The board opened its Nov. 20 meeting with a recognition ceremony for the Exchange Club of Baton Rouge’s Adopt a Teacher program and other community partners.

Haley Miller (Longview Public Schools) introduced Changing the Outlook (CTO), an LSU student-led group that partners with LaSalle and other district schools to run events and support student engagement. CTO representatives thanked the district for welcoming college volunteers and described their activities.

Dr. Richard Flicker, representing the Exchange Club’s Adopt a Teacher project, described the program’s 29-year history, noting it has supported 663 teachers and that gift-card awards for participating first-year elementary teachers generally start at a minimum cited figure of $450. He named sponsors including School Aids, Macy’s at the Mall of Louisiana, the Louisiana Lottery Corporation, Capital One and local printing and banking partners; the board and presenters took photos and concluded the recognition before opening regular business.