Go Bears!

 

It took me almost 40 years to proudly support my alma mater. It was, after all, my origin story for years of addiction.

 

Sadly, after this year, Bolton High School will cease to exist as it becomes the K-12 Bolton Academy Academic and Performing Arts Magnet, integrating Phoenix Magnet and Rapides Academy as well in the 2025-2026 school year in an unpopular plan in Rapides Parish. 

 

When I moved back to Alexandria last year after nearly two decades out-of-state, I didn’t know any of this. I just knew I had to go back to Bolton as part of my healing journey.

 

I sought out stories involving fun events at BHS. It was supposed to be lighthearted positivity to counteract some of the darkest days of my past.

 

What I found was that there are faithful employees of the Rapides Parish School system now living out their own dark days.

 

Whether they have been teaching for one year or thirty, all of Bolton’s teachers and paraprofessionals have been given their pink slips and told they must reapply. Some weren’t even allowed to finish out their current contracts, having been asked to turn in their keys and clean out their desks to make room for new hires.

 

Insult was added to injury when teachers were publicly blamed for their own termination. Low performance school scores were cited as the reason Bolton teachers must reapply; Phoenix Magnet and Rapides Academy faculty jobs are reportedly secure.

 

I’ve taught in a few school systems with vastly different population subsets; it is not hard to understand that historically underserved student populations are going to score lower than those who have more opportunities in life or have qualified behaviorally and academically for a magnet school.

 

Even teachers who recently left higher-performing schools to pioneer the soon-to-be defunct Bolton Conservatory have been axed, another casualty of this community debacle being discussed by residents all over town.

 

I reached out to Superintendent Jeff Powell, whose lack of transparency has marred his tenure in the Rapides Parish School System and divided the school board on many issues. Initially ignored, I did receive a reply shortly after asking State Superintendent Dr. Cade Brumley for a statement regarding the legality of the highly selective terminations. Powell asked for a meeting to explain his vision; I’d planned to go. That is, after all, professional journalism.

 

But I’m not a professional journalist. I’m a former educator turned full-time writer and my vision already seems pretty clear.

 

What I see are dedicated teachers losing hope as they face the uncertainty of losing their livelihood and their careers.

 

I see a high school with a fraction of the population from my youth. A recent request by a school board member to allow current students to remain at Bolton was rejected. As of press, approximately 120 students have applied for the 2024-2025 school year in a school that once served over 1,000 students.

 

I also see another Cenla landmark falling into disrepair with caution tape denying access to several buildings. The safety concerns for the school on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places mount as project bids for Phase 1 renovations from a 2022 bond were due on March 24, 2024.

 

Residents from District 62 were shown planned renovation phases prior to voting on the bond for their zoned schools. After the bond passed, parents were informed of the previously planned decision by the superintendent to close several schools and rezone students. Such misleading actions further divide a community already openly decrying a return to racial segregation in this Louisiana parish.

 

I see and hear Phoenix and Rapides parents searching for alternatives, seeking private and homeschooling options.

 

I see students with unnecessary anxiety over their educational future as they are sent to rival schools in a city where violence is 123% higher than the national average. 

 

I see teachers leaving the educational field completely or silenced by fears of retaliation while seeking positions, often with significant pay cuts, elsewhere in the district.

 

I see users illegally being banned from public social media pages when voicing criticism.

 

There are court precedents prohibiting such activity, including a recent Supreme Court ruling. When a public page blocks critics because of their viewpoint, it is a violation of the First Amendment and punishable by a fine and/or page deactivation. Napoleonic law is no exclusion to first amendment rights.

 

All of this turmoil has resulted in a slate of pending lawsuits against the Rapides Parish School system by disgruntled parents and employees.

 

We must join together for the good of our community.

 

This is America.

 

We must protect our children. We need to speak up for our teachers.

 

Stand up and make your voice heard.

 

The next school board meeting is April 9 at 5 p.m.. On the agenda is Item 7: Motion to approve the number of schools, grade configuration, and attendance zones for the 2024-2025 school year. Make your voice heard if you are tired of the lack of transparency in the current administration and the lack of checks and balances within the Rapides Parish School Superintendent’s office.

 

Sign the online petition now to protect our teachers and show your support: Petition Save our teachers from unfair mass firing and unconstitutional retaliationipetitions.com