The president of the Tangipahoa NAACP is calling for the parish school superintendent to resign.
Patricia Morris made the request of Superintendent Mark Kolwe during public comment, at Tuesday night's school board Meeting.
"I'm asking him to resign as superintendent of schools for Tangipahoa Parish," Morris told Eyewitness News Wednesday.
"The main reason is the fact that our schools continue to plummet under his administration," Morris added. "Although he's claiming they're coming up a little bit, we don't feel like they're coming up enough."
Kolwe said Wednesday, he had no intention of resigning.
"29 of our 33 schools actually had growth in their school performance scores over the previous year. I've been superintendent for the past two years, and in each of those two years now, our district has improved in the assessment tests."
Kolwe recognized those 29 school principals at Tuesday night's meeting.
The Tangipahoa School System and the NAACP have clashed over the long standing and still unresolved desegregation lawsuit.
“I think the politics of the parish has a lot to do with it, with people who may be in place who want the same system that's been in place for the past 50 years, and that just can't be because it's no longer working," Morris said.
The school system's desegregation plan has not been approved by the court. If it is, voters will then have to decide if they want to pick up the $187 million price tag with new taxes.
Kolwe said, the school system is on the right path.
"As my staff reminds me, progress takes time, and we're moving in the right direction. We didn't have 29 schools here the other night in which their scores went down, we had 29 schools in which they had improved scores, and we want to build on that."
Of the 61 parish school systems evaluated by the state, Tangipahoa ranked 39th in the 2008-2009 school year.
idontlikeyou said on November 4, 2009 at 6:35 PM
every thing is racism...wow! maybe acorn will get involved and there can be two racist, corrupt organisations whining about how the government keeping the black man down... sad!
criticalmass said on November 4, 2009 at 6:47 PM
They are 46th not 39th. Go to the louisiana department of education's website and see for yourself.
lilred said on November 8, 2009 at 10:34 PM
Miss Morris does not speak for everyone in this parish be they black or white or any other color or ethnicity...she is a showboater, likes to see her name and face in the media and does not do anything to help the children (students) of this parish. She may be very well hurting these students! Because of her we are made to look very racial and uneducated in the south. She could make better use of her time by getting parents, grandparents, etc. more involved with all the schools. The statistics prove that this one major thing can improve a school and the student's scores. There are many parents who need help with learning to discipline their children. This is one of the largest complaints of teachers...they spend way too much time discipling students who have no respect for their teachers or fellow students because they were not taught that at home. On the good side...Congrats to the Tangipahoa Parish School Board, Parish Schools, Students and Teachers for a job well done!