July 27, 2008
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Cecil J. Picard, Louisiana Superintendent of Education
Cecil J. Picard has been the Superintendent of Education for the State of Louisiana since July 1, 1996. Previous to being appointed State Superintendent, Mr. Picard served as a member of the Louisiana State Legislature from 1975 to 1996 (Representative, 1975–79; Senator, 1979–96). He was also a teacher, coach, and principal in the Louisiana public schools for more than 20 years. Mr. Picard has worked closely with the governor of Louisiana and the legislature to develop and implement an accountability system for the state’s schools that was recognized as second in the nation by Education Week’s 2005 Quality Counts. This system enables the state to identify weaknesses in student and school performance and target resources where they are most needed to improve student learning. A more recent challenge was the arrival of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, which caused great displacement of students and staff, particularly in the New Orleans area. As those students and teachers had to leave their homes and schools, the State Department of Education went into full-time, 24/7 emergency mode to help track their whereabouts and to facilitate their learning and earning until they could return home. Technos spoke to Mr. Picard in late September about the effects of the hurricanes on his constituency and what the Department of Education was doing to help.
Technos: How many displaced students from the New Orleans school district are there?
C.J.P.: There are 109,000 students displaced from Orleans, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard parishes.
Where are these students now enrolled? Are these transfers for the entire year, or temporary placements?
Before Hurricane Rita, these students were enrolled across Louisiana and across the nation. Louisiana has approximately 39,500 displaced students enrolled in districts. Texas has approximately 45,000 students enrolled. Florida has approximately 6,000. Georgia has approximately 8,000.
How have you kept track of them?
We have not been tracking individual students, but rather numbers of displaced students that have enrolled in districts. Each receiving school district has been reporting to us daily the numbers of displaced students they have received.
How many teachers have been displaced? How are such things as payroll and benefits being handled for them?
Approximately 4,900 teachers have been displaced. We have asked for federal assistance that would allow us to maintain payroll and benefits, but have not received an appropriation to date. Orleans Parish has placed all of its employees on “Disaster Leave” and all impacted districts have told their employees to apply for unemployment.
For those students placed out of Louisiana, what arrangements can be made for them, re: test scores, immunization records, credits; socialization in the form of extracurricular activities?
The Saturday after the storm the Department of Education began sending all operating school districts a database via overnight mail containing Student Information System (SIS) and Student Transcript System (STS) data. These databases include basic statistics including demographics, enrollment, discipline, high school transcripts, and class schedule information for public school students in the affected parishes of Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, and St. Tammany. This information was also made available to other states, including Texas, that were taking in large numbers of displaced students. Schools were informed that immunization records would not be required to enroll displaced students. We are hearing many stories of displaced students easily falling into their normal routines, including athletics, band, and other extra-curricular activities. Schools taking in these displaced students are working very diligently to include their new students in all activities, including dances, proms, and eventually graduations.
How can people/school districts elsewhere help the affected schools in Louisiana?
We’ve been organizing a database that includes thousands of offers of assistance from across the country, and we are matching those offers with school district needs as they indicate to us what they need.
To contribute monetarily, make checks out to: “Community Foundation of Acadiana”—and indicate on the memo portion: “Fund for Katrina’s Kids.” Checks should be mailed to:
Community Foundation of Acadianac/o Raymond Hebert
PO Box 3892
Lafayette, LA 70502-3892
If you have any particular instructions as to how the funds are to be used, please include a letter outlining your wishes. The funds will be used as indicated. All other donations or offers of assistance should be emailed to customerservice@la.gov.
What lessons have been/are being learned in this situation that can be applied in emergencies in the future, in any part of the country?
I think we are still learning lessons and will be for quite some time. I called the Florida Department of Education right after the storm, and they shared with us many of their “lessons learned” after dealing with multiple hurricanes last year. One of the suggestions they made and we implemented was a “buddy system.” Each local school superintendent was paired with a Cabinet-level staff person here at the Department of Education so that they could easily receive accurate information from us. This was important not only for the impacted districts but also for districts receiving large numbers of displaced students. We found it to be very beneficial, and districts seemed to like it as well.
Does the Department have an Emergency Preparedness course for teachers, administrators, students, and parents?
The Department of Education does not have an Emergency Preparedness course. School districts usually prepare emergency plans in conjunction with local emergency management officials.
If you could change one thing about how the Department has handled this emergency, what would it be?
I don’t think I would change a thing at this point. I am very pleased with our response and feel as though we’ve been able to move forward in a quick and orderly fashion.
What one thing are you most proud of in the way things have been handled to date?
I am most proud of the Department of Education staff. They began thinking and working before Katrina even passed. The day after the storm many of them were here, in the office, getting work done, even though many of them did not have power in their own homes. We immediately set up temporary office space for the impacted school districts here at the Department of Education in Baton Rouge, giving them a place where they could meet with their key staff and begin the process of assessing damage and moving forward. By setting up office space here, these districts also had access to our communications staff, including our Web master and call center staff, so that they could get out vital information to their parents, teachers, and students. Our call center (a toll-free number) handled more than 1,500 calls per day for approximately three weeks after the storm. They worked extended hours through the weekend and Labor Day holiday.
Any Words of Wisdom for other states’ DOE personnel who might face a natural (or other) disaster?
Establish one point of contact with the major agencies such as the U.S. Department of Education, FEMA, etc. It cuts through red tape and misunderstandings and has been very beneficial in our dealings.
For URLs of relevant Web sites, go to Recommended Links.
Cecil J. Picard, 69, the third longest serving State Superintendent of Education in Louisiana history, and the catalyst for many nationally recognized educational initiatives including Louisiana’s Accountability Program and the LA 4 Pre-K initiative, died on Feb. 15, 2007.