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April 30, 2026
MINUTES
POINTE COUPEE PARISH SCHOOL BOARD
337 Napoleon Street
New Roads, LA 70760
REGULAR SCHOOL BOARD MEETING
Thursday, March 26, 2026
The Pointe Coupee Parish School Board met for their regular monthly meeting on Thursday, March 26, 2026, at 337 Napoleon Street in New Roads, Louisiana 70760. President Frank R. Aguillard, Jr. called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m.
Ms. Lisa Loupe D’Aquila offered the invocation, and Mr. Walter Grezaffi led everyone in the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States of America.
Members of the School Board present when the roll was called: Chad Aguillard, Frank R. Aguillard, Jr., Lisa Loupe-D’Aquila, Walter Grezaffi, Aubry Hendricks, Anite LeJeune, and Thomas Nelson.
School Board Member Jason Lemoine was absent.
President Aguillard announced there are seven members present, and we have a quorum.
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Central Office Administrative Staff in attendance: Kim Canezaro, Superintendent; Natalie Aguillard, Director of Human Capital; Ms. Tonya Burgess, Administrator of Virtual Academy of Pointe Coupee; Tiffany Davis, Literacy Innovation Coordinator; Andrew Duhe, Supervisor of Maintenance and Support Services; Amanda Fontenot. Supervisor of HeadStart; Brandi Forbes, Chief Academic Officer; Stephen Langlois, Chief Financial Officer; and Dr. LaShonda Victorian, Supervisor of Child Welfare and Attendance.
School Administrative Staff in attendance: Marcie Cazayoux, Chief Program Administrator at STEM Magnet Academy of Pointe Coupee; Dr. Rosie Courville, Principal of Livonia High School; April DosRamos, Principal of Rougon Elementary; Yolanda Jones, Assistant Principal of Valverda Elementary, and Carolyn Wells, Principal of Upper Pointe Coupee.
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Expression of Sympathy – On a motion by the seven members of the School Board present, and seconded by those board members, condolences were offered to the family of:
Genieve Thornton Marks, the mother of Cedric Thornton, a custodian at Rosenwald Elementary School.
Ernest Victorian, Jr., the father of Janet LeMay, a paraprofessional at Rosenwald Elementary School.
Al Montelaro, the father of Cathy LeJeune, a teacher employed by the school district housed at Catholic Elementary of Pointe Coupee.
Donald Schexnayder, the father of Ally Schexnayder, a teacher at STEM Magnet Academy of Pointe Coupee.
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Remarks from the Superintendent- Superintendent Canezaro made the following announcements:
All schools will be closed for Easter break from Friday, April 3 through Friday, April 10, 2026.
The Central Office will be closed from Friday, April 3 through Tuesday, April 7, and will reopen on Wednesday, April 8, 2026.
The Junior Class Ring ceremony will be held at STEM on April 14, 2026 at 6:00 p.m.
Board Members- updated quarterly information, from Mr. Craig Schwartzenberg, regarding the Louisiana Safe Schools Grant is in your folder; after you read it, please let me know if you have any questions.
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Consent Agenda- President Aguillard mentioned that draft minutes have been on BoardDocs and members of the Board have read them. Ms. Lisa Loupe D’Aquila offered a motion, seconded by Mr. Aubry Hendricks, to approve the minutes (listed as consent agenda items). Hearing no opposition, the motion was carried by a unanimous vote of the seven members of the Board present and voting.
Approval of the minutes from the regular School Board meeting of Thursday, February 26, 2026.
Approval of the Executive Committee meeting minutes of Thursday, March 19, 2026.
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Discussion and/or Action Regarding a Memorandum of Understanding for “Point to Success” Pilot Program between Louisiana Works and the Pointe Coupee Parish School Board. President Frank Aguillard requested that Ms. Jessica Vallelungo and Mr. Troy Borne, Representatives of LA works, approach the podium and introduce themselves. Ms. Vallelungo stated that she is the Assistant Secretary of Workforce Development at Louisiana Works; Mr. Bornes stated that he is Director of Work-Based Learning at Louisiana Works. Ms. Vallelungo announced that Louisiana Works used to be called Louisiana Workforce Commission, and on October 1, 2025, the name was changed due to the one door work initiative. Louisiana Works is a State Agency responsible for managing employment services, unemployment insurance, and workforce training. It serves as a comprehensive resource to connect job seekers with employers, offering job placement unemployment and vocational training. Ms. Vallelungo explained that her team helps people move from dependance to independence, and part of that is to help employers find the talent needed for specific skills; on the other hand, it also helps future employees gain the skills they need to get to work. Ms. Vallelungo stated that one of the important parts is they are able to provide wrap-around services and help to overcome barriers such as affordable childcare and access to transportation. She stated that both she and Mr. Troy Borne spent a lot of time with the Louisiana Department of Education. Ms. Vallelungo announced that she met Superintendent Canezaro when she served as Deputy Assistant Superintendent of Career and College Readiness at the Louisiana Department of Education. Ms. Vallelungo mentioned prior to her and Mr. Borne’s departure from the LDOE, they were fortunate to work on a Career and Technical Education Project with Superintendent Canezaro and several of her team members. Ms. Vallelungo mentioned while serving in this position, she led statewide efforts to build connections between classrooms and careers to strengthen career and college readiness programs to ensure students have the support and skills needed for gainful employment.
Ms. Vallelungo explained meetings with Superintendent Canezaro, and others, concerning career development, resulted in a robust idea for a Point to Success Pilot Program. The proposed “Point to Success” Pilot Program between Louisiana Works and Pointe Coupee Parish School Board is a collaborative initiative aimed to identify and help solve workforce barriers (childcare, access to transportation, etc.) that directly prevent hiring and sustained employment for residents in Pointe Coupee Parish. Ms. Vallelungo mentioned because of their work at the LDOE with Supt Canezaro and knowing that a lot of great things are happening in the school district is the reason they came to the Pointe Coupee Parish School Board first. She mentioned that students are transported by bus to and from school each day throughout the state, which made her think about utilizing buses as the mode of transportation to help local citizens overcome a workforce barrier. The targeted population is thirty (30) Pointe Coupee Parish residents ranging from ages 18-24, helping them to achieve specific skills for high wage employment opportunities. In some instances, it may be that someone could also benefit from adult education services. Ms. Vallelungo contacted First Student to discuss obtaining the same rate the school district pays for transportation. Ms. Vallelungo announced if this pilot program works well, LA Works may want to replicate it again or across the state.
Mrs. Anita LeJune made a motion, seconded by Mr. Walter Grezaffi, to approve a Memorandum of Understanding for the “Point to Success “ Pilot Program between Louisiana Works and the Pointe Coupee Parish School Board. Hearing no opposition, the motion carried by a unanimous vote of the seven members of the Board present and voting.
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Receive the Head Start Supervisor’s Monthly Report – Ms. Amanda Fontenot announced the Head Start Supervisor’s Monthly Report was placed on BoardDocs last week for review. She asked if anyone had questions regarding the report and hearing none, President Aguillard entertained a motion for approval.
Mrs. Anita LeJeune offered a motion to approve the February 2026 Head Start Monthly report prepared by Ms. Fontenot. Ms. Lisa Loupe D’Aquila seconded the motion. Hearing no opposition, the motion was approved by a unanimous vote of the seven members of the Board present and voting.
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Consider Approval of the Pointe Coupee Parish School Board to Apply for the Head Start Recompetition Grant. Ms. Amanda Fontenot announced information regarding the Head Start Recompetition Grant was discussed at last week’s Executive Committee meeting, and it is on BoardDocs. Ms. Fontenot stated she is asking the Board for approval to compete for the Head Start Recompetition Grant whenever the application process opens.
Mr. Aubry Hendricks made a motion to authorize Amanda Fontenot to apply for the Head Start Recompletion Grant on behalf of the Pointe Coupee Parish School Board when the
application process begins. Mrs. Anita LeJeune seconded the motion. Hearing no opposition, the motion was carried by a unanimous vote of the seven members of the Board present and voting.
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Discussion and/or Action Regarding Monthly Financial Information. Mr. Stephen Langlois asked if there were any questions regarding the monthly financial information that was reviewed in detail at last week’s Executive Committee meeting, and on BoardDocs. No questions were asked.
Mr. Thomas Nelson made a motion, seconded by Ms. Lisa Loupe D’Aquila, to approve the monthly financial report for February 2026. Hearing no opposition, the motion was carried by a unanimous vote of the seven members of the Board present and voting.
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Discussion and/or Action Regarding a Budget Revision for FY 2025-2026. Mr. Stephen Langlois stated he is recommending the Board approve budget revisions to the sales tax, at-risk and the five property tax funds. Mr. Langlois announced the main reason all seven of these funds need to be revised is because the revenue anticipated for these funds at year-end is over 5%. He explained that expenses are in line with what was anticipated; however, sales taxes are going down and property taxes are going up a little thus, requiring us to do a budget revision.
Mr. Walter Grezaffi made a motion, seconded by Ms. Lisa Loupe D’Aquila to approve revisions to the Sales Tax Fund, At-Risk Fund, and the five property tax funds (Payroll, Transportation, Maintenance, Infrastructure, and Technology). Hearing no opposition, the motion was carried by a unanimous vote of the seven members of the Board present and voting.
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Discussion and/or Action Regarding Re-Bid for STEM Academy Field House. President Aguillard stated information was discussed at last week’s Executive Committee meeting and they were told that Mr. David Mougeot, Architect, would attend tonight’s meeting to talk about the project. Mr. Langlois announced that Mr. Mougeot could not be in attendance tonight due to a scheduling conflict; however, some of his recommended changes were discussed at the meeting in February when the Board agreed to rebid. Mr. Langlois announced the main change is the location of the field house being built on the opposite side of the field from where it was initially going to be constructed, keeping the square footage, with changes in the layout of the building. He explained a good thing with the rebid process is that bid prices are less and closer to budget than when it was originally bid. Mr. Langlois stated he three qualified bids were received, with the lowest bid of $705,000 from Sawfish Construction; the budget is $650,000, and the bid is closer to the targeted budget. He mentioned there are adequate funds in the capital outlay fund to pay the balance, if the Board chooses to go ahead with the field house project at STEM.
Mr. Chad Aguillard made a motion, seconded by Mr. Aubry Hendricks, to approve the recommendation from Superintendent Canezaro and Chief Financial Officer Langlois to accept the lowest bid of $705,000 from Sawfish Construction, and pay the balance with funds from the Capital Outlay Account for construction of the STEM Academy Field House Building. Hearing no opposition, the motion was carried by a unanimous vote of the seven members of the Board present and voting.
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Discussion and/or Action Regarding PCPSB Category 2 E-Rate Application Fiscal Year 2026. Mr. Stephen Langlois placed an item on the agenda regarding the PCPSB Category 2 E-Rate Application for Fiscal year 2026. He stated he wanted to present results to the Board of the five companies that submitted competitive quotes; information is on BoardDocs. Mr. Langlois stated his recommendation is Lockstep Technology Group, LLC, the vendor that submitted the lowest bid for a five-year license agreement of $144,137.82. Mr. Langlois announced that we have used this company before.
On a motion by Ms. Lisa Loupe D’Aquila, seconded by Mr. Aubry Hendricks, the Board approved Lockstep Technology Group, LLC, as the vendor for Category 2 E-Rate services for a five-year license agreement of $144,137.82 for fiscal year 2026. Hearing no opposition, the motion was carried by a unanimous vote of the seven members of the Board present and voting.
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Discussion and/or Action Regarding a Virtual Only PCAP Program, Effective 2026-2027 School Year. Superintendent Canezaro stated there have not been two-digit student attendance at the PCAP Program this school year, and only one or two students are getting off the bus. Therefore, she placed an item on the agenda concerning discussion and/or action regarding a virtual only PCAP program for the 2026-2027 school year. Ms. Canezaro mentioned there was an in-depth discussion at last week’s Executive Committee meeting. Superintendent Canezaro stated times have changed since Covid, and some people are choosing virtual learning for their children for different reasons. She mentioned the cost saving measures ($100,000 for a bus and $60,000 for a teacher). Since there are 18 students enrolled in PCAP, and only 5 students are attending in person, she thought about trying a pilot virtual PCAP program for next school year. A discussion ensued followed by a recommendation to table the agenda item until another time.
Mr. Thomas Nelson offered a motion to table the agenda item and bring it back at another time. Mrs. Anita LeJeune seconded the motion. Hearing no opposition, the motion was carried by a unanimous vote of the seven members of the Board present and voting
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Executive Session to Discuss the Superintendent’s Evaluation Pursuant to LA. R.S. 42:17 (A) (1). -President Frank Aguillard stated that Superintendent Canezaro informed him that she does not want to enter into an executive session regarding her annual performance evaluation. Mr. Aguillard thanked his fellow Board members for their participation in the evaluation process and announced that Mrs. Anita LeJeune (Chairperson of the Personnel Committee) provided a tally of scores regarding Superintendent Canezaro’s evaluation. He announced that Ms. Canezaro received a score of 3.41 (out of 4), which is a proficient effective rating. Ms. Canezaro was applauded by members of the Board, and she stated she is thankful and will continue to try to improve.
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Adjournment - On a motion by Mr. Thomas Nelson, seconded by Mr. Chad Aguillard, the meeting adjourned at 6:26 p.m.
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Frank R. Aguillard, Jr., President
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Kim Canezaro, Superintendent
Miscellaneous Notices