It’s another battle for families in Mt. Hermon as they continue their fight to stop the Washington Parish School Board from reconfiguring Mt. Hermon School.
It’s another battle for Mt. Hermon as they continue their fight to stop the Washington Parish School Board from transferring their 7th through 12th-grade students to Franklinton.
Justin Hoffman, who is a single dad, not only lives in Mt. Hermon but he works there too.
“So, by them being here, everything works out. I don’t have to worry about traveling far and all that. So, them moving over there is going to mess everything up.” Hoffman said.
Hoffman, along with Linda and Avery York, are just three of more than two dozen filing this lawsuit against the school board and their superintendent Jennifer Thomas.
“It appears that they have not done the adequate research in order to present their case,” Hoffman said.
Mt. Hermon School Board member Keith Giles joins the families in this lawsuit.
The lawsuit claims:
- The defendants announced and pursued closure without a lawful public decision-making process and after express warnings, without the information reasonably necessary to determine whether closure serves student achievement, financial efficiency, student safety and the best interests of the affected students.
“Mt. Hermon citizens were treated as if they were the obstacle to a decision that was thrown at them,” attorney Sherif Sakla said.
Giles claims the superintendent spoke to other school board members individually about the closure before a vote took place; however, Thomas denies this claim.
Other allegations in the lawsuit include that the school district has yet to provide a detailed transportation plan. During a school board meeting, the school board mentioned some routes could be as long as 40 miles round trip. Some parents believe that’s too far for their children to travel.
Sakla said a major concern is the fact that the school has allegedly not conducted a review of how the transition could impact students with disabilities.
“Well, we’re trying to get the court to remedy and implement what should have been done in the first place, which is evaluation and then implication and then, appropriate, implementation of what we want to do,” Sakla said.
Moving forward, Sakla said both parties will have to present evidence during a hearing at the Federal Court in New Orleans so a judge can decide if the school board’s decision to transfer the students should be paused.
The school board met in executive session Thursday night to discuss the lawsuit. WDSU asked if the superintendent or the board would like to comment about the allegations against them, but they declined.
READ MORE:Washington Parish community members file lawsuit against school district
