Rapides School Board to decide how to redistrict at February meeting
Redistricting and the April 30 multi-million bond issue for Alexandria schools were discussed Tuesday during Rapides Parish School Board committees.
The finance committee voted unanimously to send two options to the full board for redistricting as required because of new census data.
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At its Feb. 1 regular meeting, board members will decide to redistrict based either on current board and Rapides Parish Police Jury districts with some modifications or changing one board member to an at-large position while the other eight members keep individual districts.
If the board decides to go with an at-large member, they will have to determine which board member makes the switch.
The move would not require any legislative action, said James "Jam" Downs, the board's legal counsel, because it would be prompted by census data.
The redistricting will not change school attendance zones, Superintendent Jeff Powell said.
Before the vote, Powell discussed what census data showed for the parish, its municipalities and board districts. Rapides Parish's population declined by 1,593.
More specifically, Alexandria declined by 315 people, while Pineville declined by 435 people. The rural areas of the parish declined by 843 people.
Some districts gained, while others lost.
Board districts:
District A (Wilton Barrios): 7.4%
District B (Steve Berry): 2.5%
District C (Mark Dryden): 16.3%
District D (Buddy McCall): -16.8%
District E (Dr. Stephen Chapman): -.1%
District F (Linda Burgess): -13%
District G (Keith Breazeale); 6.1%
District H (Darrell Rodriguez): 2.2%
District I (Sandra Franklin): -.3%
On a related note, Finance Director Liz Domite said the district currently has 514 fewer students. Officials are awaiting a final tally but, if all those students are lost to the district, it could see a $3 million reduction in state funds.
The District 62 committee had several items that got lengthy discussion. The first was a motion from Franklin to review and discuss attendance zones within Alexandria. No action was taken, but Powell will be bringing back a report on past changes.
And Powell also said that focus groups begin meeting Wednesday to discuss a multi-million bond issue that will be on the April 30 ballot.
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The bond issue would pay for repairs to schools within Alexandria and possibly build a new middle school.
School administrators and board members suggested people for focus groups from each school, and the ones from Peabody Magnet and Alexandria Senior high schools are set to meet Wednesday. Another group will meet Thursday.
Public meetings should begin in early February, but committee members said anyone is welcome to attend the focus group meetings. They will be held in the board's meeting room at 619 Sixth St. in Alexandria.
Several parents at the meeting had questions about the bond issue.
One asked whether information about the bond issue is public yet, and another asked if the bond issue included what was intended for each of Alexandria's three high schools.
The bond issue, the conditions of schools and how best to address those needs has been under discussion by the committee and board for at least two years.
In August 2019, the board approved an engineering assessment for all District 62 schools. Members passed the language for the bond issue at its regular January meeting.
One mother asked if members thought the city's three high schools were equitable in academics, enrollment, sports and other factors.
While McCall and Chapman responded no, Chapman pointed out enrollment isn't the same and that the district strives for equal opportunities for students. He said the district has open enrollment, which allows a parent to move their child to a school outside their district if they choose.
But the bond issue is about repairing facilities, he said. There's talk about building a new middle school, he added.
"Drive around District 62. Look at the elementary schools. Look at our middle schools. Look at our high schools," he said. "We have aged facilities that we've been patching. For years, we've been patching, patching, patching."
The facilities have to be fixed, he said. If voters say no, the patching will continue.
"It may not be programs and all of that, but the voters may make it about stuff like that, too," said parent Heather Wise. "We just want things to be equitable. We're tired of people getting shifted from one to another.
"And yes, I am tired of pulling up to my kid's school, and it looking like a prison that's falling down. There's no sense in that. We need to take care of what we have. We need to pick up the litter, and clean the damn bathrooms. I'm tired of it."
This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Will Rapides School Board get an at-large member? Redistricting decision awaits
