Supt. Says No Early Start of School, No Plan To Mask in Fall, No Request to Roll Forward

 In a far-reaching interview with the Central City News, Central schools Supt. Jason Fountain gave his views on key issues facing the school system, including:

•While the East Baton Rouge Parish School System has been considering starting school in July, Central will stay on its regular schedule.  Faculty and staff will come back on Tuesday, Aug. 9, and students will return on Friday, Aug. 12.

•As of now, the Central school system is making no plans for masking students or faculty in the fall.  “We hope everything will return to normal,” he said.

•While the Central School Board will consider raising property taxes without a vote of the people at its May 10 meeting, that is not something he has requested. “I do not want to speak for the school board on this.  It is their decision. However, I have not requested it.”

•He’s excited about the upcoming renovations to Central High School. For all practical purposes, it will be a brand new school, he said. He plans for the new school to be ready for occupancy by the start of school in August 2022.

•The Central school system had been planning to build a new school board office on the campus of the Central School Complex. However, they are now planning to build on the old Central Middle School property at the corner of Hooper and Sullivan roads.

•The Central school system has been receiving an enormous amount of money related to the recovery, he said.  However, this money cannot be used for on-going obligations such as salaries.

•Central schools are expected to receive $500,000 from SR1, $1.8 million from SR2, and $4.1 million from SR3.  These funds will be used for a variety of projects including summer programs, after-school tutoring, and heating and

air conditioning improvements.

•All K-12 students in the Central school system have their own laptops. The laptops for 6-12 students will need to be replaced in two years, and recovery money can be used for that purpose.

• Recovery funds have to be spent in accordance with a budget approved by the state department of education. That budget has to be to the state by the end of April.

•More improvements are coming to Wildcat Stadium, including a new concession stand.

•Graduation for Central High School seniors is being planned for May 17 outside on the high school football field. Weather is the biggest variable, he said.

•After the 2016 flood, Tanglewood Elementary was rebuilt into a brand new school, and it will be there for many years.  Big goal now is to get rid of the T-buildings and add 15 new classrooms. This should be bid out in the fall and ready for the 2022-2023 school year.

•He is pleased with Central’s handling of virtual education, especially K-8, which was taught by Central teachers.

•Dr. Fountain said he is excited about Central becoming a world class school system. It already has world class teachers, he said.