By David Vitrano

L’Observateur

RESERVE – Employees of the St. John the Baptist Parish School System can breathe a little easier now that the local teachers’ union and district administration have reached an agreement that will erase the budget deficit and simultaneously eliminate the need for layoffs.

“It’s a done deal,” said union President Carolyn Batiste.

After a short closed-door update on negotiations, the board re-emerged with a Memo of Understanding signed by both Superintendent Courtney Millet and Batiste.

The memo stipulates that all union members will have to take four unpaid furlough days during the 2010-11 school year. Those days are Nov. 1, 2010, Nov. 2, 2010, May 20, 2011 and May 23, 2011.

The agreement also states the furlough days are for the 2010-11 fiscal year only.

The memo further stipulates that if the district’s financial woes are somehow alleviated, the St. John Association of Educators will be able to negotiate for the restoration of pay and elimination of furlough days during the 2011-12 fiscal year.

The SJAE also required as part of the agreement to be provided with the Independent Audit Report from the last four years.

When voting on the matter, board member Keith Jones moved that the memo be applied to all employees of the district, including administration. The board passed the motion unanimously.

Said School Board Vice President Patrick Sanders, “I’d just like to publicly thank the union members for working with the board and administration. … It sounds as though we’re going to have a great year.”

In other business, the board approved modifications to the facility improvement plan to allot more money for the renovation project at LaPlace Elementary School to accommodate a larger-than-expected student population.

The board also approved a modified fee schedule for Kelly Educational Staffing, which supplies the district’s substitute teachers. Kelly agreed to reduce its fees at the request of the district administration.

Lastly, although Russ Wise, who originally brought up the idea of reducing board members’ salaries during the 2010-11 year, was absent from Thursday’s meeting, Jones moved to remove the matter from the table and take no action. His motion also passed, but as no action was taken, it may be brought up again in the future.