March 17
March 17, 2009
Loyce "Lois" H. Matherne
March 19, 2009The St. Mary School Board learned last week that parish’s total sales tax collections are 9.4 percent above budget.
Board Accountant Alton Ray Perry told the board collections year to date are just over $12 million. The board originally budgeted $11.9 million for the same time period.
In other fiscal matters, Perry said total school damages experienced as a result of hurricanes Gustav and Ike last September stand at $1.5 million. The damages and their costs include:
• Morgan City High School –
Football stadium realignment: $50,000
Football stadium fencing: $20,000
Baseball stadium light pole: $18,000
• Morgan City Jr. High School –
Repairs to the school’s third wing: $200,000.
• Berwick High School –
Ceiling tile repairs at $10,000
A light pole at the football stadium: $55,000
A light pole at the baseball stadium: $18,000
• Centerville High School –
A baseball stadium light pole: $18,000.
• West St. Mary High School –
Concession stand repairs: $125,000.
Perry said the insurance company paid $552,877 and the Federal Emergency Management Agency is expected to reimburse the school district an additional $750,000. The school board will be responsible for the difference – $197,122, he said.
At last week’s meeting, the school board also:
• Renewed its $2,600 contract with Forethought Consulting to continue providing Louisiana School Board policy updates.
• Awarded a bid for copy paper to LH Printing and Office Supply of Morgan City at a price of $30.50 per case for standard-sized paper and legal-sized paper at $43.90 per case.
• Renewed a $1.224 property insurance policy (for machinery) with Travelers of Illinois, Frank’s Agency of Patterson.
• Renewed a $1.2 million building and contents policy with AMRisc Facility, Paul’s Agency of Morgan City.
In other business, the board adopted its 2009-2010 school calendar, which adjusts spring break holidays for students. The board agreed to designate only Good Friday and Easter Monday April 2 and 5, 2010, as holidays, followed by a week off for spring break, April 26-30, 2010.
St. Mary Assistant School Superintendent Keith Thibodeaux said the move is designed to allow teachers to “maximize test preparation time.”
He explained that students will return to school to begin preparing for statewide standardized iLEAP, LEAP and GEE tests, which in 2010, will be April 12-16.
“We felt if students would have observed the traditional spring break holidays after Easter, their chances of achieving higher benchmarks on the standardized tests would be challenging for some,” Thibodeaux explained.
The calendar also marks Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2010, as the first full day for St. Mary Parish public school students.
On another topic, St. Mary Parish Public Schools will begin registration for pre-Kindergarten, Kindergarten, and first grade students March 23-27.
Pre-Kindergarten students must be four-years-old, Kindergarten students must be five-years-old, and first grade students must be six years old on or before Sept. 30.
Students who currently do not attend public schools but are eligible also need to register, the school board said.
Parents and guardians are asked to register at the school in their residential zone on the designated day. Once registration has been completed at the school sites, parents of potential pre-Kindergarten students will be contacted in the spring by the school’s pre-Kindergarten teacher to set up screening tests required for admittance to the classes in St. Mary Parish.
Parents will need to bring the following items to registration: the child’s birth certificate, Social Security card, proof of residency, immunization record, allergy information and proof of income (for pre-Kindergarten students only).
The registration dates are:
• Monday, March 23:
Shannon Elementary in Morgan City, from 8:30 a.m. to noon and 1 to 3 p.m.
• Tuesday, March 24
Aucoin Elementary in Amelia, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Wednesday, March 25
Berwick Elementary, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Wednesday, March 25
Wyandotte Elementary in Morgan City from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Thursday, March 26
Bayou Vista Elementary from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Thursday, March 26
Maitland Elementary in Morgan City, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Thursday, March 26
Hattie Watts Elementary in Patterson, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Friday, March 27
Norman Elementary in Morgan City, from 9 a.m. to noon.
Call (337) 836-9661 for more info.
