Bossier Parish Schools honor principals and teachers; communications office previews district stakeholder report

At its Sept. 4 regular meeting, the Bossier Parish School Board held an extended recognition segment honoring principals, teachers and new-teacher award winners across the district and heard a data-driven overview from the communications office that the district plans to publish as a stakeholder report.

Director of Human Resources introduced the 2025–26 principals of the year, naming Kathy Turner (Platt Elementary), Jennifer Burrows (Benton Intermediate) and Whitney Clark (Benton High) among others. Jill Valentine, vice president of marketing at Bossier Federal Credit Union, presented awards and said the credit union has been “strong partners” with the district for decades.

Communications and Media Officer Sonia Bales reviewed highlights from the 2024–25 school year the district plans to include in the forthcoming stakeholder report. Bales said the district has 35 campuses, about 1,530 graduates in the class of 2025 and that seniors were offered more than $24,000,000 in scholarships and grants. She reported 6,662 dual‑enrollment hours, 3,135 industry‑based certifications earned, 28 state-designated Purple Star schools (the most of any district in the state), and more than 3 million meals served by child nutrition last year. Bales said every household in Bossier Parish will receive a postcard in two to three weeks with a QR code linking to the full online report. “If we aren't the ones that are telling our own story, then someone else will,” Bales said.

The board applauded award recipients and district staff; the communications office said it will publish the stakeholder report online once finalized and distribute printed postcards to households.

What’s next: The district will publish the stakeholder report online and proceed with award follow‑up (signing sessions with board members) and continued communications outreach.