Concerns about teacher pay, classroom resources and transportation took center stage at a Jefferson Parish student-led town hall last weekend, where young advocates questioned how the school district prioritizes spending.
The Student Action Movement held a small town hall Saturday (Oct. 10) to discuss challenges facing the district’s public schools. Only one school board candidate and the president of the local teachers union participated.
Victor Romero-Roque, the organization’s 17-year-old president and a student at Patrick F. Taylor Science & Technology Academy, questioned whether the district’s budget reflects students' and teachers' needs.
Romero-Roque raised concerns about teachers working second jobs and students lacking adequate classroom resources. He also questioned whether teachers can always provide the instruction and support students need.
He described the difference between being in a large physics class, where he sometimes felt left behind, and a smaller English class, where he had a more positive experience with teacher support.
“It can be really isolating when [students] go into the classroom and realize, 'I’m not getting the resources that I think I deserve,'” Romero-Roque said.
Romero-Roque said attending different schools in Jefferson Parish shaped his views on educational inequality.
He previously attended elementary and middle schools where most students were people of color, reflecting the community where he grew up. Although both schools faced challenges, he said their teachers cared deeply about their students.
He credited those teachers with helping him get into Patrick Taylor, a selective-admissions school, despite what he described as a lack of resources at his previous schools.
At Patrick Taylor, he noticed a difference in the student population and its economic background.
“It was a lot more white and a lot more wealthy,” Romero-Roque said.
He said those differences motivated him to advocate for students throughout the district.
“My biggest motivation is my community,” Romero-Roque said. “There is no reason why two people in the same community sharing the same resources and services should have two completely different outcomes.”
Romero-Roque said protests against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement across the country also inspired him to start the Student Action Movement. He connected concerns about immigration enforcement to what he sees as broader inequalities affecting families in Jefferson Parish.
For him, those concerns extend to the opportunities students receive in the classroom.
Students also raised transportation during the discussion. Members pointed to the district’s bus shortage as one problem they believe has gone unaddressed.
A July investigation by WDSU found that Jefferson Parish schools had recorded 1,862 instances of buses being unavailable in March alone, including 728 on the West Bank and 1,134 on the East Bank.
The investigation also found that some students missed class because buses failed to arrive. At the time of the July report, district officials were still finalizing routes and had not set a specific target to reduce missed bus service.
Jefferson Parish Schools Chief Operations Officer Patrick Jenkins acknowledged the transportation problems and said the district was working to improve service.
Who's running for school board?
The town hall came ahead of the November 3 school board election, when voters will decide five contested races for the nine-member Jefferson Parish School Board.
Four candidates won their seats without opposition when qualifying ended Aug. 7: incumbents Gerald LeBlanc, Kriss Fairbairn Fortunato and Chad Nugent, along with newcomer Alice Hoyt, according to NOLA.com.
Eleven candidates are running in the five contested races:
- District 2: Rachel Spears and June Hollins
- District 5: Simeon Dickerson, Roxanne Modica and Dionne Nichols-Condoll
- District 6: Al Galindo and incumbent Michael Pedalino
- District 7: Incumbent Ralph “Rem” Brandt and James “Jimmy” Kytle
- District 9: John Cunningham II and incumbent Kevin Delahoussaye
In a press release, the Student Action Movement described a planned “flipped forum” organized by a coalition of residents concerned about the Jefferson Parish School Board.
The release identified five people who had accepted invitations to participate: Simeon Dickerson, Dionne Nichols-Condoll, Al Galindo, John Cunningham II, and Roxanne Modica.
Cunningham, who is challenging Delahoussaye in District 9, was the only school board candidate who attended Saturday’s discussion. No sitting board members were present.
Cunningham spent 20 years teaching students from different socioeconomic backgrounds in public, private and religious schools, according to his Ballotpedia candidate questionnaire. He also worked as a teacher and counselor at a behavioral health facility in Tennessee.
In his campaign questionnaire, Cunningham identified school safety, discipline, critical thinking and support for teachers and students among his priorities. He also said he wants taxpayer spending tied to student learning outcomes.
At the town hall, Cunningham encouraged students to involve their parents or guardians when raising concerns about the school board.
“So when you have an issue going forward, bring that to your parent or your guardian so they can contact the school board so some resolution can start,” Cunningham said.
Recalling his time as a teacher, Cunningham also discussed the importance of having evidence to support complaints.
“Do you have any evidence? You get me evidence, I can advocate for you. Without the evidence, I cannot advocate for you, at all.” Cunningham said.
Adults explain school funding
As students questioned why teachers and classrooms lack resources, the discussion turned to how the district’s money is allocated.
Cunningham and Sandra Hauer, president of the Jefferson Federation of Teachers, explained that school funding comes from different sources and can have restrictions on how it can be spent.
“To look at the bottom line and say, ‘This school system has this amount of money,’ we have to understand that some of it comes from Title I,” Hauer said. “It comes from different types of grants and can only be spent on certain things.”
Those distinctions matter to students' questions about teachers' salaries, classroom materials, and other school needs because not all district funding can be used interchangeably.
Both speakers encouraged students to develop financial literacy and learn more about where school funding comes from, how budgets are developed, and how spending decisions are made.
They also emphasized the importance of voting and civic participation in shaping decisions affecting public education.
According to a press release from The Student Action Movement, the group began attending Jefferson Parish school board meetings on June 3, when members spoke about district accountability and wages for school employees. The organization says it has continued attending meetings since then, pushing for improved school conditions and greater accountability from board members.
Romero-Roque said the group’s priorities include more community control over schools, fair compensation for district employees, more equitable school funding and expanded preschool resources.
Beyond advocating for policy changes, he hopes the organization can eventually offer tutoring and workshops to help students improve their academics and prepare for admission to magnet schools.
“I hope SAM can leave a positive impact,” Romero-Roque said. “Our big goal is to be able to help students and teachers.”
