LAFAYETTE PARISH — A Lafayette Parish School System proposal to relocate and expand its career center onto the Ovey Comeaux High School campus drew sharp criticism Tuesday, as community members questioned the impact the move could have on students, families and Northside schools.
The proposal would remove Comeaux High School from service as a traditional high school to make room for an expanded career and technical education center, according to district officials.
“It would be taking Comeaux offline as a traditional high school in order that we could start the expansion of a career center on the current Comeaux site,” a school system representative said during a public hearing.
District leaders have framed the proposal as a response to enrollment trends and growing demand for career and technical education programs.
But many residents who attended the hearing argued the plan comes at the expense of an established high school community and reflects a broader pattern of "underinvestment" in certain parts of the parish.
“Schools like Northside, Acadiana and Comeaux get left behind, while LPSS spends tens of millions of dollars to build new schools,” one speaker told the board.
Several commenters said relocating the career center to the Comeaux campus would create additional transportation challenges for students and families. Critics argued the proposal could force some students to travel farther while providing only limited benefits elsewhere in the district.
“By over six miles each for three schools in order to reduce travel by less than two miles for only two schools,” one resident said.
Others questioned the transparency of the process, pointing to the timing of the hearing and the absence of several board members.
“I’m confused why there’s even a meeting right now. It’s 3 p.m. on a Tuesday during the summer. The full board isn’t here, including the board president,” another commenter said.
The hearing lasted several hours and drew residents from across Lafayette Parish. Many urged the district to pursue career center expansion without eliminating Comeaux as a traditional high school.
“Students need more investment, not displacement,” said Chris Williams, who addressed the board during public comment.
Williams, representing Black Voters Matter and LEAD Louisiana, said the proposal has heightened concerns among residents who believe schools serving predominantly Black communities have historically faced disinvestment.
“It’s a continuation of an ongoing, strained relationship that the Lafayette Parish school system has had with the Black community,” Williams said.
He also called for the district’s unitary status to be reviewed, arguing that decades of underinvestment on the Northside have continued despite the district no longer being subject to federal desegregation oversight.
“They did what they needed to do temporarily, and then they reverted to situations like this, where there’s been a disinvestment on the failing schools that has been going on for decades on the Northside,” Williams said. “Gaining the unitary status has basically allowed them to do it without federal review.”
No final decision was made Tuesday. School board members are expected to continue discussing the proposal before taking any formal action on the future of the career center and Comeaux High School.
