The OPSBrief

Brought to you by

The ECCS 

 Quick Links

www.eastbankcollaborative.com 

www.lacharterschools.org

 www.educatenow.net

 www.coweninstitute.com

www.louisianaschools.net

www.charterdiscovery.com

www.laschoolfinder.com 

www.nopg.org

Support Us!

This report is created by Ken Ducote and Rose Drill-Peterson on behalf of the Eastbank Collaborative of Charter Schools 


The Orleans Parish School Board held its monthly Board Business Meeting on Tuesday, September 16, 2014, in the Mack Spears Auditorium of the McDonogh 35 High School.

The posted agenda and back-up documentation can be read here. Videos of the meeting are periodically shown on Cox Cable Orleans Channel 8, the Educational Access Channel, as well as archived on the OPSB's website, www.opsb.us.

OPSBrief has  summarized the meeting agenda below. The planned Executive Session was cancelled because the two proposed settlements had already been discussed in the Legal and Legislative Committee's Executive Session on the previous Thursday.

It should be noted that the meeting was disrupted on several occasions due to breaches of decorum.


 

***This email is created by Ken Ducote and Rose Drill-Peterson on behalf of the Eastbank Collaborative of Charter Schools and is not an official correspondence from the Orleans Parish School Board***
REPORT FROM SEPT 16 OPSB BUSINESS MEETING
Presentations
Recognized achievements of school personnel as indicated below
  • Recognition of 2014 Principal of the Year and Teacher of the Year
    • District Teacher of the Year - Dr. Sally A. Spahn, Benjamin Franklin HS
    • District Principal of the Year - Ms. Charlotte Matthew - Benjamin Franklin ES

Committee Reports

Received reports from Committee Chairpersons

  • Accountability Committee
  • Property Committee
  • Legal and Legislative Committee
  • Policy Committee
    • Did not meet this month
  • Budget and Finance Committee

 

Action Items

Reviewed and discussed Superintendent's recommendations and took action as indicated

  • Resolution 27-14 OPSB Call Resolution
    • Adopted the resolution by a 4 to 3 vote to call an election for millage rededication for December 6, 2014
    • Funds School Facilities Preservation Program 
      • Addresses the need for long term capital preservation of local school facilities after one-time FEMA funds are exhausted 

      • Provides that the existing local revenues (sales tax and millage) dedicated to paying current debt can be used for maintaining school facilities after the existing bond debt has been paid off

      • Can be established without raising current level of taxes

      • Delays in approving could reduce amount of revenue available for the program by $ 5-6 million annually for each year of delay

      •  Outlines how this facility money will be allocated between the OPSB and RSD and the charter schools 

      •  Sets out the responsibilities of OPSB, RSD, and the occupant of each school in maintaining and repairing the facilities

    • Nine persons spoke in favor of the Resolution, including the Urban League, New Orleans Business Council, Orleans Parent Education Network, Eastbank Collaborative of Charter Schools and the Easton HS PTSA
      • Cited the need to preserve investment in buildings since Hurricane Katrina
      • Wanted to take advantage of unique opportunity offered by Act 543 of the 2014 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature 
      • Did not want OPSB buildings to deteriorate as they did in the past when funds were not available to preserve buildings as basic components (roofs, boilers, chillers, elevators, fire alarms, etc..) neared the end of their normal useful lives
      • Can be done without raising current tax rates if done this year
      • The proposal is not to approve the plan but rather to submit it to the voters for their consideration
    • Five persons spoke against the proposal
      • Did not want RSD or charters to get any funds for their buildings
      • Questioned how the legislation was developed and promoted
      • Questioned timing of the election
      • Angry about OPSB staff layoffs after Katrina and failure of RSD charters to hire those employees
    • Four OPSB members voted for the resolution for stated reasons including the following:
      • Voters will decide for themselves
      • Program is needed to preserve school buildings
      • Attempts to resolve the governance concerns have been on-going for several years and will not be resolved soon, so this program should not be delayed until then
         
    • Three OPSB members voted against the resolution for stated reasons including the following:
      • Millage is needed to preserve buildings but disagree with the legislation
      • Felt that OPSB members were not involved in crafting the legislation
      • Distrustful of legislation involving charters since the passage of Act 35 of the Extraordinary Session of the 2005 Louisiana Legislature 
      • Did not want any funds for buildings going to RSD or its charters for various reasons
      • Wanted to join the OPSB and RSD Facilities Offices specified in Act 543 into one office under OPSB because OPSB owns the buildings being preserved
  • OPSB Surplus Property Offers
    • Charter School Offers per State law
    • Board counsel explained the State laws governing charter school preference on property sales
    • Carrollton Courthouse
      • No offered received
      • Probably will be auctioned
    • Hansberry ES
      • Sale - Citizens' Committee for Education - $400,000 
    • Priestley JrHS
      • Sale - Lycee Francais de la Nouvelle-Orleans - $425,500
    • Hoffman ES Site
      • Defer for additional appraisals - N.O. College Preparatory Academies
    • Approved the sales
    • Eleven persons spoke in favor of the sales, mostly in support of the Priestley sale
    • Three persons spoke against the sale of Priestley as proposed
  • Resolution 24-14 Capital Projects Amendment #15
    • Adopted the resolution
    • McDonogh 7 masonry repairs - $215,000
  • Deferred Revenues Fiscal Year 2013
    • Approved the proposal for the distribution of the funds
  • Resolution 26-14 2015 General Obligation Bonds Millage
    • Adopted the resolution
    • Adjusted annually - this year = 4.97 mils
  • Ad Hoc Committee for John McDonogh HS
    • Approved a substitute motion from the John McDonogh Steering Committee
    • Established Ad Hoc Committee to recommend plans to BESE/RSD on future of school
      • Three OPSB members, one BESE member, one RSD representative and three Steering Committee Members
      • Committee will reach out to other interested community stakeholders for input
    • BESE member Kira Orange-Jones gave remarks to clarify BESE position on the committee's work
    • Six persons spoke for the proposal and one other appeared to be against
Litigation Items
  • Zoning case regarding settlement of Audubon ES (Broadway Campus) set-backs
    • Approved the settlement
    • Read into the record Audubon Charter's position generally in support of the settlement
  • Proposed settlement of workers' compensation case
    • Approved the settlement
  • Civil rights complaint regarding persons with limited English proficiency
    • Deferred to next meeting

 
This service is made possible by support from the Louisiana Association of Public Charter Schools and funding from the
Robert Reily Family Trust and the Smith/Cooper Foundation