Board spares storm-ravaged Grand Caillou Elementary, will rebuild school at current site

After weeks of debate, officials voted Tuesday night to build a new school to replace storm-ravaged Grand Caillou Elementary at its current site.

The Terrebonne Parish School Board voted 8-1 to choose that option from among three it had considered after Hurricane Ida caused heavy damage to the school in August 2021. Board member Clyde Hamner cast the sole dissenting vote.

Despite his vote, Hamner said he admires the parents and residents who have pleaded with the board at several meetings to keep the school in the bayou community rather than demolishing it and moving the students farther north to Houma.

"You guys presented yourselves with grace and style, and while I made a friend and I hope he takes me fishing, it won't affect my vote" Hamner said.

After the measure passed, Hamner stood with residents in the audience and joined them in applauding the board's decison.

"It feels so good, I'm going to sleep so well tonight," said Abraham Parfait, among residents who have lobbied the board to keep the school in the community.

Parfait and others delivered impassioned final speeches Tuesday night before the board cast the final vote.

They argued that without a school as the heart of their community, their culture, their way of life, would fade away.

Nija Robinson, 45, whose daughter attends Grand Caillou Elementary, said it is important for her child to see the school rebuilt and show the community is more resilient than any storm.

"Our children need to see something that's old, something that's excellent. … I want to tell her we were able to rebuild," Robinson said. "Every child should have a school within their community."

Hamner said he voted against because enrollment has dropped at the school, a trend that is expected to continue.

After the meeting, he produced statistics that show enrollment is projected to drop by nearly 5% from 2023 to 2024, falling more in following years. By 2027, the school is expected to enroll about 24% fewer students than it does now.

Census data have shown a persistent migration out of Terrebonne's southern bayou communities, where repeated storms and flooding have taken a toll.

In October, the board postponed a proposal to demolish the school and move its 390 students to Elysian Fields Elementary in Houma, a campus they have shared since the storm.

Superintendent Bubba Orgeron told the School Board on Oct. 4 that the Federal Emergency Management Agency would not pay to rebuild Grand Caillou Elementary at its current location because Ida practically destroyed the building and it's in a flood-prone area.

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But officials said in November they had since learned that FEMA would reimburse 90% of the cost of demolishing the current building and constructing a new one on the current campus along La. 57, with the School Board paying the rest. However, officials said it remains uncertain how much it would cost to elevate the school to meet FEMA flood standards and where the board would get its share of the money.

The measure passed Tuesday night is contingent on FEMA approving its cost share.

The board had considered these other two options, presented by Orgeron in November:

• Grand Caillou Elementary students would remain at Elysian Fields, which would be upgraded using the FEMA money.

• Merge Grand Caillou Middle and Oaklawn Middle schools. Both schools are in Houma. Students from both would attend Oaklawn and the name would change to Ellender Middle. It would be upgraded using the FEMA payment. Grand Caillou Elementary students would move to the current Grand Caillou Middle, where some of the FEMA money could also be used.

This article originally appeared on The Courier: Board votes to rebuild storm-ravaged Grand Caillou Elementary