‘Audience concerns’ to stay at Vermilion Parish School Board meetings

It looks like “audience concerns for the superintendent” will remain a part of the Vermilion Parish School Board meeting, but there will be guidelines.
On Tuesday, the school board’s Policy and Review Committee Meeting was held to discus school board policies.
One topic the school board members discussed was to either continue to allow audience concerns at the end of a school board meeting or do away with them.
Over the last six months, audience concerns have become heated between school board members and people in the audience. The audience concerns have lasted as long as 30 minutes at some meetings. Members of the audience have asked questions about Common Core, along with how many people are working in Central Office.
Most of the topics talked about were not on the school board agenda. The president of the school board also limits each person to three minutes.
There will be changes coming to audience concerns.
School board members on the Policy Review Committee are Laura LeBeouf, Stacy Landry, Chris Gautreaux and Anthony Fontana. Fontana was not at the meeting.
School Board member Luddy Herpin, who is not on the committee, was at the meeting.
The school board members gave their thoughts on audience concerns. School Board attorney Woody Woodruff informed the committee that they can do away with audience concerns just like all other school board members in Acadiana did over the years.
No one was in favor of trashing it.
“I would like to keep audience concerns,” said Herpin.
LeBeouf agreed with Herpin and said the public are taxpaying citizens who need to be heard at meetings.
Landry said he liked audience concerns as long as what the people are saying is the truth.
“I like to hear what they are saying. I don’t mind it,” said Landry. “But when what they are saying is false, then that is what I don’t like.”
Audience concerns should be light and only address what is on the school board agenda, Woodruff added.
After throwing around ideas, the committee decided that audience concerns will only address issues that are on the agenda. In other words, if a parent wants to talk about Common Core and the school board did not have it on the agenda, it will not be talked about.
Also, if someone does want to talk about Common Core or another issue, the committee is recommending that, that person now must get on the agenda for the next school board meeting. To get on the school board agenda, you have to submit your name and topic 10 days before the meeting.
The entire school board will vote on the two issues at its next Sept. 17 meeting.