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Earlier this week, the Louisiana Department of Education released the 2020 Simulated School Performance Scores. Vermilion Parish School Superintendent Tommy Byler was not too worried about how the parish scored because of what the school system went through the last year.
“Despite the loss of instructional time during COVID, hurricanes and ice storms, the state decided that a simulated school performance score would be issued regardless of these factors,” Byler said. “In addition to this, 25 percent of our Vermilion students completed the year as virtual students, which meant a completely different type of instruction. Despite this, we are pleased to announce that Vermilion Parish once again ranked in the top 5 school districts in the state with a simulated district performance score of 88.5. Letter grades were not assigned to any of this year’s scores. Therefore, this is not an official score, but rather a score for data analysis for each system.”
The parish dropped four points based on the 2021 Simulated Score. Last year Vermilion Parish had a score of 92.5. This year it is 88.5.
High schools such as Erath High, North Vermilion, Kaplan and Gueydan made an A grade even though no letter grades were given.
Erath High scored 108.7, followed by North Vermilion High (106.9), Kaplan (105.1) and Gueydan (90.1). Abbeville High scored an 84.0
Forked Island E. Broussard Elementary had the highest elementary score in the parish, with a 95.7. Cecil Picard Elementary (90.4), Kaplan Elementary (90.0) and Dozier Elementary (90.3) all scored in the 90s.
Indian Bayou Elementary scored a 94.1
“As a district, we had areas in which we experienced growth and some in which we had a slight dropoff in scores. We had schools whose SPS went up and others that slightly declined. However, all of our schools experienced growth in at least one subset of their score,” he said.
“Knowing the lost time we went through with the hurricanes and the lack of 1:1 technology for virtual learning days, we were not completely surprised by the slight decrease. However, I am pleased with the outcome all despite the obstacles. 75% of the districts in the state experienced score drops. Vermilion was right in line with the rest of the state. We will continue to look at the data and are confident that our students will continue to work hard and give their best efforts to excel as we work towards our score for 2021.”
According to the Department of Education, “The 2020-2021 school year was a year unlike any other, and the state results cannot be accurately compared to the previous years.”
All policies related to school and district performance scores have been waived, which means the official letter grades, performance, and district performance scores will be carried over from the 2018-2019 school year.
Across the state, 70% of schools and 71% of districts received simulated performance scores lower than the 2019 scores. Declines were especially prevalent in high-poverty and high-minority schools where virtual learning was widely used.
Louisiana’s overall performance score — out of a possible 150 points — declined 1.8 points to 75.3. Corresponding letter grades are typically awarded using the following scale: A, 90.0-150.0; B, 75.0-89.9; C, 60.0-74.9; D, 50.0-59.9 and F, 0-49.9.
Vermilion Parish did not have any “F” schools.
Abbeville’s Herod Elementary (54.1) and Eaton Park Elementary (56), and J.H. Williams Middle School (58.5) scored the lowest in the parish.
Byler said, “A big thanks to all the students, teachers, and parents who went through a most trying educational year. But, all in all, we know that we have the systems in place and will continue to work on making up lost learning and move forward to greater successes in the coming years.”

Theresa Monette Vallien passed away peacefully on December 5, 2021 at the age of 79.
She has now rejoined her daughter, Moneta Mercadel and sister, Thelma Monette in their heavenly home. She was blessed with three children: Pamela A. Vallien of Lafayette, La. ; Courtney M. Vallien of Natchitoches, La. and Moneta A. Mercadel (deceased) and leaves to cherish her memory, her granddaughter, Amber M. Swayzer and her husband of 55 years of marriage, Attorney Andrew S. Vallien of Natchitoches, La. She was born on March 4, 1942 to the late Hazel and Olivier Monette, of Abbeville, La. She will be greatly missed by all of those who knew and loved her, including a host of nieces and nephews, Godchildren, sister in law and brother in laws and cousins that were more like siblings. Theresa has worn many hats in her life. She was an Teacher with Headstart; a member of many boards such as NARC, Natchitoches Historic District Commission, President of the Boys and Girls Club of Natchitoches, La., an Eucharistic minister and lector for Holy Cross Catholic Church and the office manager for her husband’s law firm. She graduated from Holy Rosary Institute in Lafayette La. and attended Seton Hill University in Pennsylvania. She had many hobbies and passions which included reading, zydeco dancing, bowling, playing Pokeno and cooking. Her soft smiles and specialty dishes will be missed at many family gatherings to come. Family and friends are invited to attend a Mass of Christian Burial on Friday December 10, 2021 at Holy Cross Catholic Church, Natchitoches, La. at 12pm. The visitation will begin at 10:00AM at Winnfield Memorial Funeral Home with the Rosary being held at 11:00. The burial will follow at St. Paul Cemetery in Abbeville, La. Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.winnfieldmemorialfh.com for the family. The family would like to thank the physicians and staff with Natchitoches Regional Medical Center, Louisiana Extended Care, Kinred at Home ( Homehealth agency), and Cornerstone Nursing Home; Cabrini Hospital and MIIGS of Alexandria, La. for the support that they have given the family in these final months.

BATON ROUGE — The Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) is reporting 13 additional probable cases of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.
The probable cases involve 9 individuals in Region 1 (Greater New Orleans area), 2 individuals in Region 2 (Baton Rouge area), and 2 individuals in Region 7 (Northwest).
This brings the total number of Omicron cases in our state to 17 – 16 probable and 1 confirmed. The first confirmed Omicron case in Louisiana was identified on Dec. 3.
The CDC and LDH recommend everyone 5 years of age and older get vaccinated and that everyone 18 years of age and older get a booster if eligible. It is also more important than ever to use those public health tools we know work – mask according to applicable guidelines, practice good hand hygiene, and get tested and stay home if you feel sick.
On Nov. 26, 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) classified a new variant, B.1.1.529, as a Variant of Concern and has named it Omicron. This new variant was first reported to the WHO by government officials in South Africa. Since that time, it has been detected in 50 countries and more than 20 states.
Information is still emerging, but Omicron includes multiple mutations across the SARS-CoV-2 genome. There is concern that this new variant may be more transmissible than previous strains and that Omicron may carry an increased risk of reinfection compared to other variants of concern. We expect to learn more about Omicron in the coming days.
LDH has established a network of laboratories to conduct genomic sequencing on positive SARS-CoV-2 specimens in order to track circulating SARS-CoV-2 lineages, including newly emerging variants such as Omicron. Epidemiologists, laboratorians and researchers will continue to closely monitor these data in order to continue to identify Omicron cases in Louisiana.

BATON ROUGE — The Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) is reporting 3 additional probable cases of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in Louisiana.
One of the cases involves an individual in Region 4 (Acadiana area) who traveled internationally. This individual did not require hospitalization.
The other 2 cases involve individuals in Region 1 (Greater New Orleans area). We do not have additional information on these two cases at this time.
This brings the total number of Omicron cases in our state to 4 – 3 probable and one confirmed. The first Omicron case in Louisiana was identified on Dec. 3.
“These new cases of Omicron should serve as a reminder of the ongoing threat of COVID especially as we get ready to gather for the holidays,” said State Health Officer Dr. Joseph Kanter. “The best way to protect yourself and your loved ones is get vaccinated and get the booster.”
The CDC and LDH recommend everyone 5 years of age and older get vaccinated and that everyone 18 years of age and older get a booster if eligible. The CDC also recommends wearing a mask in certain settings.
On Nov. 26, 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) classified a new variant, B.1.1.529, as a Variant of Concern and has named it Omicron. This new variant was first reported to the WHO by government officials in South Africa. Since that time, it has been detected in 50 countries and more than 19 states.
Information is still emerging, but Omicron includes multiple mutations across the SARS-CoV-2 genome. There is concern this new variant may be more transmissible than previous strains and that Omicron may carry an increased risk of reinfection compared to other variants of concern. We expect to learn more about Omicron in the coming days.
LDH has established a network of laboratories to conduct genomic sequencing on positive SARS-CoV-2 specimens in order to track circulating SARS-CoV-2 lineages, including newly emerging variants such as Omicron. Epidemiologists, laboratorians and researchers will continue to closely monitor these data in order to continue to identify Omicron cases in Louisiana.