Louisiana

Special education, income quotas could be removed for charter school enrollment • Louisiana Illuminator

Published

2 years ago

May 4, 2024

Special education, income quotas could be removed for charter school enrollment • Louisiana Illuminator

Louisiana charter schools might soon be able to remove certain enrollment requirements for students with disabilities and economically disadvantaged students. It’s a move that parents of those students feel limits their options in a school system based on choice.

House Bill 708, authored by Rep. Barbara Freiberg, R-Baton Rouge, moved out of the Senate Education Committee on Wednesday, despite initial pushback from some committee members and the public. It heads next to the Senate floor and, if approved, would have to go back to the House for concurrence on a committee amendment.

In 2015, former Sen. Dan Claitor authored a bill to add the language to state law that Freiberg is trying to remove. Claitor spoke to the committee in opposition to Freiberg’s bill.

Under Claitor’s bill, certain charter schools must have a percentage of students equal to 85% of the disabled or economically disadvantaged students in the local school district.

For example, if 55% of a local school district’s population is economically disadvantaged students, 46.75% of the charter school’s enrollment must be economically disadvantaged students.

Sen. Beth Mizell, R-Franklinton, questioned the reasoning behind Freiberg’s bill.

“I am a hundred percent charter, but I don’t understand the resistance,” Mizell said. “I don’t understand taking the rule out that gave us the only protection saying charters are absolutely fair across the board.”

Proponents of Freiberg’s bill said the quotas are unfair because charter schools are held to a higher standard than other public schools. Standard public schools are not required to enroll a certain number of students with disabilities or economic disadvantages.

“The quotas only give people who have an ax to grind an ability to go in to be able to cause harm,” said Kenneth Campbell, previously the executive director of charter schools for the Louisiana Department of Education.

Some charter schools have selective admissions and have resisted providing special education services, although they’re required at public schools under state and federal law.

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Proponents also argued it is not fair to require that parents provide their household income or children’s disability details on charter school applications when public schools do not require the same information for enrollment.

Opponents of the bill reminded the committee that since Claitor’s law was enacted in 2015, the number of charter schools in compliance with the enrollment quotas has increased but is still not adequate.

According to a Louisiana Legislative Auditor report in 2022, 10.3% of charter schools required to serve a specific number of economically disadvantaged students did not meet the requirements. The rate is an improvement from the 2016-17 school year, when 21.3% charters did not reach their quota.

The report also says multiple schools repeatedly failed to meet the economically disadvantaged requirement. It did not include information on how many schools were meeting the requirement for students with disabilities.

Opponents of Freiberg’s bill were also concerned that removing the quota would allow “bad actors.”

“If we remove that requirement for charter schools to even serve those populations, there are going to be schools that figure out ways to avoid serving those children,” said Tania Nyman, an education advocate from East Baton Rouge Parish. “And that is not going to be beneficial for the community at large.”

Although the proposal removes “goal lines” for charter schools, it still requires the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to create rules and regulations to oversee charter schools in this capacity. The stipulation was added as an amendment in committee.

Ashley Townsend, deputy policy chief for the Louisiana Department of Education, explained to committee members that BESE would essentially create a complaint process for parents to turn to if they feel that a charter school is discriminating against children with disabilities or those who are economically disadvantaged.

Ben Lemoine, BESE’s executive director of governmental relations, indicated that board members support Freiberg’s legislation.

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Louisiana

Louisiana Lottery Mega Millions, Pick 3 results for March 3, 2026

Published

7 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

The Louisiana Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 3, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Mega Millions numbers from March 3 drawing

07-21-53-54-62, Mega Ball: 16

Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from March 3 drawing

6-8-3

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from March 3 drawing

3-6-7-4

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 5 numbers from March 3 drawing

0-8-3-2-0

Check Pick 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

All Louisiana Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $600. For prizes over $600, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at Louisiana Lottery offices. Prizes of over $5,000 must be claimed at Lottery office.

By mail, follow these instructions:

Sign and complete the information on the back of your winning ticket, ensuring all barcodes are clearly visible (remove all scratch-off material from scratch-off tickets).
Photocopy the front and back of the ticket (except for Powerball and Mega Millions tickets, as photocopies are not accepted for these games).
Complete the Louisiana Lottery Prize Claim Form, including your telephone number and mailing address for prize check processing.
Photocopy your valid driver’s license or current picture identification.

Mail all of the above in a single envelope to:

Louisiana Lottery Headquarters

555 Laurel Street

Baton Rouge, LA 70801

To submit in person, visit Louisiana Lottery headquarters:

555 Laurel Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70801, (225) 297-2000.

Hours: 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.

Check previous winning numbers and payouts at Louisiana Lottery.

When are the Louisiana Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT Tuesday and Friday.
Pick 3, Pick 4 and Pick 5: Daily at 9:59 p.m. CT.
Easy 5: 9:59 p.m. CT Wednesday and Saturday.
Lotto: 9:59 p.m. CT Wednesday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Louisiana editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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Louisiana

Brother of Louisiana mayor accused of raping 16-year-old has a hauntingly similar criminal past

Published

19 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Brother of Louisiana mayor accused of raping 16-year-old has a hauntingly similar criminal past

The brother of Louisiana mayor Misty Roberts — accused of raping her son’s teenage friend — is facing child sex crimes of his own.

Brandon Lee Roberts, 39, was accused of raping a teen girl and assaulting a young woman over the course of several years, KALB reported.

Brandon Lee Roberts, 39, is accused of raping a teen girl and assaulting a young woman over the course of several years. Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office

The alleged sexual abuse began when one of the victims was as young as 13, according to Beauregard Parish Sheriff Mark Herford.

He was arrested in October.

Booking photo of Misty Clanton Roberts. — Brandon’s sister, Misty, the ex-mayor of DeRidder, Louisiana, allegedly raped her son’s teenage friend. AP

That comes years after his big sister – ex-mayor of DeRidder, 43-year-old Misty Roberts – allegedly got hot and heavy with her son’s 16-year-old friend at a drunken party at their home.

Roberts was allegedly caught in the tryst by her own kids.

She was arrested months later, and is currently on trial for rape charges.

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Louisiana

Louisiana Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 results for March 2, 2026

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

The Louisiana Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 2, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from March 2 drawing

02-17-18-38-62, Powerball: 20, Power Play: 2

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from March 2 drawing

3-9-9

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from March 2 drawing

4-1-1-0

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 5 numbers from March 2 drawing

0-5-2-9-5

Check Pick 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

By mail, follow these instructions:

Sign and complete the information on the back of your winning ticket, ensuring all barcodes are clearly visible (remove all scratch-off material from scratch-off tickets).
Photocopy the front and back of the ticket (except for Powerball and Mega Millions tickets, as photocopies are not accepted for these games).
Complete the Louisiana Lottery Prize Claim Form, including your telephone number and mailing address for prize check processing.
Photocopy your valid driver’s license or current picture identification.

Mail all of the above in a single envelope to:

Louisiana Lottery Headquarters

555 Laurel Street

Baton Rouge, LA 70801

To submit in person, visit Louisiana Lottery headquarters:

555 Laurel Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70801, (225) 297-2000.

Hours: 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.

Check previous winning numbers and payouts at Louisiana Lottery.

When are the Louisiana Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT Tuesday and Friday.
Pick 3, Pick 4 and Pick 5: Daily at 9:59 p.m. CT.
Easy 5: 9:59 p.m. CT Wednesday and Saturday.
Lotto: 9:59 p.m. CT Wednesday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Louisiana editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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