Sam Houston to name new gym in honor of Guidry
Published 4:33 pm Wednesday, March 10, 2021
- Photo Credit
Marlisa Harding
The Calcasieu Parish School Board voted unanimously on Tuesday to name Sam Houston High School’s new basketball gymnasium the “Anne Hance Guidry Memorial Gymnasium.” In honor of former Sam Houston High School coach and administrator Anne Hance Guidry, a petition for the naming received 655 signatures from community members overwhelmingly exceeding the district’s policy requirement for naming or re-naming a facility.
Lauren Gilly, a 1998 alumni of the high school, spoke in support of the effort. In addition to Guidry’s numerous awards and induction into the Louisiana Softball Coaches Hall of Fame, Gilly said her former coach, “Taught perseverance and strength by beating cancer not once but twice, always continuing to coach even with a bucket by her chair.”
Board members also remarked on Guidry’s legacy within the Moss Bluff community and Calcasieu Parish. “I never met a person that didn’t like Anne Guidry,” John Duhon, district 15, said.
“She was like the face of Sam Houston at one point,” Fred Hardy, district two, said. Mark Young, district one, remarked on Guidry’s spirit and grace as a coach and avid supporter of Big Sam.
“I couldn’t be happier to see this happen,” he said.
The board also voted to approve new instructional technology resources for staff, students and teachers. CPSB’s new learning management systems will be Canvas and Brightspace/Desire2Learn; classroom delivery management software will be Google Classroom and Microsoft Teams; K-12 asynchronous products will be Edgenuity and Edmentum; web conferencing solutions will be Zoom and Microsoft Teams.
The new resources will be paid for with COVID relief funds and come at the request of the stakeholders who have seen an increased need for more modern and easier to navigate online solutions.
Jessica Beddoe, a Sam Houston High School teacher, expressed her excitement to see the district moving forward with its digital resources but requested that improvements also be made to on-campus internet service.
“Just the other day we were unable to do ACT prep because of non-functioning wifi or overloading the system,” she said. Instance such as these are “daily impediments” and without a resolution the upgraded software will be “merely a check in the box rather than a useful educational platform,” she said.
Karl Bruchhaus, superintendent, said the district already has plans in place to increase its internet bandwidth. The district received a price for the upgrade 10 days ago and, “It really wasn’t that costly,” he said.
“We can accomplish that in our regular budget and be in harmony for next year.”
The board also voted unanimously for a one-time salary supplement for active CPSB employees. Employees paid on the teachers’ salary schedule will receive $1,460 and all other personnel will receive $1,020.
In reference to last fall’s supplemental approval, Vicky Johnston, Calcasieu Association of Educators president, said, “We didn’t think we’d get to see that money but it looks like you worked your magic and we appreciate that.”
Mack Dellafosse, district seven, said the district had to honor its bond commission commitment last fall but was pleased to be able to make good on their promise to employees. “Thank you for trusting us to do the right thing,” he said.
Special to the American Press
