Photograph: Superintendent Milton Batiste III with Joyce Haynes. Photograph by Bobby Ardoin.
BOBBY ARDOIN
Editor/Consulting Writer
The St. Landry Parish School Board has approved job descriptions for five new administrative and school-level positions, as superintendent Milton Batiste III begins reshaping the organizational structure for the District.
According to his overall restructural plan which received Board consent on Thursday night, Batiste plans to emphasize school improvements and administrative assistance for Opelousas and Eunice, while creating additional help for the office of superintendent.
State law enables school superintendents to make appointments for supervisors and administrative staff positions, but that authority is also limited, since board members in all districts are responsible for drafting supervisory job requirements.
Among the new positions that received eventual Board approval were separate zone leadership and an executive director positions for child welfare and attendance in the Opelousas area.
Board members also authorized responsibilities for a combined assistant superintendent and director athletics, while approving salary ranges of $85,000 to $105,000 for new principals at Opelousas and Eunice high schools.
Potentially Batiste said, the Opelousas High or Eunice High principal might also become a zone leader, depending on overall qualifications.
An additional position – confidential assistant to the superintendent — was also approved by board members.
Salaries for Opelousas and Eunice High principals
Batiste told board members that the salaries for each of the principals would be determined by the qualifications of the applicants.
Board members Bianca Vedell and Renee Aymond pressed Batiste about the salaries, indexing and job descriptions for zone leaders and principals in Opelousas and Eunice, but Batiste said the pay levels and responsibilities would be determined according to the qualifications of each applicant.
“I need the flexibility (for the salary ranges ) in order to have the ability to negotiate. If there is someone who has the skill set to be both a zone leader and a principal, then the pay scale would apply accordingly. If the person selected is just a principal then the salary would be more towards the bottom,” said Batiste.
Board members Robert Gautreaux and Anthony Standberry stressed that Batiste should be provided with more latitude in choosing his staff.
“We need to trust (Batiste) and support him and move on,” Gautreaux said.
Batiste added that Opelousas has been plagued with rising crime and violence in addition to poor school performances at most schools.
Eunice, Batiste added, has begun trending towards higher overall crime, while some elementary schools have started to indicate lower test scores.
During a committee meeting last week, Aymond said there is no question that selecting a principal for Opelousas High is a priority.
However Aymond added that she is seeking more clarity on the principal and zone leader combinations in order to provide a better explanation for her constituents.
Standberry pointed out that higher pay could work as an incentive for attracting qualified personnel at all levels of employment inside the District.
The responsibilities of zone leaders would become an ancillary of the leadership team for the superintendent. Zone leaders would assist all principals inside the zone on school improvement and staff development, according to a job description posted on the District website.
Executive Director of Child Welfare and Attendance
This position also indicates the possibility for becoming a zone leader. The child welfare duties will pertain to monitoring regular school attendance by communicating with parents, students and community services and resources.
Confidential Assistant
Batiste told the Board that the confidential assistant is not intended to shield board members or the public from the Office of Superintendent.
The job description duties noted for confidential assistant, are handling correspondences, documents and assignments designated by the superintendent.
First photo: Supervisor of School Nurses Sylvia Brown was recognized on Thursday night for being named 2023 School Health Service Provider of The Year by the Louisiana Department of Education. Pictured with Willis are Alvado Willis, Director of Special Education, husband Dexter Brown and Superintendent Milton Batiste III.
Second photo: Mayria Ledet (East Elementary) and Meggan Guillory (Northwest High) were recognized as Louisiana Department of Education leader advisors for 2023 on Thursday night. Superintendent Milton Batiste III is also pictured.
