Superintendent Update
August 21, 2017
UPCOMING EVENTS
AROUND CAMPUS
Arnaudville Elementary School
Le Bon Voisin sponsored a school supply drive for Arnaudville and Grand Coteau Elementary.
Grand Coteau Elementary
Grand Prairie Elementary
Grolee Elementary
Lawtell Elementary
Leonville Elementary
Leonville Elementary: Welcome Back Students!
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Opelousas High School
Palmetto Elementary
Palmetto Elementary hosted its “Meet and Greet” on Tuesday, August 8, 2017. Parents and students showed up by the dozens to meet teachers and drop off supplies.
Park Vista Elementary
On Thurs., Aug. 10, Mr. Tyrone Glover, a councilman for the city of Opelousas, obliged Ms. Boutte, a fourth grade teacher at Park Vista Elementary, with six tablets for her students. Mr. Glover was welcomed by the fourth graders, and he received personal feedback from the students on their second day back at school.
Mr. Glover's generous donation will help Ms. Boutte's students implement more 21st Century technology skills, as well as, their communication skills through group collaborations.
The students were impressed that there are people in the community like Mr. Glover who care and contribute to their success.
We thank Mr. Glover for his contributions to his city's youth.
A special thanks goes to each member of the crew. We really appreciated the assistance.
Thank you Ray Bellow, Joe Jordan, Ricky Charles, Tony Vidrine, Otis Malveaux, Richard Mansfield, and Joe Hargroder.
Miss Jimmie Lynn Williams
Miss Jimmie Lynn Williams received her Bachelor of Science Degree in Physical Education and Recreation from Grambling College in Ruston, LA. She has also received a Master's in Physical Education, plus thirty in Supervision and Administration: both from Southern University in Baton Rouge, LA
She has been a very dedicated and loyal Physical Education Teacher for the St. Landry Parish School System for 45 years. She started her teaching career working for Leonville High School, where she initiated the first girls' volleyball varsity team in St. Landry Parish. From there, she taught P.E. at Northeast Elementary school for several years.
At present, she is the Physical Education Teacher (Grades 1st-3rd) at Park Vista Elementary, caring for her students FAR BEYOND the call of duty.
In Nov. of 1991, Miss Jimmie Lynn Williams sustained injuries from a car accident, but with her dedication, faith, spiritual determination, support, and love from her family; friends; doctors; and her unfailing love for her students, she was able to return to her teaching career the following school year to do what she loves the best: teach the students.
Southwest Elemetary
Special thanks to St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church Ladies Mission Department, who donated five backpacks filled with school supplies to Southwest Elementary School. Mrs. Rachel Boutte made the presentation.
Sunset Elementary
Sunset Elementary JTC Bank & Trust
and
Sunset Elementary General Store
As often common when an educator is faced with teaching a new subject, Ms. Erica LaFountaine Meche approached the Journey to Careers curriculum with a nervousness that was quickly eased once she realized that it allowed her some freedom in assisting to guide the students onto a pathway of their interested professions. That curriculum also contained something that Ms. Meche considers to be a personal passion which is teaching the importance of the financial responsibility and independence to people who may have never been taught or may not understand its importance. In typical “Ms. Meche fashion”, she took the basic idea of financial literacy and applied it to a more realistic approach which she believes will have a life-long impact on her students. With that thought in mind, the idea of the Sunset Elementary Bank & Trust and the Sunset Elementary General Store was born.
The premise is that each student in the JTC classes will learn to be good stewards of their money by starting at an early age. Students will turn in a time sheet to their JTC teachers bi-weekly in order to receive their pay which is based on three components – class effort, academic performance, and behavior. Each aspect has a set dollar amount to be paid to students in the form of a paycheck. Upon receiving that check, students will go to the bank where they will fill out deposit slips and a ledger to manage the funds in their accounts. Those funds can then be spent in the general store for a variety of school supplies, snacks, spirit shirts, and other school goods. The general store will only accept checks written by the students and JTC cash. If a student does not have the adequate funds to purchase what he/she wants, that student can apply for a line of credit and will be responsible for paying the bill. The bank and general store will employ 7th-grade JTC students who will have the same responsibilities as any normal job and will be compensated for their work. It is the hope of Ms. Meche that these real-life experiences will better prepare students to be financially smart adults. With her idea in mind, Ms. Meche approached Midsouth Bank in Opelousas and was greeted with an eager excitement and willingness to partner with her on this great venture. Ms. Meche is expecting to have the bank and store open for business within a month as she seeks out other funds to stock the store; but if she remains true to her ability to raise funds for her classroom, it may be sooner than that.
In typical Sunset Middle School fashion, Ms. Erica LaFountaine Meche took her Journey to Careers lesson out of the classroom and into reality. After spending time helping students understand the difference between a job and a career, she had her first guest speakers reinforce the idea. Mrs. Kizzy Shelvin, Community Liaison for CASA-St. Landry, and Mr. Lorenzo Richard, Community Liaison for CASA –Evangeline, spoke to the 7th grade class about preparing themselves for success and their desired careers. According to Mr. Richard, students should position themselves for success by standing up and doing what is right, work hard, and surround themselves with friends who are “cheerleaders”. The lesson was quite a collaboration between community and school. Hats off to Ms. Madelyn Rosette, Executive Director of CASA St. Landry/Evangeline for extending her staff to Sunset Middle.
Lifeland Project
Sixth grade students at Sunset Middle completed the Lifeland project in Mrs. Abagail Meche’s Social Studies class. The overall purpose of the Lifeland Project is to have students identify what is important to them in their lives, while also learning about landforms and the important elements of a map. Students start out by defining what an island is through class discussion and relating an island to themselves as a person. An island, which is surrounded by water, is also surrounded by the things that make it thrive. Students then answer a few autobiographical questions to help jumpstart their thinking. Finally, students are asked to create an island that represents their lives using 10 different symbols. They were also asked to identify different landforms on the island as well. Their project must include a title, map legend/key, and a compass rose.
Examples from our classroom are included.