ST. LANDRY PARISH — A state district judge in Opelousas sided with the St. Landry Parish School Board and dismissed a temporary restraining order that would have blocked the district's attempts to shut down Krotz Springs Elementary School.
The Town of Krotz Springs received the TRO last week.
The TRO temporarily stopped the board from proceeding to close the school; transfer students and teachers; taking any actions designed to close the school or taking any action that is "inconsistent with maintaining the status quo." The judge's order this afternoon now allows the school system to move forward.
In their petition, the town argued that the board did not follow their own district administrative rule regarding school attendance, which is required by state school policy. The petition also criticized a board discussion that was held at a retreat last month, saying citizens didn't think they could go.
"The public was of the opinion that this was a closed meeting since it was stated as a retreat in the newspapers," the petition stated.
In Louisiana, public bodies can have a retreat, but they must post the agenda and it is an open meeting. Boards can only close doors in extremely narrow circumstances, and discussion of closing a school would not be one of them. KATC attended the meeting, as did dozens of citizens. You can read our story about it here.
