The Winn Parish School Board voted unanimously Monday night at its regular June meeting to ban the wearing of hooded sweatshirts (hoodies) in schools beginning this fall.  The matter had been proposed in committee session a week earlier.

Board member Lacey McManus had brought up the question in committee, saying that principals and teachers had asked for this action.  “It’s not just in town but every school,” she told the Journal.  Previous discussion had indicated concern that materials could be concealed in the hoods and pockets of the garments and could slip undetected through screening devices.

The ban also encompasses the dress code.  Although head coverings are not allowed inside buildings, some students have refused demands by teachers to remove their hoods.  “It has been a constant battle,” said McManus.

Board members also spent a good deal of time looking over the 2025-26 Staffing List of school personnel within a budget based on numbers from the start of school last year.  Supt. Al Simmons said they anticipate a balanced budget although there is “still a lot of work to do” to make that happen.  The board could vote on the budget as early as their July meeting before submitting it to the state.

This Staffing List showed names of returning teachers and other employees at each school and also included a number of blanks.  Members heard that some of those blanks represent teachers who have retired or resigned but others are non-certified teachers who have been in classrooms.  If certified teachers apply for those posts by this fall, they would teach but if the positions are unfilled, the non-certified teachers could return.  

“Based on what we’ve seen,” said Supt. Al Simmons, “I don’t imagine there will be many certified applicants.”

The totals indicated an overall loss of one teacher parishwide.  “If the July budget allows for hiring of additional teachers, I’d love to hire more.  It’s up to the board” Simmons observed.  If the district hired some 13 additional teachers the board wants, he said the low-end cost (if none needed insurance, for instance) would be around $500,000.    But the high-end cost (with insurance including family coverage) would run closer to $1 million.

Figures shift constantly in the financial office as the board moves towards its budget deadline and a picture of a break-even budget seemed more likely than a surplus.  And “there’s no historic data to hope that a student increase this fall is a realistic expectation,” said Simmons.