Zachary school system gets overhaul
ZACHARY — The Zachary Community School Board approved a reorganization of the central office and the transfer of some school administrators Thursday stemming from a coming move to national standards in four “core subjects” and the construction of a new school.
Superintendent Warren Drake recommended, and the board approved, splitting a central office instructional division to help the district get ready for new national standards in English-language arts, math, science and social studies.
Michelle Clayton, now a director of accountability and assessment, will lead an office focusing on curriculum, instruction and professional learning, while Karin Lawless will be in charge of the district’s testing program.
Keisha Thomas, assistant principal of Copper Mill Elementary School, will be transferred to the central office on April 2 as a curriculum specialist for English-language arts.
The national standards that Louisiana schools will adopt are to be “heavy on English-language arts, especially writing, and with more project-based learning,” Drake said in recommending Thomas for the new post.
Drake also recommended that Zachary Elementary Principal Jennifer Marangos be named principal of a new school under construction for first- and second-graders. The appointment is effective Jan. 8, 2013.
Northwestern Elementary Assistant Principal Kelli Day will become an assistant to Marangos next year, while Zachary Early Learning Center Assistant Principal Angela Cassard will take Thomas’ place at Copper Mill.
Other items discussed during the meeting included:
ROAD BUDGET: The board set a budget of $600,000 for improvements to Ada Street, a road linking Rollins Road and the northeast corner of the Zachary High School campus.
The board owns all of the property on both sides of the street, which was torn up during construction of several new buildings.
BOND SALE: The board will sell $14 million of construction bonds March 8. The bonds are part of a $40 million bond issue voters approved in 2010 for continued construction in the district.
EXPULSION HEARINGS: The board unanimously voted to uphold the administration’s decisions to expel three Zachary High School students.
The expulsions involved what the students’ parents described as bullying similar to that allegedly committed by an Alabama football fan against an LSU fan in New Orleans following the national collegiate football championship.
The parents asked for leniency, saying the students had exemplary academic and athletic records.
The parents said the alleged acts were “stupid and immature,” but the punishment is too severe.