By LEONARD GRAY

Managing Editor

EDGARD – The sixth and final strategic planning workshop for St. John Parish Schools is set Monday at West St. John High School in Edgard, starting at 6:30 p.m.

Superintendent Michael Coburn said attendance has been good, from 50 or so at the first workshop to about 40 at Monday’s workshop at East St. John High School.

Board member Russ Wise hopes for better attendance at this final meeting, as so many important issues will be discussed, from possible new schools to improved communication with parents.

The strategic planning sessions, which began in February, addresses the system’s purpose and mission, accomplishments, present situation and plans for the future.

As population has increased in some areas, local schools, especially LaPlace Elementary and East St. John Elementary, are packed with more than 1,000 students, in facilities built to accommodate 650-700 students. Other schools, such as The Glade School, have empty classrooms.

Wise hopes to see another West Bank school and a new East Bank high school, geared toward a vocational-technical curriculum, for those students not college-bound.

Wise, who pushed for the series of meetings, says these meetings are “laying the groundwork for the next 10 years.”

“It’s time to take a couple of quantum leaps,” Wise said, and said more parental involvement is vital to this process.