By Lorenzo Salinas

l.v.salinas@panews.com

 

With eyes toward the future, newly elected board members are hopeful for Port Arthur education.

The board of trustees for the Port Arthur Independent School District met Tuesday at Memorial High School for both their regular and election meeting. After approving the canvass of election results from the May 5 board election, members recognized the three newly elected trustees, as each received a certificate of election and were sworn into office.

Lloyd Marie Johnson joined incumbents Debra Ambroise and Brandon Bartie to start a three-year term as board members. All three naturally made education their top priority.

“You know, we have been on a very good path,” Ambroise said. “It is my heartfelt desire to continue doing what we’re doing.”

Among the accomplishments the PAISD has going for it, Ambroise cited the recently passed District of Innovation plan where the district could determine its own start and stop date for the school year, the bevy of new technology that schools will be seeing in the coming year, and ribbon-cutting ceremonies for buildings previously distressed by Harvey as all signs of the district moving forward.

“We’ve got a lot of great things going on,” Ambroise said. “And this is all one team, so we’re just hoping to provide a unified front for all the work we’ve done.”

When asked about the state of recovery for the district as a whole, Ambroise expressed similar optimism.

“We are recovering at an astronomical rate, and we have had so many people who reached out and resources accessible that we’re very appreciative of it,” she said. “We are definitely past this point of recovery.”

On determining an important issue facing the district, Ambroise did not seem to make any distinction.

“I honestly can’t say that there’s any one issue…” she said. “Because all issues are at the constant forefront. We will handle them all and take them one at a time as they come along.”

For Johnson, finances were a main topic of attention.

“The biggest thing right now is just the budget,” she said. “Looking at the budget, looking at how our finances will be.”

In discussing recovery, Johnson said the district is still reorganizing its structure after Harvey, but that the students are coping well because “kids adjust very easily; it’s getting the adults to adjust to the new configuration that’s the trick.”

As part of that effort to rebuild, Johnson said the board has leadership and team-building exercises and workshops scheduled over the summer to strengthen their camaraderie and to get them ready to handle new responsibilities.

This would be in addition to their usual work of preparing for the next school year and approving related purchases.

Bartie highlighted the importance of parent involvement in making a successful school district.

“My focus now is getting parental involvement, to get parents more involved with their kids’ education,” he said. “To get them more involved with the school district itself.”

Education was still the main concern of Bartie, along with supporting the students in any way they need it.

“The main focus is education; and here at PAISD, we want to make sure that all our kids know that when times get hard, they will see we’re still standing tall no matter what it is,” he said. “We want to show our kids that we’re strong and tell them they’re strong and smart and capable of doing anything.”

Bartie commended the students on their resilience, for showing up to school every day with smiles on their faces despite whatever may be going on at home.

“One thing about the district… we are equipped for any situation that comes our way,” Bartie said. “We will find a way to survive and a way to get through it.”

He especially thanked superintendent Mark Porterie for all the hard work he’s done in getting the district back in working order after Harvey.

“School is big, and everyone is here to help one another,” he said. “If you need help, we’re here to help you, to get you what you need.

“We’re just a school district that helps our community. We’re in the helping business.”

In the reorganization of the school board, Ambroise was made board president, Dianne Brown was made vice president and Bartie was made secretary.