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BESE briefed on LA Gator implementation; board approves list of norm‑referenced assessments for program
Summary
LDOE presented implementation milestones and controls for the LA Gator parental choice program and asked BESE to approve a recommended list of norm‑referenced assessments; board members asked questions about auditing, funding and timelines and the board approved the assessments.
The State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education on Thursday received a detailed operational update on LA Gator — the department’s parental choice marketplace program — and approved a recommended list of norm‑referenced assessments that participating nonpublic schools may use to meet statutory assessment requirements.
Caleb (LDOE staff) presented milestones and process maps for the LA Gator rollout, saying the participating nonpublic school onboarding and claiming process had begun in December and that more than 130 nonpublic schools had claimed accounts. He said the family pre‑eligibility tool would launch in January, the student and family application would open on March 1, and verification and funding would follow in June and July.
The department said the LA Gator marketplace will be a closed system with pre‑reviewed items and spending rules to reduce unauthorized purchases; LDOE will perform annual audits and risk assessments and will contract with external auditors in a model similar to the Louisiana Scholarship Program. “This will be a closed marketplace, so there won't be the option for families to make ineligible purchases,” Caleb said.
Board members asked whether statutory changes will be needed in the upcoming legislative session and whether additional funding requests would be required. LDOE said it anticipates requests associated with covering students currently in the Louisiana Scholarship Program (estimated at roughly $45 million), and that any request would be submitted in the executive budget process.
On audit procedures, the department said it will contract with an external vendor to perform random and targeted attestations similar to the scholarship program; Beth Siena (LDOE) was named as a point of contact for audit coordination.
The board approved the department’s recommended list of norm‑referenced assessments for LA Gator and asked LDOE to return with a March update on application activity and family engagement figures.
No appeals, rule changes or litigation were announced at the meeting.
