By LEONARD GRAY

LULING – A zero-interest loan was recently approved for the St. Charles Parish School Board for more than three-quarters of a million dollars of school improvements. The board approved authorizing the loan for the Qualified Zone Academy Bond Program and plans to use $780,000 from the Capital Projects Fund for these improvements at 15 of the district’s schools.

The bond program was established to allow qualified school systems to borrow money for various projects, to be paid back over a 15-year period, with no interest. The program was developed to reduce the costs, burdens and complexities through borrowing in a loan pool for qualified systems.

Work to be done at the schools range from gym floor replacement at Albert Cammon Middle School and track resurfacing at Destrehan and Hahnville High Schools to replacement of white marker boards at all 15 of the schools included and field lights for the baseball fields at the high schools.

The high schools will each get $261,500 of improvements, including new carpets. Most other schools will get replacement classroom desks and furniture, according to Larry Sesser, executive director for physical plant services.

In other activity, the school board:

• Approved the 2003-2004 school calendar;

• Received $40,000 from Dow Chemicals, the first of five annual awards to enhance science education in St. Charles Parish, part of the Dow Promise program, an initiative to increase access of technology for African-American students;

• Revised procedures to accommodate eight members as of January 2003. These include establishing five members as a quorum, ruling tie votes would mean a motion fails, and established two new committees – Technology Committee; Curriculum, Assessment and Instruction Committee.