The Jackson Parish School Board held its regularly scheduled monthly meeting on Monday, September 14th, in the conference room at the Jackson Parish School District Central Office, where board members Mary Saulters, Rick Barlow, Paulette Belton, Gerry Mims, Wade McBride, and Dennis Clary addressed a large agenda. Listed below are actions taken.
(1) Approved the minutes from the Regular Scheduled meeting held on August 3, 2026, and the minutes from the Special Called meeting held on August 13, 2026.
(2) The Board recognized Kristina Bourgeois – Jackson Parish 4-H.
(3) Approved the 2026-2027 General Fund and Special Revenue Budgets.
(4) Rick Barlow reported to the Board on the meeting of the Executive Finance Committee held prior to the Board meeting.
(5) Approve payment of the following bills: General Fund, Federal Program, School Food Service, Sales Tax, Special Education, and District Maintenance bills.
(6) Approve payment of the Employer’s Share of Group Benefits insurance premiums from the General Fund for the September 2026 Sales Tax distribution.
(7) Approved disposing of one (1) 2008 International Bus, Serial No. 4DRBUSKN78B654863, by taking the bus to a scrap yard. The bus was previously declared surplus and offered for sale; however, no bids met the minimum bid requirement.
(8) Approved payment of $18,186.28 to Howard Technology Solutions for Securly Classroom, Securly Aware, and Securly Filter renewal for all schools, to be paid from the General Fund. This is under TIPS/TAPS Computers/Equipments Contract #230105.
(9) Approved payment of $17,000.00 to Career Compass of Louisiana for the renewal of individual college and career coaching for Seniors at Jonesboro Hodge High School, Quitman High School, and Weston High School, to be paid from 2026-2027 Career Development funds. Career Compass is a Sole Source.
(10) Agreed to rescind the motion made at the April 13, 2026 Board meeting: A motion was made by Wade McBride, seconded by Dennis Clary, and carried to approve payment to Uniti Fiber in the amount of $27,949.75 to purchase E-Rate Cat 2 equipment for E-Rate Year 2026-2027, to be paid from the General Fund.
(11) Approved payment to Uniti Fiber in the amount of $29,115.76 to purchase E-Rate Cat 2 equipment for E-Rate Year 2026-2027, to be paid from the General Fund.
(12) Agreed to pay salary and benefits for up to eight (8) part-time interventionists (paid using the substitute salary schedule rates) and 25% of salaries and benefits for three (3) Title One paraprofessionals to provide small group high dosage tutoring embedded in the school day at Jonesboro Hodge Elementary School, Quitman High School, and Weston High School, not to exceed $79,000.00, to be paid from the High Dosage Tutoring Grant.
(13) Jennifer Colvin, Business Manager, presented the Financial Report.
(14) Wade McBride reported to the Board on the meeting of the Building and Grounds Committee held prior to the Board meeting.
(15) Adopted the resolution granting Bonnie Buckelew permission to sign the State of Louisiana Cooperative Endeavor Agreement for Act 3 of the 2026 Regular Legislative Session in the amount of $178,000.00 (Acquisition, Equipment and Operating Expenses for materials and supplies, as well as labor costs to install lighting and electrical upgrades to the baseball and softball fields at Weston High School) for and on behalf of the Jackson Parish School Board.
(16) Adopted the resolution granting Bonnie Buckelew permission to sign the State of Louisiana Cooperative Endeavor Agreement for Act 961 of the 2026 Regular Legislative Session in the amount of $200,000.00 for operations (Acquisition, Equipment and Operating Expenses for materials and supplies, as well as labor costs to renovate and enhance the facilities at Jonesboro Hodge High School, Jonesboro Hodge Elementary School and Quitman High School) for and on behalf of the Jackson Parish School Board.
(17) Approved payment of $38,895.76 to Servpro for the Mold Remediation at Jonesboro Hodge Elementary School Support building, to be paid from Jonesboro Hodge District fund.
(18) Approved payment of $33,495.76 to Servpro for the Mold Remediation at Jonesboro Hodge Elementary School, to be paid from the Jonesboro Hodge District fund.
(19) Approved payment of $32,721.54 to Dodson Enterprises, Inc. for labor and materials to replace ceiling tile and insulation at Jonesboro Hodge Elementary School, to be paid from the Jonesboro Hodge District fund.
(20) Approved payment of $5,115.59 to Altec Environmental Consulting, Inc. for Air Quality Assessment at Jonesboro Hodge Elementary School, to be paid from the Jonesboro Hodge District fund.
(21) Approved payment of $15,667.23 to Wood Electronic, LLC for wiring replacement at Quitman High School, to be paid from the Quitman District fund.
(22) Gerry Mims reported to the Board on the Transportation Committee meeting held prior to the Board meeting.
(23) Granted approval to Weston High School Varsity Cheerleaders, along with their sponsors Shayla Heard and Alyssa Hogue, to attend the Varsity Spirit Citrus Bowl Halftime Performance in Orlando, Florida, from December 30, 2026 through January 3, 2027. All expenses will be paid by the Weston High School Cheerleaders.
(24) Granted approval to Weston High School Baseball to travel to Millington and Memphis, Tennessee, April 1-3, 2027, to participate in the USA High School Challenge Tournament. All expenses will be paid by Weston High School Baseball.
(24) Granting approval for Elsie Flynn from Weston High School, along with advisor Derek Shields, to attend the Weston FFA Convention October 19th – 24th, 2026, in Indianapolis, Indiana. Expenses will be reimbursed according to IFCB – Field Trips and Excursions policy.
(25) Paulette Belton reported to the Board on the meeting of the Policy Committee held prior to the Board meeting.
(26) Agreed to revise the following policies:
• JGCE – Child Abuse
• GBRIA – Personal Leave
• GBRIB – Sick Leave
• JD – Discipline
• JDD – Suspension
• JDE – Expulsion
• IDDF – Education of Students with Exceptionalities
• IDDFC – Cameras in Special Education Classrooms
• JGCFA – Behavioral Health Services for Students
• EBBC – Emergency Operations Plans
• JGCD – Administration of Medicine
To view a copy of the official meeting minutes of the Jackson Parish School Board on September 14th, go to Public Notice in the Classifieds Section of the Jackson Parish Journal.