Board Meeting Comments

I’m glad to see that you were able to get the board to come to a unanimous decision. I just hope that with your leadership you will hold principals, other admin leaders and your general council Mr. Shamlin accountable to do their contracted duties and respond to your employees emails about corrupt and dishonest actions of other leaders. Please have Mr. Shamlin check his emails about my confidential emails getting breeched without my permission. Thank you.

If passed then all school staff should benefit from the pay raise. All parents aren't able to pay the cost. Paraprofessionals should be paid more. My son with special needs gets aid from Paraprofessionals all day, but isn't allowed to participate in before and after school care due to lack of staff. Train and pay paraprofessional more money. If passed make sure students will stay in EBR. Collect and analyze data to see if this truly benefits teacher recruitment

How many students at each school directly benefited from the services last year? How many students do you anticipate providing tutoring services to this year? What does the on-site tutoring look like during the school day and does it interfere with seat time? Should the board explore options for tutoring and prep that extends to all high schools and/or options that can be taught by our own teachers?

Just concerned about why these are the only three schools contracted for this service. Is there a way to expand this to other schools? I know that students at Crestworth Elementary, Ryan Elementary, and Progress Elementary could certainly use these tutoring services to support and improve Math and ELA skills and scores. Those are just elementary schools because my kids are elementary. Why aren’t we providing these services to children equitably? Especially, our Special Education students who are already not receiving services due to teacher shortage and the notion that there isn’t funding to support the interventions needed.

I appreciate the work of BRYC and commend them for the extensive back up data they have provided and their active listening that has manifested to in school programming that the board and community asked for. considering there was an issue with online comments, i am taking this opportunity to comment on the general difference between MOUs and professional service contracts (which i emailed about and received no response) I question the difference between these requests for thousands of dollars. There is a HUGE discrepancy in information provided by these many entities seeking significant funding tonight and always. Some have VERY detailed budgets, outcomes, per student data, metrics,etc and some have only a dollar amount and mission for services. This is very troubling as you move through this agenda. You have once again found yourself out of time due to other dysfunction, but the time is now to set guidelines for how district and tax payer dollars are allocated to private entities.

BRYC just received major funding in the millions. BRYC is very selective in its acceptance of students to its program, so it does not impact the students most at risk who can benefit from the services they actually provide. They’re actually picking the ripest fruit from the tree. I’m not understanding why we’re pouring more money into this company, and our children are still struggling to read. $796K poured into staff that directly touch and provide interventions to children deficient in reading on grade level is money best spent. Why isn’t there a focus on directly partnering with teachers and partners to improve literacy at the elementary level? It’s great for ACT PREP, but how many kids are going to test for the ACT when the reading gap grows year after year. By the time they make it to middle and high school, they’re so far behind that ACT prep and tutoring is still not addressing the major deficits our kids have.

BRYC has provided many opportunities for my 2 children. Each Tuesday, they have received services that have improved their ACT scores, leadership skills, and personal mindset growth. My children have had the opportunity to visit colleges and develop career goals. BRYC´s afterschool program has helped me navigate the higher education realm. Please vote to accept this contract, so that other families can experience their professionalism and college/career services.

I have had a nephew matriculate through BRYC and currently have a niece and daughter who are benefitting from BRYC's programming. They are a supportive organization that not only help students strengthen their ACT scores, but also teach them skills that are not always able to be taught in the classroom. BRYC teaches our children how to fish instead of giving them fish. They give them the tools to hold themselves accountable, realize a vision for their futures, and surround themselves with like-minded individuals in order to build a community and support system throughout the journey of both high school and college matriculation. They help them to navigate the journey towards reaching out and connecting with the many partners in Louisiana who are able to give them experience. BRYC is a phenomenal program and I would like to see continue.

it has become public knowledge that the executive director of City Year in Baton Rouge has been involved in a relationship with the now former superintendent after having secured a larger than normal contract for City Year Baton Rouge last year. How does the parish in good faith award an increase in funding over a contract last year secured under curious circumstances? How many other organizations secure funding based on strange bedfellows with board members and district leadership? The effectiveness of City Year Baton Rouge is questionable at best and disproven at worst. 2/3 of a million dollars can go a long way in serving the community and not serving the romantic or familial relationships of the decision makers. The authorized contract should see a reduction to be line with years previous to last years questionable arrangement OR be reconsidered or voted down altogether.

Last year, $480,000 was contracted for 4 schools with ending date of May 23. This year, City Year is requesting $650,000 for high dose tutoring for 4 schools in EBR. I have the following questions 1.School ends on May 22 ,so why was the program extended until June 30? 2.What are 2023-2024 results for students served in EBR by City Year? 3. How many students will be served? In March, State Superintendent Brumley hinted at possible takeover of Park Forest Middle and Capital Middle. $650,000 is a lot of money to spend on high dose tutoring with no guarantees for school report card improvement and without data from 2023-2024 school year.

I experienced City Year as an educator having a City Year employee in my classroom. It was not a fruitful, professional, or enjoyable partnership. The person assigned to my classroom was a constant distraction and I found myself having to mentor them on appropriateness on multiple occasions. In continuing with this program, I'd like to see metrics on accountability with the young adults who are chosen to go into the classrooms. I think the model/idea could be of a great benefit. However, there leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to the added benefit to the learning environment.

This is an exemplary example of a partnership with a company that holistically supports the development and education of children in the district. Money well spent. Let me applaud and recognize Each and every City Year working at Crestworth Elementary! The work they do to serve these children is Amazing! They fill in wherever needed, and the work they do needs to be supported and replicated across the district.

We were told that teachers were not allowed to have an account to access Mclass interventions last year because it is the secure state testing platform for DIBELS. Only testing coordinators and people testing students could have an account. Unless that has changed, why are we paying for something none of us can use?

At what point do we spend money to directly fund and support intervention for students? Not more training by and for reading coaches? The students who are not reading on grade level, and are now punitively being punished by law when retained, need people in schools providing them with intervention ToNow. I’m at home paying tutors to help my struggling read, and the school system continues to spend money to teach teachers. Continuous learning is critical, but the fact that when myself and other parents inquire about interventionists to help with pull outs and small group, there aren’t any staff or money available. Our most vulnerable Special Education students, are not receiving the help the need. Mr. Cole when this contract is approved, I hope you will inspect, what they say you can expect because it is Majorly Suspect.

As an avid reader, seasoned English teacher, and mother of an EBR student who scored a perfect 36 on the Reading portion of her ACT in her 8th grade year, I stand behind Renaissance Learning as an accountability tool. This program aided me in my student's reading growth increasing approximately 2 years each school year, as measured by their beginning of the year and end of the year STAR testing embedded in the Renaissance Learning program. Beginning in my daughter's 1st grade year, I challenged her to earn 100 AR points, through the Renaissance Learning program. As a parent, I received email reports of her quiz results in real time. This aided in daily and weekly conversations and encouragement in regards to her reading. With proper training of teachers and engagement of parents, this program has great potential to help readers grow their utilization of their ZPD (zone per development). It empowers students to read high interests books while also growing their reading levels.

Please disregard previous comment. I didn't realize this was for the DNa platform, previously known as Illuminate, instead of the reading platform.

Over the past year, there has been substantial negative feedback from students and parents regarding the Dreambox platform, with concerns that it is a waste of resources and students' time. Before making a decision on whether to renew the Dreambox contract, it is strongly recommended to personally log in and complete the required 5 assignments for one week. This hands-on evaluation will provide a clearer understanding of the platform’s and help determine if it justifies the investment.

I urge the board to streamline our spending on math programs. Math teachers are overwhelmed by the requirement to use multiple platforms; Many programs end up being used as busy-work that is not aligned to current class lessons simply to fulfill requirements from a random person at the school board office. We need fewer programs and more training and focus on those we keep. It is essential that the board spends more wisely.

This tool is not optimized and utilized as it should be to tune this product to each student’s needs. It’s a waste of a money.

Before HES is approved for almost a million dollar increase, the board and public should see a detailed accounting for their current employees, payroll, benefits, etc. Many loyal team members of EBRPSS through our previous service provider, janitorial and facility maintenance beloved team members, saw significant pay decreases and loss of their benefits when HES was first awarded their contract. Please get the details of how this increase will also increase the pay and quality of life of those working in the schools for HES AND their subcontractors. If this is about inflation, I guarantee those working in our facilities are feeling it more than HES.

Cost of living increase? That is a foreign concept in education. Please explain!

I'm in favor of the nurse pay raise. All schools need available nurses to care for all children and especially those with medical conditions.

Will this be available at all schools in EBR? Are children with disabilities able to participate in the financial literacy program as well?

I want to echo Ms. Matthews statement. Finance Park is an amazing program, but social studies teachers cannot do it justice due to time constraints. A core teacher's primary focus must be the core curriculum, not an add-on unit. Give Finance Park to Quest for Success. It fits quite well into the curriculum for this course.

I want to highlight the omission of Shenandoah Elementary from the proposed Kids’ Orchestra program for 2024-2025. Last year, Shenandoah participated, offering students in District 6 valuable music education. My second-grade daughter thrived in this program, gaining creativity, confidence, and strong social bonds. She was eager to continue this year after enjoying a summer music camp at The Dufrocq School. It is concerning that Shenandoah is excluded this year, depriving many students of these opportunities. I urge the board to reconsider and include Shenandoah Elementary, ensuring equitable access to high-quality programs for all students. Parents in our community believe our children deserve the same opportunities as those in other districts. Including Shenandoah would be a significant step toward fairness in our education system. I hope the board ensures all students in East Baton Rouge have access to enriching programs like Kids’ Orchestra.