Submitted Photos
Ochsner St. Mary held its first Christmas on the Bayou for the community with pictures and story time with Santa. The children got to color and write letters to Santa as well as get cookies and reindeer food to bring home. Top Photo: Pictured are Santa and Rowen Smith, daughter of Sam and Laini Smith of Berwick. Bottom Photo: Ochsner employees pose with Santa.
Cajun Broadband, a Louisiana-based internet service provider, announced the successful installation of 90,000 feet of fiber cable in St. Martin Parish that will provide high-speed internet service to more than 500 previously underserved homes and businesses.
This marks the completion of the first project funded by the Granting Unserved Municipalities Broadband Opportunities (GUMBO) program under the newly formed Louisiana Office of Broadband Development and Connectivity.
The company's website lists an area of extreme northwest St. Mary near Jeanerette and an area north of Franklin as future projects for which funding has been obtained.
“We are incredibly proud to complete the first GUMBO project to serve the residents of St. Martin Parish,”
said Chris Disher, managing partner of Cajun Broadband. “We believe our partnership with parish leaders can serve as a model for bringing broadband to other underserved areas of our state, helping Louisiana become more nationally competitive and improving quality of life for its residents.”
The first phase of the completed project — a first of its kind in Louisiana—was created through a cooperative endeavor agreement between Cajun Broadband and St. Martin Parish Government.
Under the agreement, signed in February 2022, the parish utilized an initial $1.5 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding for the first phase of the project and pledged a 20% match in funds towards the GUMBO application for the second phase of the project. The partnership paved the way for the contribution of right-of-way, due diligence, and community awareness efforts, further strengthening the application.
“Many residents and local business in our parish struggle to access reliable internet service,” St. Martin
Parish President Chester Cedars said. “With so much of our daily life revolving around internet connectivity, we are making fiber infrastructure modernization a priority for our parish. Not only will this improve quality of life but also provide a number of positive community benefits, including higher-quality education, health care, and workforce and economic development opportunities.”
During construction, the Cajun Broadband team installed more than 20,000 linear feet of fiber every week beginning in September 2022 — completing the installation in time for the holiday season, when internet demand significantly increases.
"This project has truly been a team effort to bring reliable internet to residents in St. Martin Parish as quickly as possible, and we are excited to continue helping to close the digital divide as we expand fiber accessibility throughout St. Martin Parish and beyond,” Disher said. “We are honored to have the state recognize our work and provide an opportunity for us make a real difference in our communities and the lives of fellow Louisianians—in a way that the larger telecommunications providers simply can’t do.”
This is the first of several broadband projects funded by more than $20 million in grants the state awarded to Cajun Broadband to fund the planning and installation of similar projects across 10 parishes — providing high-speed service to over 10,000 homes and businesses.
The second phase of Cajun Broadband projects in St. Martin Parish will begin in February 2023 and bring fiber service to over 500 homes and businesses in the Breaux Bridge area beginning on Hwy 94, traversing Hwy 31, and ending in Cecilia.
Cajun Broadband will complete the remaining GUMBO-funded projects in 2023 and is canvassing the state to partner with other underserved municipalities who need assistance applying for and implementing fiber-to-the-home projects.
Cajun Broadband is a Louisiana-based internet service provider founded in 2017 in St. Martin Parish to assist residents with better internet options. Cajun Broadband currently serves residential and commercial customers in eight parishes in the Acadiana area. Based on its expertise and local approach, Cajun Broadband has grown tremendously and was recently awarded more than $20 million in state funding to install fiber-to-the-home on 12 new projects across Southeast Louisiana. Cajun Broadband was the first internet service provider in the state to begin and complete a GUMBO-funded project.
To learn more about Cajun Broadband’s upcoming fiber projects or check availability in your area, please visit www.ready4fiber.com.
Most of us have been swept up in the momentum of the holiday season. We have passed Thanksgiving, reached the Christmas milestone and are approaching New Year’s Day, the third in the trilogy of holidays.
Sure, there is a lot of our attention on holiday shopping, football, and social events. But it is also a time to reflect on what the three holidays can mean to all of us. A second chance, and maybe even a new beginning.
On Thanksgiving Day, we recognized and celebrated the new start of the Pilgrims who made the two-month journey from England to America back in 1620. They too wanted a second chance. They were searching for a better life with the freedom to live and worship in their own way, free from the intolerance they faced under King James I and the Church of England. Their leaders created the Mayflower Compact, which established a new set of laws so that they could be treated equally and fairly as part of their new way of life. A rebirth. A new beginning for all of them.
The second link in the trilogy, and to Christians the most important, is the Christmas season. The Bible teaches that Christ died on the cross to give believers a second chance.
There is one book that I try to read over the holidays every year — “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens. In the early 1960s, I had a golden opportunity to study English literature at Cambridge University in England, where the writings of Dickens were my focus.
Dickens was a major literary personality in his day, and newspapers serialized many of his stories. He
initially published under the pen name of “Boz,” and he used this pseudonym for many of his early novels.
He entertained his wide London audience with humor in books like, “The Pickwick Papers” and “The Life and Times of Nicholas Nickleby.” Dickens pulled at the heartstrings of his readers with the drama of “Oliver Twist” and “A Tale of Two Cities.” But as the Christmas season approached in 1843, Dickens began using his own name, and took on the role of a crusader with the publication of “A Christmas Carol.”
Most of us have seen this poignant Christmas story filled with an array of colorful characters like Ebenezer
Scrooge, Tiny Tim, Bob Cratchit, The Ghost of Christmas Past, The Ghost of Christmas Present, and The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. But the real lessons of the spirit that emanate from this special time of year come, not from miserly Ebenezer Scrooge, but from his dead partner, Jacob Marley. While alive, Marley failed to help others, and in death he is damned to the agony of recognizing the pain and suffering of others, and being unable to help in any way, and this is his special hell.
My attorney friend, Eric Duplantis, who practices law and writes in the small town of Franklin, puts it this way: “In life, Marley’s worst sin was not his venality, but his indifference. After death he realizes this. But it’s too late. Death gave him compassion, but his sentence for a lifetime of indifference is an inability to act on the compassion he feels.”
Marley is given a single opportunity to do a good act, after which he must return to his Hell. The ghost gives Scrooge the greatest gift of all. Marley gives Scrooge the chance of redemption. The message here from Dickens is that even someone as lost as Ebenezer Scrooge can be saved if he seizes this one-time gift of a second chance.
Here’s hoping that the coming year brings you the opportunity of a second chance if you feel you need
one. We all generally do. But whether you do or you don’t, may you and your family have a blessed and healthy holiday season and a very happy New Year. As Tiny Tim said in “The Christmas Carol,” God bless us everyone.
Peace and Justice
Jim Brown
Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers throughout the nation and on websites worldwide. You can read all his past columns and see continuing updates at http://www.jimbrownusa.com.
Last-minute Christmas shoppers looking for bargains are nothing new, and merchants have accommodated them for a long time.
A century ago, hometown newspapers’ last editions before the holiday were filled with what merchants proclaimed to be incredible deals on groceries, the stove to cook them on, and just about everything else.
In Franklin, for example, you’d think jeweler Frank Foti was losing money by selling record players for only $75, half the price they usually sold for.
He also promised great buys on a “nice line” of pearl necklaces and an “up to date” line of diamonds, wrist watches and cut glass.
Boudreaux Furniture in St. Martinville headlined its ad with, “Toys, Toys, Toys,” but also suggested that furniture was a practical gift for the whole family. Everything was on sale: living room chairs, cedar chests, wardrobe trunks, handbags and suitcases, sewing cabinets, waste baskets, card tables, electric vacuum cleaners, and also phonographs and records.
The Abbeville Electric Shop followed Boudreaux’s line of thinking. Its ad proclaimed that Christmas was a good time to buy those electric appliances you’d been thinking about all year. An electric toaster cost only $6, an iron went for $5, and for only $16 you could buy an Armstrong electric stove “complete with 13 combinations of cooking utensils.”
Electric lights for the tree, with “no danger of fire,” were a bargain at $2.25. Just down the street, Frederick Brothers was selling a Mirro aluminum 1½-quart sauce pan, with lid, for 45 cents.
In Rayne, Mervine Kahn said his store could contribute to your very merry Christmas with ladies’ long silk
gloves for just $1.50, nice dresses starting at $8.75, and fancy silver slippers for the same price.
Theo Kahn’s store in Jennings advertised Christmas neckties for 75 cents and an assortment of sale items including boys’ suits from $3 to $14.
In the ad just below his, the Phenix [sic] Drug Store claimed it was the best place in town to get one of those phonographs that seemed to be the hot item everywhere in 1922. (You probably remember that music was one of the things that put the roar in the “Roaring Twenties.”)
In Morgan City, Henry Leob promised “splendid values” in footwear, men’s and boys’ suits at big savings,
and a long list of “special offerings for the holidays.”
The Crowley Motor Co. suggested that Dad should treat the family to a new, four-door, Ford sedan for only $725.
For folks who couldn’t travel, Southern Bell advertised a special rate of just 25 cents for a five-minute long-distance call.
Grocery stores across south Louisiana advertised specials on the fixings for Christmas dinner, but Robicheaux’s in Welsh probably had the best deal for bakers planning to serve pecan pie.
Pure Louisiana Cane Syrup was on sale for just 60 cents a gallon, and — better yet — it was only 55 cents if you bought 10 gallons or more.
Practically all of the merchants and newspapers offered a Christmas wish in those Yuletide editions, such as this one from the Crowley newspaper:
“May this Christmas be one that, in years to come, will stand out as the most joyous Christmas Days you have ever spent.”
That sounds like a pretty good wish, and I wish it for you, with the added thought, “and may every one after this be even better.”
You can contact Jim Bradshaw at jimbradshaw4321@gmail.com or P.O. Box 1121, Washington LA 70589.
Saturday, Dec. 17
6:54 a.m. 1100 block of Marguerite Street; Vehicle accident.
7:17 a.m. Third Street; Complaint.
7:55 a.m. U.S. 90 East/Federal Avenue Exit; Traffic incident.
8:19 a.m. 6000 block of La. 182; Vehicle accident.
9:40 a.m. 7200 block of La. 182 East; Complaint.
9:47 a.m. 700 block of Duke Street; Complaint.
10:12 a.m. La. 70/Ninth Street; Stalled vehicle.
10:42 a.m. 700 block of Belanger Street; Medical.
11:55 a.m. 8400 block of La. 182; Burglary.
2:22 p.m. 1000 block of Eighth Street; Complaint.
2:24 p.m. 3200 block of Wytchwood Street; Domestic.
2:51 p.m. 700 block of Myrtle Street; Complaint.
3:27 p.m. 700 block of Myrtle Street; Complaint.
3:54 p.m. 800 block of Brashear Avenue; Remove subject.
4:17 p.m. 200 block of Chennault Street; Medical.
5:01 p.m. U.S. 90 East/Hampton Inn Exit; Traffic incident.
7:31 p.m. 900 block of Seventh Street; Building check.
7:39 p.m. 1200 block of Victor II Boulevard; Building check.
7:43 p.m. 1000 block of La. 70; Building check.
11:17 p.m. 600 block of General Patton Street; Criminal trespass.
11:40 p.m. 7400 block of La. 182; Fight.
Sunday, Dec. 18
1:15 a.m. 1200 block of Greenwood; Building check.
1:30 a.m. 1100 block of Victor II Boulevard; Building check.
1:31 a.m. 1400 block of Chestnut Drive; Assistance.
2:03 a.m. 1200 block of Clothilde Street; Alarm.
2:10 a.m. 7300 block of La. 182; Assistance.
4:47 a.m. 7300 block of La. 182; Alarm.
5:41 a.m. 500 block of Egle Street; Loud music.
6:16 a.m. 7300 block of La. 182; Silent alarm.
7:37 a.m. 300 block of Fifth Street; Open door.
8:38 a.m. Cherry Street; Complaint.
10:17 a.m. 1400 block of Federal Avenue; Complaint.
11:25 a.m. 2300 block of La. 70; Remove subject.
11:58 a.m. 7200 block of La. 182; Theft.
12:17 p.m. 600 block of Belanger Street; Medical.
12:57 p.m. 900 block of Cherry Street; Theft.
1:09 p.m. 3100 block of Diane Drive; Animal complaint.
3:35 p.m. Fig Street/Veterans Boulevard; Traffic incident.
4:51 p.m. Aycock/Glenwood streets; Loud music.
6:12 p.m. 800 block of Lake Palourde, Amelia; Assistance.
6:18 p.m. 200 block of Brashear Avenue; Residential burglary.
6:26 p.m. 3000 block of Leslie Drive; Medical.
7:16 p.m. 6500 block of La. 182; Building check.
7:19 p.m. 7500 block of La. 182; Building check.
7:52 p.m. 6500 block of La. 182; Building check.
9:14 p.m. 500 block of Roderick Street; Theft.
9:31 p.m. 7300 block of La. 182; Reckless operation.
10:51 p.m. 7000 block of Railroad Avenue; Loud music.
Monday, Dec. 19
12:59 a.m. 800 block of Ninth Street; Building check.
1:41 a.m. 800 block of Victor II Boulevard; Building check.
2:25 a.m. Chennault/Pecos streets; Suspicious person.
2:41 a.m. 7200 block of La. 182; Complaint.
2:53 a.m. 6000 block of La. 182; Building check.
6:58 a.m. 1500 block of Chestnut Drive; Medical.
7:33 a.m. Area of Federal And Arenz; Complaint.
7:51 a.m. 900 block of Seventh Street; Complaint.
8:04 a.m. 100 block of Dugas Street; Medical.
8:28 a.m. 100 block of First Street; 911 hang up.
8:58 a.m. Area of Eighth Street and Ditch Avenue; Stalled vehicle.
9:15 a.m. 700 block of Myrtle Street; Complaint.
9:31 a.m. 600 block of Barrow Street; Complaint.
10:08 a.m. 900 block of First Street; Animal complaint.
11:13 a.m. 6300 block of La. 182; Complaint.
11:40 a.m. 1100 block of Victor II Boulevard; Vehicle accident.
11:52 a.m. 1400 block of Federal Avenue; Lost and found property.
1:02 p.m. 1200 block of David Drive; Complaint.
1:13 p.m. Area of La. 182; Vehicle accident.
1:29 p.m. 300 block of Mallard Street; Complaint.
1:32 p.m. 600 block of Seventh Street; Alarm.
2:11 p.m. 3000 block of Catherine Street; Complaint.
3:02 p.m. 700 block of Belanger Street; Medical.
3:29 p.m. 900 block of Franklin Street; Animal complaint.
3:42 p.m. 3000 block of Lesley Drive; Animal complaint.
4:07 p.m. 1200 block of Brashear Avenue; Alarm.
5:47 p.m. U.S. 90 Westbound; Complaint.
6:03 p.m. 2400 block of Apple Street; Juvenile complaint.
6:03 p.m. 400 block of Seventh Street; Complaint.
7:05 p.m. 1200 block of Victor II Boulevard; Alarm.
8:10 p.m. 2400 block of Tiger Drive; 911 hang up.
8:13 p.m. 2400 block of Apple Street; Removal of subject.
10:20 p.m. 600 block of Marshall Street; 911 hang up.
11:11 p.m. 4000 block of Railroad Avenue; Open door.
Tuesday, Dec. 20
2:33 a.m. 7200 block of La. 182; Alarm.
2:36 a.m. Aycock Street; Suspicious vehicle.
3:26 a.m. Arkansas and Third streets; Complaint.
(Editor’s note: The charges listed here and the narratives that go with them are provided by the police agencies that made the arrests. Guilt or innocence has not been determined in court.)
The St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office reported arrests on burglary and battery charges.
St. Mary
Sheriff Blaise Smith reported that over the last 24-hour reporting period, the Sheriff’s Office responded to 21 complaints and made these arrests:
—Andrew Joseph Hebert, 31, Berwick, was at 12:39 p.m. Monday on a charge of second-degree battery. Hebert continues to be incarcerated at the St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center.
--James Duhon III, 48, Franklin, was arrested at 11:22 a.m. Monday on a charge of simple burglary. Bail was set at $16,000.
—Brian Keith Leggett, 48, Oakdale, was arrested at 12:42 p.m. Monday on a charge of reckless operation (no accident). Leggett was released on a $500 bond.
—Jalen Toi Scott, 29, Patterson, was arrested at 3:26 p.m. Monday on a warrant alleging failure to appear on the charge of possession of MDMA. Bail was set at $3,000.
Morgan City
Police Chief Chad M. Adams reported that the Morgan City Police Department responded to 146 calls for service over the last 96-hour reporting period and made these arrests:
—Jamie Truman Scarbrough, 56, Fourth Street, Berwick, was arrested at 10:04 a.m. Friday on a charge of failure to appear to pay fine (6th Ward Morgan City Court).
—Mary Toups Richard, 43, Railroad Avenue, Morgan City, was arrested at 1:27 p.m. Friday on a charge of criminal trespass.
--Edward Ulyesee Giroir, 28, Railroad Avenue, Morgan City, was arrested at 1:27 p.m. Friday on a charge of criminal trespass.
—Renetta Hawkins, 60, Mallard Street, Morgan City, was arrested at 11:17 p.m. Friday on a warrant alleging proper equipment required (6th Ward Morgan City Court).
--Aurelia Ann Amante, 50, Aspen Drive, Houma, was arrested at 2:22 a.m. Saturday on charges of driving while intoxicated (first offense), reckless operation of a vehicle and driver must be licensed.
—Alicia Rae Bertrand, 38, Cremo Lane, Patterson, was arrested at 6:43 a.m. Saturday on three counts of failure to appear for arraignment (6th Ward Morgan City Court).
—Trent Eugene Wilson, 29,Third Street, Morgan City, was arrested at 7:33 a.m. Saturday on a charge of disturbing the peace and on a fugitive warrant from the Berwick Police Department alleging aggravated assault.
—Damien K Keller, 39, Saturn Road, Bayou Vista, was arrested at 3:01 a.m. Monday on a charge of failure to appear to pay fine (6th Ward Morgan City Court).
)
Charles Elmer Hebert Jr., a native and resident of Morgan City, died Saturday, Dec. 17, 2022, at Patterson Health Care.
He is survived by his father, Charles Hebert Sr.; four sisters, Janelle Yurosky, Jean Hebert, Carol Carroll and Jennifer Dreher; and a host of other relatives.
He was preceded in death by his mother and two brothers.
Graveside services will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Morgan City Cemetery.
Twin City Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
(Editor’s note: The charges listed here and the narratives that go with them are provided by the police agencies that made the arrests. Guilt or innocence has not been determined in court.)
St. Mary Parish deputies arrested two people on dating partner battery charges over the weekend, one involving aggravated assault, while Berwick police arrested another in an assault with a machete.
St. Mary
Sheriff Blaise Smith reported that over the last 72-hour reporting period, the Sheriff's Office responded to 78 complaints and made these arrests:
--Paul Marshall Daigle, 44, Bayou Vista, was arrested at 6:28 p.m. Sunday on charges of battery of a dating partner, unauthorized entry of an inhabited dwelling, interfering with emergency communication and aggravated assault.
Bail has not been set.
--Edward Ulysses Giroir, 28, Morgan City, was arrested at 8:39 p.m. Sunday on charges of simple battery of the infirm, unauthorized entry of an inhabited dwelling, disturbance, battery of a dating partner and violation of protective orders.
Bail has not been set.
Berwick
Police Chief David S. Leonard Sr. reported these arrests:
--Eugene Leblanc, 28, Pharr Street, Berwick, was arrested at 3:12 p.m. Friday on a charge of theft by shoplifting.
--Brelin Andorf, 34, Pharr Street, Berwick, was arrested at 3:12 p.m. Friday on an Assumption Parish warrant alleging failure to appear.
About 2:33 p.m. Friday, the Berwick Police Department responded to a local business in reference to a suspicious persons complaint.
Officers made contact with Leblanc and Andorf. Through the course of the complaint, Leblanc admitted to taking items from the store without paying for them.
It was also learned that Andorf had an active warrant through the Assumption Parish Sheriff’s Office. The merchandise was recovered and both Leblanc and Andorf were placed under arrest and transported to the Berwick Police Department, where they were booked.
--Trent Wilson, 29, Texas Street, Berwick, was arrested at 8 a.m. Saturday on warrants alleging aggravated assault and disturbing the peace.
About 7:50 a.m. Saturday, , the Berwick Police Department was notified by the Morgan City Police Department that Wilson had been arrested by their agency on active warrants held through the Berwick Police Department.
Wilson was transported to the Berwick Police Department where he was booked on the above charges. The charges stem from a Nov. 19 complaint in which Wilson went to a residence and threatened another individual with a machete.
He fled the residence prior to officer’s arrival, therefore, warrants were prepared for his arrest.
--Willie Hayes Jr., 43, Mike Drive, Patterson, was arrested at 4:18 p.m. Saturday on charges of possession of marijuana (over 14 grams), possession of MDMA, possession of a stolen firearm, illegal possession of stolen things, violation of uniform controlled dangerous substance law (drug-free zone), possession of drug paraphernalia, violation of a protective order, window tint and switched license plate.
About 3:37 p.m. Saturday, vehicle was observed to not use a turn signal and have dark tinted windows. A traffic stop was conducted and officers made contact with Hayes. During this time, it was learned that the license plate displayed on the vehicle was switched and reported as stolen.
An odor of marijuana was detected coming from the vehicle. A search was conducted and marijuana, MDMA, a firearm and items of paraphernalia were located inside.
Through the course of the investigation, it was learned that the firearm was reported stolen. It was also learned that Hayes had an active protective order. The area in which Hayes was at is a posted drug-free zone.
Hayes was placed under arrest and transported to the Berwick Police Department, where he was booked.
--Juvenile male, 13, Berwick, was arrested at 11:48 p.m. Saturday on a charge of curfew violation.
--Juvenile male, 13, Berwick, was arrested at 11:48 p.m. Saturday on a charge of curfew violation.
About 11:39 p.m. Saturday, officers responded to a complaint on Roder Street regarding two juveniles who left home without permission.
Responding officers began patrolling the surrounding area and observed both juveniles running into a yard. They were both located hiding behind a vehicle and were arrested
They were processed at the Berwick Police Department and released to their guardians pending juvenile court proceedings.
Franklin
Police Chief Morris Beverly reported that the Franklin Police Department responded to 13 complaints over the past weekend and made this arrest:
--Laura Newbaker, 39, Lee Charles Street, Franklin, was arrested at 3 p.m. Thursday on charges of cruelty to the infirm. Newbaker was booked, processed and transported to the St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center.
Chitimacha
Police Chief B.C. Trahan reported these arrests:
--Todd Toups, 34, Cherokee Street, Charenton, was arrested Dec. 13 on a charge of disorderly conduct. He was transported to St Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center.
--Juvenile male, 16, was arrested Dec. 13 on a charge of reckless operation of a vehicle. He was released on a summons to his parent.
--John James, 61, Martin Luther King Road, Charenton, was arrested Saturday on a charge of sexual battery.
--Cheree D Rose, 55, Davis Hall Road, Santa Fe, Texas, was arrested Saturday on a charge of monetary instrument abuse. She was transported to St Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center.
--Roy J Verret, 57, Verret Road, Jeanerette was arrested Monday on a charge of for reckless operation of a motor vehicle. He was released on a summons.
PATTERSON – Monday was a banner day for Patterson Junior High.
The banner, unfurled by Assistant State Superintendent Trey Folse at the school, marks PJHS as a Comeback Campus, one of 41 Louisiana schools that overcame pandemic and hurricanes to raise achievement levels in math and English for 2022.
The Louisiana Department of Education named the 41 schools as Comeback Campuses earlier this month, recognizing them for making gains in math and reading while schools across the state the country struggled with missed classes, lockdowns and the transition to remote learning.
Superintendent Teresa Bagwell joined Folse, St. Mary School Board members Ginger Griffin and Kenneth Alfred, Principal Lauren Rentrop and other school administrators on a brief tour of Patterson Junior High’s still-new campus.
Before the tour, Bagwell said middle school students are at an age that makes them a challenge when it comes to raising standardized test scores. Patterson Junior High poses an extra challenge in that fifth-graders are part of the student body, too.
The percentage of Patterson Junior High students who achieved Mastery in English language arts on LEAP tests dipped from 36% in 2019 to 33% in 2021 before rebounding to 43% in 2022.
At PJHS, LEAP math scores dropped from 22% Mastery in 2019 to 14% in 2021 before rising to 23% in 2022.
Statewide, 36% of fifth-graders achieved Mastery in English and 25% in math in 2022. Among Louisiana eighth-graders, 36% achieved Mastery in English, 21% in math.
Patterson was one of only seven middle or junior high schools to make the list of 41 Comeback Campuses.
So what’s the secret?
“That’s what we’re here to see,” said Folse, a former St. Tammany superintendent whose grandfather, Leonard Folse, was from Patterson. “We’re going to meet with the educators and see if we can put all this together.”
If enthusiasm can affect standardized school scores, Patterson Junior High may be on to something. The native language of Principal Rentrop and her staff seems to be smiles and exclamation points.
Music plays for students as they arrive in the morning. Friday is dance party day in the cafeteria, and even the cafeteria workers take part.
“Nice line!” Rentrop said as she led Folse down a hallway past students waiting to enter a classroom.
In the English classroom of Loraine Sinitiere –she’ll be retiring soon after 20 years – students learned tips for effective writing. They worked on a letter to Rentrop to object to indoor recesses.
Reagan Sanford's Algebra I students worked a problem with a 2-minute time limit. And Leah Begley's science students were learning about rock formations.
Also in the hallway, Folse and the administrators ran into Alisia Frederick, who was dressed as Mrs. Claus. She posed for a picture with Folse.
“I can see the passion of the teachers, the principal and the superintendent,” Folse said later.
“Louisiana’s students are coming back stronger, and this movement is being led by students, families and educators,” said State Superintendent Dr. Cade Brumley in a press release. “I look forward to visiting these campuses to recognize their progress and learn how we can accelerate further growth for the children of this state.”
Morgan City was the place to be Saturday night for family entertainment.
The first Cajun Spirit of Christmas Parade was held at 6 p.m. in downtown.
Following the parade, was the free movie showing of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" at 7 p.m. in Lawrence Park.
Franklin Banner-Tribune
P.O. Box 566, Franklin, LA 70538
Phone: 337-828-3706
Fax: 337-828-2874
Morgan City Review
1014 Front Street, Morgan City, LA 70380
Phone: 985-384-8370
Fax: 985-384-4255