Education
St. Tammany Parish school system promises to conduct a review of its special education services
Javanda May, a Slidell mother, said her 9th grade son struggled transitioning to virtual learning when the COVID-19 pandemic struck. May’s son was supposed to receive accommodations for his attention deficit disorder — including text-to-speech accommodations, small group instruction and mental health services, but “pretty much none of his accommodations from his IEP were implemented,” […]
Southern University in Baton Rouge is ‘falling into the river’ and needs $32 million to stop erosion
Maurice Pitts, the director of facilities at Southern University in Baton Rouge wanted to make it clear Monday that what he was saying about the campus’ worsening erosion problem is “no exaggeration.” The campus, situated on the Mississippi River is “falling into the river,” Pitts said. “It has become a safety hazard.” Much of the […]
Louisiana law requires you to buckle up — unless you’re a child on a school bus | Tammy C. Barney
A 7-30 vote in the Louisiana Senate this month killed HB 130, which would have required new school buses to be installed with seat belts for its young passengers. The Senate’s rejection came after the House had approved the bill introduced by Rep. Robby Carter (D-Amite) by a 55-44 vote. Making school buses safer for […]
Pay raises for Southern and UL system’s faculty and staff coming this year
Faculty and staff in the Southern University System will soon receive a 4 percent raise, Janene Tate, a spokesperson for the system said Monday. Raises will go into effect starting Thursday for Southern University at Baton Rouge, but Tate said she isn’t sure when raises will go into effect at the other Southern University campuses. […]
University of Louisiana system makes masks optional for the fall semester
Masks will be optional this fall for students in colleges in the University of Louisiana system, and unvaccinated students, faculty or staff “will be encouraged to do routine testing.” UL System colleges are back to offering in-person courses and campus tours, and even held their first in-person Board of Supervisors meeting Thursday. “The hope and […]
UL System college athletes will soon be allowed to enter into sponsorship deals
Despite being the only basketball player in NCAA history to record multiple games with at least 10 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals in her college career, Grambling State University alumna Shakyla Hill made nothing in endorsements or advertisement deals due to the NCAA’s amateur-status rules forbidding it. “That young woman deserved the […]
Louisiana ranks 48th in overall child well-being, a report finds
Louisiana children rank near the bottom of the country in overall well-being, according to the latest Kids Count Data Book report, published by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The report “describes how children across the United States were faring before… the coronavirus pandemic,” as the latest available data used was from 2019. States’ rankings are […]
LSU faculty and staff receive 3 percent raises
For the first time in years, LSU faculty and staff members will receive a merit pool raise of 3 percent. Staff raises for college and universities were worked into the budget that the Louisiana Legislature passed earlier this month. Outgoing LSU President Tom Galligan said in a letter to the LSU faculty and staff he […]
LSU athletes are a step closer to earning money from endorsements
The LSU Board of Supervisors Friday established rules governing student athletes seeking to take advantage of new legislation that, if it becomes law, allows them to profit from their name, image and likeness. Stephanie Rempe, LSU’s executive deputy director of athletics and the department’s chief operating officer, told the board at a meeting at the university’s […]
Rebuffing its Faculty Council, LSU declines to mandate vaccines for students and faculty
The LSU Board of Supervisors decided against mandating COVID-19 vaccinations for students, faculty and staff returning in the fall, choosing instead to pass a resolution encouraging the LSU community “to voluntarily vaccinate against COVID-19 until the Louisiana Department of Health shall add COVID-19 vaccinations to its list of required immunizations.” The board is, however, requesting “the […]
‘Tell the truth,’ Xavier University’s president says of struggle to vaccinate returning students
WASHINGTON—Leaders in higher education from New Orleans and Miami Thursday related how colleges coped with a rough year of online learning and vaccine distribution amid the pandemic, during a hearing before the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee. The hearing included Dr. C. Reynold Verret, the president of Xavier University and Madeline Pumariega, […]
Louisiana colleges and universities have out-of-date Title IX policies, attorney says
In August, the U.S. Department of Education began implementing new Title IX rules by which all schools that receive federal dollars must abide by. That means Louisiana’s Title IX policies are out of date, an attorney asked to conduct a comprehensive review of Louisiana’s public higher education campuses told the Louisiana Board of Regents Wednesday. […]