DENHAM SPRINGS • LIVINGSTON • WALKER • WATSON • AMITE • HAMMOND
ADVOCATE THE LIVINGSTON -TANGIPAHOA
T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M
|
W e d n e s d ay, A p r i l 23, 2025
1GN
Tax renewal for Livingston Parish schools on ballot Millage for maintenance repairs and small projects
Will voters approve it, or will it join a growing list of recently rejected parish tax renewals? The May 3 ballot measure is asking voters to renew a 7-mill property tax for Livingston Parish Public Schools’ maintenance repairs and BY CLAIRE GRUNEWALD small projects. Staff writer A “mill” is $1 of tax on every Another tax renewal is on the thousand dollars of assessed propballot for Livingston Parish voters. erty value.
ELECTION 2025 TAX RENEWAL The 10-year renewal would generate about $6 million per year. The funds collected from the tax are used for school repairs, maintenance and minor improvement projects of less than $100,000, said LPPS Superintendent Jody Purvis.
“This funding is critical to our ability to maintain a strong foundation for excellence across our district,” Purvis said. Projects include fixing roof leaks, electronic repairs, drainage issues, ground upkeep, window replacements, and air conditioning and heating repairs. The proposal doesn’t increase taxes. But it comes at a time the parish appears to have a case of
tax fatigue — voters have recently rejected tax renewals of the health unit and a parks system. Residents also rejected a new sales-tax proposition that would have given LPPS teachers’ pay raises. Early voting ends April 26 from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Livingston Parish residents can find their election day polling locations at geauxvote.com.
PROVIDED PHOTOS BY DENHAM VENOM STUDENT MEDIA TEAM
FIRST PLACE
College mentors of Denham Venom erupt in celebration after advancing to the Einstein Fields at the 2025 FIRST Robotics World Championship — a first in Louisiana history.
Denham Venom robotics team wins on world stage BY DARLENE DENSTORFF Community news editor
A robotics team from Denham Springs High has achieved what no other Louisiana robotics team has — win a division title at an international robotics competition. The Denham Venom team is returning home from the FIRST Robotics World Championship, in Houston, after competing alongside teams from Turkey, Brazil, Mexico, China and Israel, said team head coach Daniel Eiland. Denham Venom became the first Louisiana team to win a division title at worlds and to compete on the Einstein Fields, the final playoff stage where the top teams from around the globe go headto-head. This year marked the 36th anniversary of the FIRST Robotics Competition. FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) is the Denham Venom’s 140-pound competition robot in action during a qualification world’s largest youth robotics compematch at the World Championship. tition, often called “the Super Bowl of STEM,” Eiland said. Each season, high school teams around the world are given robot from scratch. The top 600 of 3,700 the competition is fierce. six to eight weeks to design, build and teams worldwide make it to the champiTo make it to the world event, the team program a fully functional 140-pound onship. The challenge is immense, and competed in three different regional
Spring fest planned in Denham Springs
Darlene Denstorff AROUND LIVINGSTON
It’s springtime in the Denham Springs Antique Village and merchants and a variety of vendors selling their wares will celebrate April 26. Crafts, music, games, children’s rides, food booths and antique shopping are planned for the day. In addition, tour the Old City Hall exhibits and listen to music at the Old Train Station. Downtown stores will be open for shopping. For more information, visit www.
denhamspringsantiquedistrict.net/ ds-antique-village-festival-information.
Library offers multiple book clubs Livingston Parish Libraries offer a variety of book clubs for readers and writers. Check out these scheduled events. At the Main Branch, adults are invited to be a part of the Main Branch Book Club at 10:30 a.m. on
ä See AROUND, page 3G
competitions in three different states and finished as finalists in two and took home the win at the Bayou Regional in Louisiana. Along the way, the team: n Finished the season with a record of 51 wins out of 65 matches. n Ranked in the top 2% of over 3,700 teams worldwide and were the top team in Louisiana. n Lead Technical Mentor was awarded the Woodie Flowers Finalist Award for excellence in student mentorship. n At the World Championship, placed in the Archimedes Division, where we went 9-1 in qualification matches, ranking first overall, and then went undefeated in the division playoffs. The Venom’s Drive Team of Jacob Duke, Evan Durbin, Nicholas Carpenter and Sebastian Cupit, led by drive coach Rohit Gondi, “delivered under pressure with precision and professionalism,” Eiland said. “Their performance reflected the incredible work of all 45 students on our team.” “I’ve been coaching robotics teams in Louisiana for 15 years and am always
ä See ROBOTICS, page 2G
Walker high jumper Jones sets personal best, looking forward to final stretch of track season As the outdoor track and field season begins its final segment, there are lots of familiar athletes hard at work making sure they peak during a three-week stretch that features district and regional Charles meets leading up to the state chamSalzer pionship meet at LSU. SPORTS One of those faces, Cayden ROUNDUP Jones, of Walker High, has been known for his efforts on the football field, where he made his mark as a running back and a wide receiver.
That is changing this Spring because Jones has emerged as a state title contender in the high jump. On April 10, at the Live Oak Easter Invitational, Jones set a Walker school record clearing the high jump bar at 6 feet, 8 inches. The winning leap was four inches better than his personal best coming into the meet, and equals the
ä See SALZER, page 3G