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Pew family and partners give $1.9 million to expand ACE model at Alex Boucher Elementary
Summary
The Lafayette Parish School Board accepted a $1.9 million gift from the Pew Family Foundation and community partners to fund the Accelerating Campus Excellence (ACE) model at Alex Boucher Elementary for three academic years; board unveiled principals and heard midyear results from ACE campuses Barranco and J.W. Falk.
The Lafayette Parish School Board on Feb. 25 voted to accept a $1,900,000 gift from the Pew Family Foundation and other community philanthropic partners to support implementation of the Accelerating Campus Excellence (ACE) model at Alex Boucher Elementary for the 2025–26, 2026–27 and 2027–28 academic years.
The gift was presented after a board information item highlighting midyear progress at two existing ACE campuses, Rafael Barranco and J.W. Falk. Members of the Pew Family Foundation and school leaders described improvements in instruction, extended learning time and early gains in benchmark measures for first graders at those schools.
Pew Family Foundation representative Todd Mouton called the results “astonishing” and said the foundation hoped to expand the program to additional campuses. Superintendent Francis Touchet thanked the foundation and told the board the principal and assistant principal for Alex Boucher — Tara Walker and Allison Klaus — had been identified and would lead implementation at that school.
Board members praised teachers and community partners during the presentation. After a short public comment period in which an Alice Boucher teacher urged that any surplus funds be used for student supplies and supports, the board approved the gift. A motion to accept the gift was made and seconded and passed by voice vote (recorded as 9–4, none against).
Under the ACE model presentation, staff described five pillars of the program: recruiting high-quality principals and teachers, high-quality instruction, extended learning time, social-emotional supports (social workers and counselors), and community engagement. Presenters said the aim is to improve school letter grades over several years and replicate the instructional practices used at higher-performing campuses districtwide.
The board designated the funds for implementation over the three academic years noted; the superintendent said staff would return with implementation details and periodic reports to the board. No specific line-item spending plan was included in the motion recorded at the meeting.
