David Robicheaux Jr., 55, a native and resident of Morgan City, died Monday, April 24, 2023, at Ochsner New Orleans.
He is survived by a sister, Dana Metrejean.
He was preceded in death by his parents and grandparents.
Visitation and services were Wednesday at St. Bernadette Catholic Church in Bayou Vista with burial in Morgan City Cemetery.
Twin City Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.
Janet Taylor Granger, 89, a native of Morgan City and resident of Houma, died Thursday, April 13, 2023.
Visitation and funeral services were Saturday at New Mount Zion Baptist Church in Houma.
She is survived by her children, Wilbert Granger Jr., Andrew Granger, Patricia Mangum, Gwendolyn Granger, Janice Granger, Eileen Bienvenu and Angela Smith; brother, Hervery Taylor; sister, Martha Turner; and 20 grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her parents, daughter, brothers and sisters,
Jones Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements
Kearney Williams Hall, 74, a resident of Patterson, died Monday, April 17, 2023.
Visitation will be Saturday from 8 a.m. until services at 11 a.m. at Good Hope Baptist Church in Patterson. Burial will follow in Patterson Cemetery.
She is survived by a son, Noah Johnson of Patterson; two daughters, Aranda Johnson of Morgan City and Angeletia Huie of Patterson; three brothers, Wayne Williams Sr., Bruce Augustine and Leon Williams, all of Patterson; three sisters, Wanda Parks and Norma West, both of Houston, and Phyllis Guidry of Thibodaux; and three grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her parents, husband, three brothers and two sisters.
Jones Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Keith Anthony Walker, a native of Morgan City and resident of Opelousas, died Sunday, April 16, 2023, at Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center.
Visitation will be Saturday from 10 a.m. until services at 1 p.m. at Siracusaville Recreation Center.
He is survived by a son, McKeith Howard of Port Barre; a daughter, JoKeithia Walker of Baton Rouge; three grandchildren; father, Joseph Malveaux of Lafayette; two brothers, Barry Walker Sr. of Morgan City and Tireke Gabriel of Delaware; and five sisters, Veronica Francis of Opelousas, Evelyn Levine of Morgan City, Terese Leger of Cankton, Allison Malveaux of Tucson and Sidney Walker of Patterson.
He was preceded in death by his mother, two sisters and one brother.
Jones Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Happy third birthday Wesley Alan Kidder, we love you, Douglas, Reid and Grandmommy.
Fundraiser
Kemper Williams Park
April 22
Class A
First place, Sharla Fontenot (tournament champion), Lacassine, 7-1, 41.8; second place, Tim Gilmore, Bayou Vista, 6-2, 60.7; and third place, Burnie Williams, Morgan City, 5-2, 43.8.
Class B
First, Clay Canty (class title), Morgan City, 7-2, 40.3; second, Mack Thibodeaux, Lake Arthur, 6-3, 31.9; and third, Eddie Guidry, Port Allen, 6-3, 31.6.
Class C
First, Julius Lovell, Bayou L’Ourse, 6-1, 27.5; second, C.J. Bertrand, Iowa, 5-2, 22.9; and third, Hewitt Gautreaux, Pierre Part, 5-2, 27.5.
Class D
First, Glenn Caillouet, Raceland, 6½-½, 21.7; second, Linda Dodson, Morgan City, 6-1, 14.6; and third, Matthew Strickland, Morgan City, 5-2, 17.1.
Class E
First, Ricky Pitre (class title), Chauvin, 5-1, 6.3; second, Craig Rink, Centerville, 4-2, 13.8; and third, John Baily, Morgan City, 3-2, 8.5.
BATON ROUGE – Increasing violence in schools has prompted lawmakers to propose the “Protect Teachers Act,” a bill that would grant protection from criminal liability to teachers who try to break up student-on-student violence.
“Instead of watching two kids kill each other, this allows teachers to stop that from happening,” the bill’s primary author, Rep. Valarie Hodges, R-Denham Springs, told the House Committee on Civil Law and Procedure Monday.
The committee voted 11-0 to advance the bill, which would grant criminal immunity to teachers who use justifiable defense to stop battery and assault by one or more students. Teachers already have immunity from civil lawsuits when breaking up fights.
Hodges said she did not intend for the bill to protect teachers who abused students, stating that the immunity from criminal charges would apply only to teachers who did not have malicious intent.
She said a top official of the Louisiana Association of School Superintendents had expressed support for the bill. Rep. Larry Frieman, R-Abita Springs, criticized teachers’ unions for not openly supporting it.
But others expressed concern that teachers could be hurt in trying to stop fights.
Debra Broussard, a former teacher at Northside High School in Lafayette, said in a phone interview that she had witnessed many fights. The protocol was to call the office staff, who would send the campus police.
“We were told not to try to break them up,” she said. “Many teachers have been injured trying to break them up. We were told to close our doors and not to let our students get involved or film and share the fight.”
She said cell phones have complicated de-escalating school violence because some students would text each other about fights and leave without permission.
Representatives of two teachers’ unions told the Louisiana Illuminator that they want to make sure that Hodges’ bill is not interpreted as compelling teachers to intervene in fights and that all types of school employees have the criminal protection.
Hodges said at the hearing that more and more often, when teachers say stop, it is not enough. Rep. Raymond Garofalo, R-Chalmette, said, “It seems like we have a lack of discipline at school.”
Broussard, the former teacher, agreed that disciplining students who have crossed a line is a must. But she emphasized that there also needs to be more focus on making school a place where students want to be.
A bill that would ban classroom discussion of gender identity and sexual orientation outside of school curriculum passed the House Committee on Education 7-5 on Wednesday.
The proposal, House Bill 466 by Rep. Dodie Horton, R-Haughton, also would require transgender students to get a permission slip from their parents for teachers to use the pronouns matching their gender identity.
And it enshrines in law that school employees do not have to use those pronouns “if doing so is contrary to the employee's religious or moral convictions.”
A similar proposal authored by Rep. Raymond J. Crews, R-Bossier City, requiring signed permission from parents for trans students to use a different name and pronouns at school also passed 7-5. Both bills will go next to the House floor.
Horton said she authored the bill to protect parental rights, but the proposals sparked outrage and concern among LGBTQ residents and teachers present. Dozens of attendees voiced concerns that the proposals would further harm an already vulnerable group of young people.
Some referenced a 2022 survey by the Trevor Project, an LGBTQ advocacy group, which found 45% of United States LGBTQ youth had seriously considered suicide in the last year.
The survey had 34,000 respondents ages 13 to 24.
This bill “will result in the death of queer children,” Mel Manuel, a 15-year public school teacher who is trans, said in a sentiment echoed by many others who opposed the
bill.
Manuel runs a Gay-Straight Alliance at their school with over 50 members and said Horton’s bill would effectively eliminate these clubs, since they need a teacher sponsor.
Manuel “Manny” Ocasio, an assistant professor of pediatrics at Tulane University who focuses on the LGBTQ community, said research shows using a trans child’s chosen name can significantly decrease thoughts of suicide.
He talked about three young LGBTQ people he knew. One dropped out of high school. Another was kicked out of their home. And another died at 19.
He said he worries the bills will pressure youth to come out to their parents and face homelessness or abuse in response.
Some felt the bills would make LGBTQ people feel like they have to hide in Louisiana.
Maxwell Cohen, a 27-year-old drag artist from New Orleans, said “this bill would erase someone like me.”
“Being a kid is hard enough,” Cohen said. “Don’t be the bully here.”
Rep. Mandie Landry, D-New Orleans, read a statement on behalf of Public Service Commissioner Davante Lewis, who was attending a meeting in Crowley.
“I remember the dark days, when I would leave this Capitol and think about taking my own life because of the stigma,” Lewis, who is gay, wrote in the statement.
Multiple representatives on the committee said they have received hundreds of emails from both sides about House Bill 466. The committee room was so packed that some attendees had to stand along the walls.
Many of those who testified said the bills would discourage educators from teaching in Louisiana at a time when schools are already struggling to fill positions.
“If laws such as these are passed, I can confidently say I will leave Louisiana and finish my degree elsewhere,” said Josie Beekman, an LSU student studying music education.
One woman who identified herself as a former schoolteacher pointed out that, with the committee starting in the morning, most teachers could not attend and voice their opinions.
Horton and other supporters of the proposal noted similar bills being passed in other states. Florida passed a bill last year banning classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity.
“This is not Kentucky, this is not Missouri, this is Louisiana. … Those places are not a reflection of who we are,” said Pearl Ricks, who also testified against the bill.
Horton said her bill is advocating for parental rights around sensitive topics. She said children go to school for an education and “not to be indoctrinated or confused by anyone else’s ideology.”
Chris Alexander, from the Louisiana Citizen Advocacy Group, a conservative advocacy organization, testified that “we have to fight an agenda that is permeating our public schools.”
“What does one say when the enemy is coming after our children?” a woman who identified herself as ex-LGBTQ said.
Meanwhile, LGBTQ residents said the bills degrade their humanity.
“Our lives are really normal. We get married. We brush our teeth…we’re really just like you,” said Tucker Barker, who is gay.
Barker said the first adult he talked to about his sexuality was a teacher. Under this bill, he worries a conversation like that could not happen.
She “made me feel so normal,” he said.
Horton sat among the legislators on the committee for most of the time her bill was being heard. But she rarely looked up at those testifying against it.
“Feel free to look me in the eyes,” Barker said at the beginning of his speech. “I’m here.”
Horton did not meet his eyes.
BATON ROUGE – The House Education Committee voted 7-4 Tuesday to advance a bill to place state money into accounts that parents could use to send children to private schools.
The committee also moved forward bills to confirm that teaching the Bible is legal and to make data about how public schools are spending their funds more easily available to the public.
The bill to create the education accounts was authored by the committee’s chairman, Rep. Lance Harris, R-Alexandria. If it becomes law, the bill, House Bill 98, would enhance a long-time conservative goal of giving parents greater options if they want to send children to private school or home-school them.
Critics contend that the bill could take away money that public schools need.
Under the proposal, the state would fund each student’s account with an amount equal to the state’s average per-pupil allocation for public schools.
The House Education Committee also voted 7-4 Tuesday to advance House Bill 68 by Rep. Valarie Hodges, R-Denham Springs, to authorize public high schools to offer an elective course in Bible history.
Teaching Bible history is already legal and being done in multiple school systems. Supporters of bill said they want to make sure that public schools knew they could teach it.
Rep. Rick Edmonds, R-Baton Rouge, brought House Bill 462 to improve spending transparency.
It is identical to one that died on the Senate floor last year.
“A very simple tool for transparency purposes that tells our people how their tax dollars are being spent,” Edmonds said. “And I think our people are crying out for it.”
The bill would require school districts and the state treasurer to detail school spending on their websites.
Edmonds said that Jefferson, East Baton Rouge and Lafayette parishes have started looking into making this information public.
Rep. Barbara Freiberg, R-Baton Rouge, said: “I would certainly support this bill because I think that the perception that districts are misusing their money is a perception.”
“I think districts are using their money well, but certainly it would help public relations for school districts, for anyone who is concerned by how schools are spending their money if they had something like this in place,” Freiberg said.
Mike Faulk, executive director for Louisiana Association of School Superintendents, opposed the bill. Faulk said schools are already highly regulated, and this bill would place an undue burden on overworked staff.
Edmonds said the bill “ultimately brings confidence to our constituents” and could increase their willingness to spend more on education.
“The more we build trust, the better we are,” he said.
Legislation moving through the Louisiana House would amend the state constitution to mandate higher payments with surplus funds to address unfunded pension liabilities.
House Bill 47, sponsored by state Rep. Richard Nelson, R-Mandeville, is a constitutional amendment that would increase current provisions requiring 10% of surplus funds to go to the unfunded accrued liability of the Louisiana State Employees’ Retirement System and Teachers’ Retirement System of Louisiana.
Nelson explained in the House Appropriations Committee on Monday that the constitution only mandates the payments for initial liabilities for the two systems that existed in 1988. HB 47 would increase the required payment to 25% of surplus funds, and expand the provision to the Louisiana School Employees’ Retirement System and Louisiana State Police Retirement System, as well as more recent liabilities for LASERS and TRSL.
“This would update the requirement so that even when (the pre-1988 unfunded accrued liability) is paid off, which is supposed to happen in 2029, we continue to allocate money to pay off that UAL debt,” Nelson said. “It’s about 7.5% interest, you pay it on about $17 billion is what our unfunded accrued liability is.
“We pay a significant amount of interest, about $1.3 billion a year,” he said.
Nelson sponsored a similar bill last session that initially called for 50% of the surplus to go toward the UAL, and it was later amended to 25%. The legislation cleared the
House but languished in the Senate.
HB 47 would require the Legislature to begin paying the 25% of surplus funds in fiscal year 2024-25 and each year after. The bill would allow the Legislature to determine how the money is appropriated between the four funds, but would distribute the payments proportionally based on each system’s share of the overall UAL if lawmakers don’t prescribe otherwise.
“We basically have $17 billion on our credit card and we have to pay this interest every year, which equates to almost a new Baton Rouge bridge every year in interest,” Nelson said.
Nelson argued that while other pending legislation to use current surplus funds to pay down the UAL is a good move, requiring increased payments into the future is a way to ensure the debt will not continue to burden future generations.
If approved by the Legislature, HB 47 would be put on the statewide ballot for voter approval on Oct. 14.
The bill received no opposition in the House Appropriations Committee, where it was approved unanimously and sent to the Committee on Civil Law and Procedure.
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