St. James Parish Schools

St. James Parish Schools Maintenance Department

In addition to the wonderful staff working tirelessly at each individual school site, the SJPS Maintenance staff is continuing to provide additional support to each school site. Major upcoming projects that are planned for the upcoming school year throughout the school district include:

• The replacement of exterior lights on athletic fields and parking lots at both high schools
• The continuation of LED light upgrades throughout school sites in partnership with OxyChem.

Lael English, Supervisor of Maintenance said of the summer work currently going on, “We are diligently working on providing a safe and comfortable environment for our students.”

Career and College Center

At the Career and College Center, staff is working hard to ensure the building is ready for the start of school. C3 is awaiting the delivery of a new chiller that will be installed in conjunction with the current HVAC system to update the reliability of the system as a whole. The floors are also being cleaned and waxed throughout the school.

The exterior of the building is undergoing some updates as well. The building was recently pressure washed, and the process of re-striping the parking lot will begin soon.

Cypress Grove Montessori Academy

Cypress Grove Montessori Academy has had one of the largest projects taking place this summer. CGMA is very excited about their new school expansion that is set for completion before the start of school. They have also added a bus/car line canopy for students that was funded by the school’s Equinox Extravaganza Program. In addition to this, they are also looking forward to some carpet and paint upgrades that will help to create a cleaner environment for areas servicing students according to Ms. Linda Lowman, Principal at CGMA. 

Gramercy Elementary School

Summer work and projects are underway at Gramercy Elementary School. This summer GES is excitedly waiting for an update to their library carpet. There will also be updates made to the teacher’s lounge and conference rooms. GES is also celebrating some technological safety upgrades as door badge readers have been updated throughout the building, and a video-intercom door bell is being installed.

Principal Lynesia Raymond would also like to thank Koch Methanol for a donation of “safety buckets” that will be placed in each classroom next school year. These buckets will provide immediate materials in the event of an extreme emergency situation. 

Lutcher High School

Lutcher High School is looking forward to some upgrades in lighting and painting throughout the school. The studio and the 400 halls will be receiving these upgrates specifically. LHS also recently updated it’s parking lot lighting in both the employee and student lots on campus. The school is continuing it’s regular summer updates to the cleaning and waxing of floors throughout the building.

Paulina Elementary School

Paulina Elementary School is underway in it’s summer updates as well. PES is receiving a new sign in the front of the school building. This coupled with new re-striping of their parking lot spaces, and freshly pressure-washed exterior of the building will bring an improvement to the front of the building.

PES will also be creating raise-bed gardens for students to learn more about growing various plans and vegetables throughout the school year. This was funded by a St. James Parish Education Excellence Foundation Teacher Mini-Grant.

St. James High School

St. James High School custodial staff have been hard at work ensuring that all areas of the school are kept clean and receive their routine summer care and maintenance. 

Lead custodian at SJH, LeConte Mitchell, explained the plans for each area of the school to receive freshly-waxed floors. She says that the staff is working ahead of schedule at this time, and they are ensuring that all work is completed before the start of the 2024-2025 school year.

Principal Shawn Oubre mentioned that in the near-future, SJH will also have some courtyard seating for students. This new area for students will be a place where students can socialize during their daily lunch breaks.

St. Louis Academy

St. Louis Academy has a few projects taking place this summer. As usual, the floors are getting a fresh coat of wax across the school. In addition to this routine maintenance, SLA will also begin a carpeting update throughout its libraries and adjacent rooms. 

Director Cynthia Joseph emphasized her excitement of this project stating that “We are a reading and math academy, therefore we must have a good setting for reading for our students.”

Sixth Ward Elementary School

There are several summer projects taking place at Sixth Ward Elementary School. Aside from the routine floor waxing that happens every summer, the Tigers are getting a new air conditioning unit in the 4th grade wing of the school. The SJPS Maintenance department has also hung new signage up across campus allowing for easier navigation. Upcoming projects include painting upgrades in various areas of the school building, and additional LED lighting upgrades in the fifth and sixth grade hallways as well as in the library.

Vacherie Elementary School

Vacherie Elementary School is undergoing a few changes this summer. A major project that will begin very soon is the paint upgrade in the gym. The school is also currently undergoing routine floor cleaning and waxing.

An exciting upgrade that the VES staff is working to complete is a new sensory playground area under the pavilion for students to use. This includes various sensory activities such as several hopscotch spaces, an alphabet caterpillar, and more interactive images. VES wants to thank Koch Methanol for helping to fund this fun project.