfactory.” He received a satisfactory rating last year.
Prior to going into an hour-long executive session at the June 24 school board meeting, Richard outlined advancements made in the school system since last year’s evaluation.
Such improvements included raising English/Language Arts scores on standardized tests, recruiting and retaining qualified teachers and upgrading computer-assisted instruction.
Several board members suggested there should be changes made to how the superintendent is evaluated.
“We need to go to a point-based system like students have for exams,” DeHart said. “What we have doesn’t give either us or the superintendent an accurate assessment of where he stands in achieving his stated goals.”
The current evaluation system was designed by the state Department of Education. A similar evaluation is administered to educators and school staff across Louisiana.
While he would not discuss his evaluation, Richard did reveal that the goal he feels he has attained so far is “helping all students reach his or her potential,” he said. “We do that in a lot of different ways from pre-K all the way through high school.”
As for his most difficult goal to realize, “Probably the same thing. It’s the most satisfying goal, but it’s also the most difficult,” the superintendent said.
His top priority for the 2008-09 year is to continue raising test scores, particularly in reading.
Part of that effort started Monday with a literacy symposium at the Houma-Terrebonne Civic Center. The purpose is for language arts teachers to find creative ways to help students improve their reading skills.
“It’s so hard to teach reading, and I hope they get some new ideas to bring to the classroom,” Richard said.
Richard just completed his fourth year at the helm of the Terrebonne Parish School District, and is halfway through his current two-year contract.
By January, he and the board will voice their intentions as to whether Richard will be offered a new contract.
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