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St. Mary Parish School Board elects Dr. Rachel Sanders as superintendent after in‑meeting ballot
Summary
After an in‑meeting secret ballot and viva voce confirmation of votes, the St. Mary Parish School Board elected Dr. Rachel Sanders superintendent by an 8‑3 tally and authorized the board president and vice president to negotiate a tentative contract.
The St. Mary Parish School Board moved Wednesday to elect a new superintendent during its regular meeting and selected Dr. Rachel Sanders after in‑meeting ballots and public confirmation of votes.
Board counsel explained that state law requires a majority of the entire board for election. Because the board has 11 members, a candidate must receive six votes to be elected under the statute cited by staff. The board voted to proceed with an immediate election rather than a second round of interviews.
Ballots were distributed, filled out, folded and passed to the board secretary. The secretary read each ballot aloud and asked the board member to confirm the vote on the record to meet viva voce open‑meetings requirements. The reading recorded several votes for Dr. Rachel Sanders and three votes for the other leading candidate (the transcript records that the final tally was: the candidate listed in the meeting as "Jina" 3 votes, James Russell III 0 votes, and Dr. Rachel Sanders 8 votes). The board announced that Dr. Sanders had been selected as superintendent‑elect.
Following the election, the board voted to authorize the board president and vice president to negotiate a tentative superintendent contract with Dr. Sanders; that tentative agreement must be returned to the full board for approval.
In her superintendent's report later in the meeting, Dr. Sanders discussed district events and calendar items and thanked staff and principals. "This past Friday, May the 1st, was National Principal Day. St. Mary Parish principals, we love you. We appreciate you," she said as part of her remarks about district accomplishments and upcoming dates.
What happens next: the president and vice president will negotiate contract terms with the superintendent‑elect and present a proposed contract for board approval at a subsequent meeting. Under the process the board adopted for the vote, a candidate must still receive a majority of the entire membership to take office.
