Superintendent's Teacher Council

2022-2023 Teacher Council Members

• Amanda Ingargiola, Patrick F. Taylor Academy
• Erica Gauthreaux, Jefferson Elementary
• Shelbie Livingston, Boudreaux Elementary
• Amber Lyons, Thomas Jefferson Academy
• Hannah Mendoza, Emmett Gilbert School
• Shelly Cochran, Chateau Estates Elementary
• Angelle Painter, Leo Kerner Elementary
• Jade Kuhn, Estelle Elementary
• Shentell Arsenaux, Green Park Elementary
• Brandon Burroughs, Helen Cox High
• Jenna Bannon, T.H. Harris Middle
• Stephanie Johnson, Boudreaux Elementary
• Cherlyn Scott, Grace King High
• LaShika Williams, Haynes Academy
• Watiki Sauerwin, Bridgedale Elementary
• Denetra Bush, L.W. Higgins High
• Martha Black, John Ehret High
• Tobi Hoban, Isaac G. Joseph Elementary
• Diana Sittig, A.C. Alexander Elementary
• Ryan Jerome, Bridgedale Elementary

---

2022-2023 Meeting Dates

Teacher discussions and input are highly valued and member attendance at all council meetings is encouraged. The council will meet four times this school year with the Superintendent at various sites from 1-2:30 p.m.at alternating sites. 

• October 20, 2022 at 501 Manhattan  
• December 8, 2022 at Emenes
• February 9, 2023 at 501 Manhattan
• April 13, 2023 at Emenes
• April 27, 2023 Collaborative Meeting at 501 Manhattan

---

2022-2023 Council Recaps

October 20: The Superintendent’s Teacher Council was led by Laura Roussel, Chief Academic Officer. She was joined by Marian Althage, the Director of Educator Performance. Ms. Roussel reviewed the meeting agenda and noted that during these council meetings, she wants the group to focus on resolutions to problems.

Council members then spent time doing an icebreaker in order to build relationships with one another. Teachers shared an interesting fun fact about themselves that would allow other people to remember them. Some interesting facts shared include never having had a cup of coffee, auditioning for American Idol, being an avid marathon runner, and having read over 300 books in one year.

Next, Ms. Roussel shared information about the diversity of the Teacher Council across schools, grade levels, content areas, and perspective. The council members then discussed meeting outcomes. “You’ve been put on this council so we can hear your opinion and get your feedback,” Ms. Roussel noted. “We want to be able to get to know one another and I want us to be able to share and solve problems together.” 

Ms. Roussel then had the group brainstorm norms in order to be able to achieve the meeting outcomes. Being respectful, staying solutions-oriented, staying focused, actively listening, eliminating side conversations, affirming others, using asset-based language, hearing from all council members, keeping conversations confidential, addressing the problem not the person, assuming the best, being a team player, asking for clarification, and starting and stopping on time.

Superintendent Dr. James Gray then addressed the group. “We need to have an open mind and hear one another, as this gives us a better opportunity to move things forward for our students,” he shared. He led a discussion with teachers around bias, sharing “When you make decisions, it’s important to not make them based on your bias. If you can’t control for your individual bias, you have a tendency to blow off other perspectives.” He shared his appreciation for teachers, noting, “The work you’ve done allowed us to be one of only 20 districts that grew the first year of the pandemic.” He wrapped up by discussing how teachers positively impacted his life trajectory and how teachers have the ability to change kids’ lives.

Ms. Roussel then shared information about how last year’s Student Council helped provide feedback and insight into the Student Learning Targets (SLTs) process. She shared, “We should be setting goals for our students that align to the school’s goals. When we do this and if everyone does their part, our students and our schools are going to grow.” She shared how the district’s goal is to build a common understanding for what an SLT is and provide opportunities for autonomy and rigor while ensuring the SLT process is fair and equitable. Ms. Althage then led the council members in a discussion of updated SLT guidance that will be shared across the district. 

Ms. Roussel then shared possible future Teacher Council topics that were gathered from council members’ applications. Topics included: 

• SLTs
• Literacy ACT 108
• New Social Studies Standards
• Curriculum Pilots
• Teacher Leader Pipeline and Purpose (Teacher Support)
• Mission to Mastery (Closing the gap for students due to COVID learning loss)
• Meeting the Needs of ELL students
• Purpose of Clusters
• New Teacher Support

Teachers were asked to list additional topics they would like to see possibly discussed in future council meetings. 

Ms. Roussel then conducted a meeting evaluation, where members shared what they liked about the meeting and what they would like to be seen done differently.

December 8: The second Superintendent’s Teacher Council meeting was led by Laura Roussel, Chief Academic Officer. Council members started the meeting with an icebreaker in order to build relationships with one another. Teachers picked from a handout with various holiday icebreaker questions. Teachers shared everything from a favorite holiday decoration being a five foot blowup Santa dachshund to the worst holiday cooking mishap being a December birthday Elmo cake that went awry.

Next, Ms. Roussel revisited the council’s norms and purpose with the group. She then introduced Superintendent Dr. James Gray and previewed the Rapid Fire Discussion process, where teachers had an opportunity to share questions or issues with Dr. Gray to address.  Dr. Gray started by sharing, “It’s important we spend time hearing from our teachers as I value and respect your opinions.” Dr. Gray responded to teachers’ questions and topics. 

• He addressed the teacher shortage. “There are no immediate solutions to this issue,” he shared, “So we are working on short-term and long-term fixes.” He discussed ways in which we are working to address this issue, including starting Embark, an in-house teacher certification program, working with an external vendor to support candidate sourcing, offering retention stipends, providing high school students with dual enrollment opportunities, and promoting the Call Me Mister program. He shared the importance of strong school culture and school leadership to help retain and recruit teachers. “Neglect a weed, it grows. Neglect a flower, it dies,” he shared. “Principals are the lynchpin to everything, and we are working constantly with them to ensure they are supported and held accountable.” Dr. Gray also shared how he works to address legitimate issues and problems when he learns of them.
• Dr. Gray addressed questions about strategies for teacher retention. In addition to providing the tiered retention stipend, he shared that the district is looking at ways to be as efficient as possible and leverage the savings to potentially provide additional increases to teacher pay. “We are also always looking at ways to take unnecessary things off your plates,” he said. He noted how we are providing support and high-quality resources to teachers so they can focus on educating students.
• Campus security was discussed, and Dr. Gray shared that if there are concerns they notice on campus, they need to share that information with their principal. If it’s still an issue after teachers have followed the chain of command, Dr. Gray asked teachers to reach out to him. Dr. Gray shared how the district is also looking into increasing SROs to ensure our schools remain safe and secure.
• Dr. Gray and Ms. Roussel then addressed a question about student testing. Last year, for example, the district took away middle school exams and replaced them with benchmarks. Ms. Roussel addressed how testing windows can be tight, and the district is working closely with teachers to streamline testing and ensure questions align to the scope and sequence of what’s been taught. “Having these conversations allows us to hear from you and allow us to share out more broadly what we’re doing,” Ms. Roussel shared.

Dr. Gray wrapped up the meeting by reiterating how much he appreciated their honest and open discussion. Before they left, teachers were asked to conduct a meeting evaluation to ensure future council meetings are as helpful as possible.

February 9: The third Superintendent’s Teacher Council meeting was led by Laura Roussel, Chief Academic Officer, and Shavonne Garner-Price, Executive Director of Teaching and Learning. Ms. Garner-Price discussed the agenda and shared how the group would do a deep dive discussion about addressing the social and emotional needs of our students. Amanda Deschamps, the social worker from J.C. Ellis Elementary, also joined to engage in the conversation. Council members broke into small groups to discuss the following questions: 

How do we define “social emotional needs” when referencing our students? 

What does it mean when we say, addressing the needs of our students’ social emotional needs? 

What are the most common needs that you notice in our students? 

How do the social emotional needs of our students impede their learning specifically? 

Council members' small group discussion included the Circle of Concern Activity. Members talked about the following:

Wide range of concerns

The concerns we can do something about

The concerns we can directly address

Next, the social worker from JC Ellis shared tips on how to focus on things we can control. Ms. Roussel led the follow-up discussion where the participants answered the discussion questions above. 

She then introduced Superintendent Dr. James Gray to have a dialogue with council members. Dr. Gray started by sharing what opportunities may arise due to consolidations, including building new facilities, increasing STEM and arts opportunities for students, and providing more district support and oversight.

Dr. Gray wrapped up the meeting by thanking the teachers for their time and reminding them to maintain their focus on student learning. He also reiterated how much he appreciated their honest and open discussion. Before they left, teachers were asked to conduct a meeting evaluation to ensure future council meetings are as helpful as possible.

April 13: The April Superintendent’s Teacher Council meeting was led by Ladinah Carter and Alisha Gilbert, Executive Directors of Teaching and Learning.  Ms. Gilbert discussed the agenda and shared how the group would do an activity addressing the Circle of Concern. Ms. Carter and Ms. Gilbert both led the The Circle of Concern activity which discussed the following:

• In the Outer ring, write the things you have no control over
• In the Middle ring, write the things you can influence but not
• In the Inner ring write the things you can control

Next, there was discussion from the group about the things you cannot control to let go.

Following the activity, the teachers discussed why the teacher council was important and that it helped with principal accountability. The essential question that was asked and answered in the group centered around “ Why do you think this topic on principal accountability was important for  our teacher council?”The answers ranged from: 

• Abuse of power
• Not student centered
• No accountability on the principal
• Principal evaluation (teachers are principals students)
• Trust

The remaining portion of the council meeting was dedicated to Dr. Gray leading a discussion. During the conversation, he answered questions that teachers asked regarding the efficiency plan and how that impacts the district. He shared how the decisions are hard but we are doing what is in the best interest of our students. Dr. Gray then wrapped up the meeting by thanking the teachers for their dedication and the work they are doing in the classrooms.

April 27 (Collaborative Council): The Superintendent’s Collaborative  Council was led by A.J Pethe, Chief Schools. He introduced guests from the school district. Next, he asked the council members to review the meeting agenda,purpose of the council, meeting norms and outcomes. The team then conducted an interactive team building exercise where members were asked to independently read an excerpt from, The Power of Positive Leadership,  by Jon Gordon. They participated in group discussions and presented their thoughts. 

Next, Mr. Pethe introduced Ms. Gabrielle Misfeldt, Chief of Staff. Ms. Misfeldt began with a presentation on Jefferson Parish Schools 2024 Strategic Plan. The presentation included the blueprint of the new plan and changes for the new school year. Members participated in an interactive group activity where they reviewed the current strategic plan and presented how the plan played a role in students' success and listed practices and actions schools are currently doing  that are not included in the plan. Groups presented that the following things in the strategic plan supported student success: quality assessments, weekly cluster meetings at schools, communication with stakeholders, quality teachers, creating safe and positive environments, access to tier 1 curriculum, supporting struggling learners, student voices are heard, and social media engagement and value school/district culture. Groups presented that the following things are not in the strategic plan but are things schools and the district are currently doing: technology support for all, communication regarding the facilities plan, more vocational and dual enrollment options, increase social workers on campuses, literacy cohorts for principals, SPED supports, and visitors being accounted for and identified while on campus and promotion of attendance.

Next, Mr. Pethe asked the group to create a list of key insights and topics of interest for next school year's council meetings. Members participated in a group discussion and shared out various topics, including. 

Mr. Pethe then invited Superintendent Dr. James Gray to share a few words with council members. Dr. Gray welcomed members and opened the floor for council members to ask 

about the strategic plan. He shared the district’s efforts to continue to support students, families, and employees. “Having these conversations helps us do things better,” he shared. “I appreciate the fact that you’re giving us ideas about where we are successful and where we have to go for our kids.”

Finally, Mr. Pethe wrapped up the meeting by reviewing things that work and things that can make council meetings better. Members shared that things that work for council meetings are: having mixed groups, diversity of perspectives, parent voice, ability to see trends, open and honest conversations and review of previous meetings. Members shared that things that would make  council meetings better are: adding ESL stakeholders, recaps sent out, having a mid-point collaborative meeting, more organic coverstations and longer meetings. Mr. Pethe closed the meeting by thanking everyone for participating.

 

2021-2022 Teacher Council Members

• Gaynell Adams, West Jefferson High
• Ruth Brewington, T.H. Harris Middle
• Kristen Burke , Boudreaux Elementary
• Janae' Camardelle, multiple schools
• Shelly Cochran, Chateau Estates School
• Yvette Cresson, Green Park Elementary
• Benjamin-David Legrand, Clancy/Maggiore Elementary
• Ravin Edwards, Riverdale High
• Kelley Henry, Schneckenburger Elementary
• Noah Jacobs, Meisler Middle
• Jamie McCloud, Greenlawn Terrace Elementary
• Meagan Phillips, Pittman Elementary
• Erica Rosher, Higgins High
• Mitchell Rothermel, Strehle Community
• Diana Sittig, Alexander Elementary
• Johnita Smith , Livaudais Middle
• Tommacenia Sumlin, Estelle School
• Leah Weaver, Haynes Academy
• Matthew Williams, Haynes Academ
• Sheree Yerby, Solis Elementary

---

2021-2022 Teacher Council Meeting Dates

Teacher discussions and input are highly valued and member attendance at all council meetings is encouraged. Due to Hurricane Ida, the council will meet three times this school year (instead of four) from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at alternating sites. All meeting attendees will adhere to the health and safety protocols outlined in our Start Strong Jefferson plan.

• December 15, 2021 at the JP Schools Administration Building located at 501 Manhattan Blvd. in Harvey
• February 9, 2022 at the JP Schools Administration Building located at 501 Manhattan Blvd. in Harvey

April 4, 2022 at the Paul Emenes Building located at 822 S. Clearview Pkwy. in Harahan

---

Council Recaps

April 4: The final Superintendent’s Teacher Council meeting began with Laura Roussel, Chief Academic Officer, welcoming the teachers to their last council meeting and sharing how proud she was of all that the group accomplished. Roussel explained that the focus of the final meeting would be on the significance of culture within a school, how teachers are the foundation of their school’s culture, and how teachers can lead by influence. “Human capital in education is more valuable than anything we can buy,” said Roussel. “Human capital is critical. Leaders have just as much impact on students as teachers.” 

Following her remarks, Roussel further explained that any teacher can be a leader and influence the culture within a school. Roussel then introduced the program “Operation Lead” and explained that the program would consist of a six-week curriculum designed to encourage leaders to understand the context behind what they do. Following the program introduction, the teachers were tasked to turn to the person next to them and discuss what attributes of school leadership they believe are critical for teachers to have an impact on student achievement. Answers provided were: 

• Positive atmosphere
• Open communication 
• Solution-oriented opportunities
• Consistency 
• School-wide behavior expectations for students
• Understanding challenges 
• Failure is OK as we try new things. 
• Lead, learn, or mentor 
• Visibility for support 
• Community engagement 
• Feedback 
• A learner’s attitude 

Following the group activity, Superintendent Dr. James Gray addressed the council members by applauding the teachers for their everyday work. Gray also spoke in-depth about how much influence a teacher has on a student’s life, and the importance of  promoting the profession as the rewarding work that it is. “What do we need to do to protect our own profession and mental health, while also still investing in our students?” asked Dr. Gray. Following his remarks, Gray took a few questions from teachers before answering rapid fire questions presented by each of the council members. A few of the questions were: 

• Can you provide a timeline of when the district will receive approval for in-house teacher certification? 
• How would that look for someone who is already in the certification program?
• Will there be an opportunity to train some of the teachers for add-on certifications? 
• What are we doing to address the shortage of special education teachers? 

• Since the recent vote on the calendar, is there any progress on stopping at the same time at the end of the school year? 
• Is there a possibility of providing reduced or free after-school care for employees' children? 
• Is there anything you can say about the Spanish-speaking social worker shortage? 
• Are school start times changing for the 2022-23 school year? 

February 9: The Superintendent's Teacher Council was led by Laura Roussel, Chief Academic Officer.. The meeting began with an ice breaker bingo to help participants get to know one another better.

The group then took a deep dive into Student Learning Targets (SLT), since it had been a concern brought up by the council at a previous meeting. Roussel emphasized the  importance of understanding the purpose or intent of  SLT’s, rather than focusing on  the notion that SLT’s are overwhelming due to policies and accountability. She further explained three big ideas that help to keep the purpose of SLTs at the forefront: 

• Teaching implies learning.

• Student learning is at the forefront . 
• Equity and Equality -  Every student should have access to rigorous goals for learning. 

The council group was then tasked to think about what messages could be beneficial for teachers to hear so that the purpose of SLT’s can be better understood and more widely accepted. The council members were separated into groups of two, where they were instructed to communicate what would be helpful for a teacher to hear about SLT’s given the newfound perspective and purpose regarding Student Learning Targets. Examples of these messages were shared with Roussel separately amongst each individual group. Roussel asked the council to serve on a special committee to review SLT guidance. 

Following the exercise, the teachers were greeted by Dr. Gray when he emphasized the importance of their participation in this council. “More than anything, this is an opportunity for me to hear from you and about what concerns you are facing,” said Dr. Gray. He then touched on mental and social awareness issues and assured the council members that the district has plans underway to combat those concerns amongst teachers. 

The meeting concluded with an opportunity to suggest changes and raise concerns to Dr. Gray. The topics mentioned included: 

• Lack of clarity with SLT’s; not knowing the “why” 
• Overly generalized SLT guidance 
• The return of field trips
• Opportunities for more professional development 
• Better communication to be kept abreast on what changes are being made 
• Social and Emotional support from staff shortages 

December 15: The Superintendent’s Teacher Council began with an icebreaker led by Laura Roussel, Chief Academic Officer, where teachers were asked to introduce themselves, state what school they teach, and share a fun fact about themselves. 

Following the icebreaker exercise, the Superintendent's Teacher Council was greeted by Superintendent Dr. James Gray, where he shared his personal story. Dr. Gray explained that it was his teachers rather than his parents who encouraged him to further his education by planting the seed that he could attend college for free through a basketball scholarship. Dr. Gray said, “It was my teachers that nurtured me and made sure that I fared well. Even my first dress jacket came from my high school basketball coach.” Dr. Gray also shared that attending college at Grambling University put him on the right path, which was ultimately a stepping stone to a promising career. 

After hearing Dr. Gray’s story, the teachers brainstormed a list of topics that the council could spend time discussing at the following meetings. One teacher made a poignant remark that seemed to resonate with both Dr. Gray and other teachers in the room, noting “For our students, I think that it's important that we vision cast for them so that they can both visualize and internalize their goals.” Both Ms. Roussel and Dr. Gray noted how remarkable they found the phrase “vision cast,” and expressed their appreciation for this insight, further mentioning that this idea was heavily noted. 

The Superintendent’s Teacher Council concluded with what is referred to as a “ rapid fire,” a session in which teachers share their primary concerns. Below are the topics shared: 

• ELL support
• SPED support and inclusion model
• SLTs
• School culture 
• Utilizing paraprofessionals more effectively
• Teacher shortage
• Building joy back into the school day
• Exhaustion
• Transition to the new Social Studies standards
• Utilizing technology to best support teaching and learning
• Adjusting the Academic Calendar 
• Supporting programs like hotel and coding certifications in Spanish 
• More communication about the importance of library and an allocated budget for libraries 
• Transparent and open dialogue with principals to understand perspectives