New East Baton Rouge Parish Superintendent Sito Narcisse fended off a last-minute attack Thursday on plans to spend millions in federal COVID aid — but not before charging critical board members of micromanagement.
At issue were six service contracts costing about $1.8 million in all. The biggest, worth $1.3 million, would pay Achieve3000 for student licenses for literacy and mathematics work as well as staff training and technical support.
Narcisse wound up prevailing . Board President David Tatman was absent.
The superintendent said killing the contract would cripple much-needed training for teachers just 20 days before the start of the new school year.
“It is hard to hold me as a superintendent accountable if you are micromanaging every single move that I make in terms of programs," Narcisse said.
Board Vice President Dawn Collins objected to his characterization.
"It’s not micromanagement to make sure that we have the information that we need," she replied.
Collins said she’s sought in vain for information on how the system will keep paying for programs launched with federal aid.
“Once the one-time money is gone, we don’t know how we are going to fund the recurring expense,†she said.
Board members Tramelle Howard and Dadrius Lanus echoed her concerns while raising some of their own. Howard worried about whether the school system is being strategic enough.
“I still don't see if we have a long-term strategy in how we are spending the money,†Howard complained.
Lanus wanted more information on the track record of the contractors being hired.
“Can we see that programs have been working over the past several years?†he asked.
Narcisse said the firms were on lists of vendors recommended by the state. He said the contracts are part of a larger effort to judge effectiveness of current programs and end "the dysfunction we have right now."
The prominent charter school group KIPP, which operates eight schools in New Orleans, is moving closer to taking control of Capitol High and m…
Also Thursday, without discussion, the board with the nationwide chain of KIPP charter schools to take over Capitol High. The board also .
The votes don’t mean immediate action. The high school remains under state control, as it has been since 2008. Also, the school built in 1960 needs extensive repairs, for which KIPP — short for Knowledge Is Power Program — is trying to find third-party financing.
Also without discussion, the board agreed unanimously to to offer the additional classes. It also OK'd more funding for traditional district-run pre-K for 4-year-olds. In all, the moves add 1,100 new publicly-funded preschool slots for 3- and 4-year-olds in Baton Rouge. Most of them will be at local child care centers that public school leaders consider “high quality.â€
Using privately-run centers to offer preschool is a key part of Superintendent Sito Narcisse’s larger goal to eventually make preschool universal in Baton Rouge. It's also a linchpin of his efforts to dramatically improve academic performance in public schools, particularly in literacy.
Mothballed in 2019, Broadmoor Middle School may soon be reborn as a magnet school with a visual and performing arts focus, but East Baton Roug…
The board decided Thursday to table with a visual and performing arts focus. Several board members have raised concerns about the idea and want more public input before voting. Broadmoor Middle closed in May 2019, but there’s $15 million available to renovate the facility once the board settles on what to do with it.
