The move to neuter local school boards continues to gain momentum. Citing the state’s bottom-feeder status in public-education achievement, the Council for A Better Louisiana and the Louisiana Association of Business & Industry unveiled in Baton Rouge a legislative package aimed at making local school boards more effective.
The legislation, filed by Rep. Steve Carter, a Baton Rouge Republican, echoes reform proposals put forth by state Superintendent of Education Paul Patorek and features six changes to local school boards:
â-Â Bar individual school board members from interfering in personnel matters (hiring, firing, etc.) best left to the superintendent
â-Â Require a super majority of board members to hire/fire a superintendent
â-Â Clarify nepotism laws pertaining to school boards
â-Â Replace salaries with per diems
â-Â Prevent board members from obtaining school-system health insurance
â-Â Limit board members to three terms (Lafayette Parish already has term limits)
CABL president Barry Erwin defends the proposals, saying there “is nothing in this reform to prevent a good school board from continuing its good work. Though some local boards may do a good job of governing for our students,” Erwin adds, “many are focused on the micromanagement of their district’s operations and interfering in personnel decisions.”