PORT ALLEN — The West Baton Rouge Parish School Board paused its August 19 regular meeting to honor Henry Knox, a longtime teacher, guidance counselor, and coach who recently passed away.

Knox spent years in West Baton Rouge schools. He coached football. He counseled students at Port Allen Middle. And by the time he was done, he had shaped more lives in this parish than most people will ever know.

Superintendent Dr. Chandler Smith said he heard from many retired educators after Knox's death, all telling him the same thing: Knox mattered.

Board member Burke Fiscus, who played football under Knox, shared a memory.

"He said, 'Mr. Fiscus, come here,'" Fiscus recalled. "After I got out of school, I'd see him and we'd hug."

The board passed a resolution in his honor by unanimous vote.

Knox was also my guidance counselor at Port Allen Middle. He had that effect on people.

New bus manager starts with back-to-back wrecks

Brad Williams had been on the job ten days when he stood before the school board on August 19. In that time, a school bus was involved in an accident with students on board. The next day, a police officer backed into one of his buses from a personal driveway.

Nobody was hurt in either incident. But the new DS Bus site manager for West Baton Rouge told the school board he came in knowing it would be rough.

"I was already pre-prepared," Williams said. "Drivers are more responsive, they are more willing, and they accept what it is that I bring."

Williams, who comes from Texas, was introduced by Russell Lanclos, division general manager for DS Bus South, a subsidiary of Beacon Mobility. Williams has 15 years in the school bus industry, including nine years with a competitor and six with DS Bus's northern operations. He started as a driver, worked his way up to trainer and supervisor, then took a management role.

He replaces previous leadership that DS Bus acknowledged had caused problems.

"We did make a leadership change at West Baton Rouge," Lanclos said. "I know there's been several times that I've stood up here and I've introduced a new manager to you. I don't like it, and I would assume you don't like it either."

Lanclos said Williams reached out after hearing about the opening, reminding him of a conversation at a corporate workshop where Williams told him, "One day I want to work for you."

44 of 51 drivers returned

The transportation update brought some good numbers. Forty-four of the district's 51 bus drivers came back for the 2026-27 school year. DS Bus hired 20 new drivers over the summer, including several who had left the district and returned. Half of those 20 came through a referral bonus program.

Under that program, any driver can earn $500 for recruiting a new trainee or $1,000 for bringing in an already-licensed driver. There is no cap. Lanclos said one driver earned $7,000 in referral bonuses last year and $6,000 the year before.

DS Bus is also paying $1,000 retention bonuses to every driver who finished last school year and returned for this one. That comes to $44,000 in retention payouts alone.

"If I'm gonna spend money, I'd rather spend it giving it to our employees than running a commercial," Lanclos said.

Five new drivers are still in training and expected to be on the road within two weeks. The company also hosted what it called a "summer camp for drivers" at the Port Allen community center, with games, food, and prizes to keep drivers engaged during the break.

New parent app and dismissal times

DS Bus rolled out a new parent-facing app through Beacon Mobility. Lanclos said the app is still working out kinks.

Elementary school dismissal times are also running slow. Lanclos said Tier 1 dismissal, which covers elementary schools, needs to move faster. He attributed part of the delay to the start of the year, when younger students are still learning bus routines.

Head Start buses run on three dedicated routes with harness-equipped buses that cannot be shared with older students.

Budget passes with $574K surplus

The board held a public hearing on the consolidated budget for 2026-27 at 4:55 p.m. No members of the public spoke. The budget had been available for review since August 4.

The board then adopted the budget at the regular meeting. Supervisor of Business Jared Gibbs said the district is projecting a $574,000 surplus across its six major funds. He said the actual number will likely be higher because of new sales tax revenue from industrial projects and some maintenance work that will not happen this year.

Enrollment hits 4,162

Superintendent Dr. Chandler Smith reported enrollment at 4,162 students from head start through 12th grade as of August 18. That is the district's third-highest enrollment on record.

The only school showing a noticeable dip is kindergarten at Brusly Elementary. Smith said the number fluctuates between seven and nine sections year to year and may reflect a smaller birth-year group.

Parent asks why kids are leaving for charter schools

A parent addressed the board during public comment, speaking about her two children enrolled outside the district.

She said her daughter is dyslexic. The girl started at Port Allen Elementary and later transferred to Cane View after the family moved. When the family asked for a plan, the best recommendation they received was to send her to Louisiana Key Academy, a charter school in East Baton Rouge. The parent said that did not work, and her daughter is now enrolled at Brighton School, a private school.

Her son, who is 10, is autistic and nonverbal. He attends school in East Baton Rouge, where she said his classroom has four paraprofessionals for nine students and his teacher sends home daily progress videos. She rents office space in East Baton Rouge to avoid commuting back and forth every day.

She said the state sends roughly $1.9 million per year from the district's budget to charter schools, and she wanted to know whether the board has ever surveyed parents about why their children left.

"Our community is small," she said. "We want to keep our kids here."

Board president Matthew Daigrepont said the district has no way of knowing which students leave for charter schools or why. The state deducts the money from the budget and provides only a number, not names or reasons.

Smith said the district added five new special education positions this year in response to an increase in autism referrals. He told the parent he wanted to give the district a chance to serve her children.

Another parent spoke in support of the district's special education services, saying all three of her children with autism have had positive experiences in West Baton Rouge schools.

Executive secretary leaving

Smith announced that Jessica Blanchard, the board's executive secretary, is leaving. Her last day was Friday, August 21. The district has posted the position internally and will interview internal candidates first before opening an external search.

Intracoastal bridge update

Board president Matthew Daigrepont reported that Parish Council President Jason Manola shared an update on the Intracoastal Waterway bridge project. The Baton Rouge-bound lane is targeted to reopen between March and April 2027. The full project is expected to be completed in 2028.

Work on the 415 exchange is also moving forward. Property owners have until the end of the year to remove equipment before site preparation begins.