East Baton Rouge Parish School Board

Special Meeting Minutes

Thursday, December 5, 2024

A. Meeting Opening

1. Invocation and Pledge of Allegiance

The Invocation was led by School Board Member Emily Soulé, and the Pledge of Allegiance will be led by School Board Member Dadrius Lanus.

School Board President Carl Powell Lewis called the meeting to order at 5:02 PM.

Members present were Mark Bellue, Dadrius Lanus, Carla Powell Lewis, Cliff Lewis, Nathan Rust, Michael Gaudet, Emily Soulé, and Patrick Martin.

Shashonnie Steward was absent.

Others present were LaMont Cole, Superintendent;  Adam Smith, Deputy Superintendent; Gwynn Shamlin Jr., General Counsel; Andrea O’Konski, Chief of Accountability and Assessments; Amy Jones, Chief Technology Officer; Stacey Dupre, Chief of Support and Special Projects; Kelly Lopez, Chief Financial Officer; James Crochet, Chief Business Operations Officer; John McCann, Interim Chief Operations Officer; Randy Morales II, Chief of Plant Operations; and Catasha Edwards, Chief of Literacy.

B. Items for Consideration

1. School Closure: J.K. Haynes

Approval of the following:

a) Formal closure of JK Haynes Teacher Prep & Leadership Academy at the end of the school year when the LDOE site code window opens and allows for sponsor site changes.

b) Reassigning 110 students Pre-K through 5th grade to the Ryan Elementary School campus located at 10337 Elm Grove Garden Drive, effective January 2025.

c) Reassigning eleven (11) 6th-grade students to Scotlandville Middle Pre-Engineering Academy (SPEMA) site located at 9147 Elm Grove Garden Drive, effective January 2025.

Motion by Michael Gaudet, second by Dadrius Lanus.

Final Resolution: Motion Carries

Yea: Bellue, Lanus, Powell Lewis, Lewis, Rust, Gaudet, Soulé, Martin

C. Adjournment

There being no further business, the Board adjourned by acclamation.