THE ZACHA Y
ADVOCATE& T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M
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W e d n e s d ay, M a r c h 11, 2026
12TH YEAR, NO. 22
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ZACHARY SCHOOLS
Board considers plans for unpaid lunch bills BY OLIVIA MCCLURE Contributing writer
Trying to dig their way out of a $35,000 hole created by students who eat meals at school without paying, Zachary officials are considering serving children sandwiches instead of hot food if they hit a tobe-determined threshold of debt. The possibility of implementing what leaders are calling an alternate meal plan was discussed at the Zachary Community School Board’s committee of the whole meeting March 3. If approved at a later meeting, the plan could roll
out in August for the 2026-2027 school year. Bianca Coats, child nutrition supervisor, told the board that the district is currently in about $35,000 of debt stemming from students eating school meals that aren’t paid for. Most years, the debt hovers around $15,000 or $20,000. “We have some students that are unfortunately at $500, $600 worth of debt,” Coats said. “Even after doing numerous calls, letters, JCampus texts, everything, my managers do it all every week with no response. So this is something
that we don’t really want to do, but of course this is at the discretion of the board.” Students would receive the alternate meals once they rack up a certain level of debt — perhaps $10 or $20, said Superintendent Ben Necaise, adding that other school districts have similar programs in place. Coats assured the board that the alternate meals would meet governmental nutrition guidelines for schools. “It’s a sandwich,” she said. “It still comes with a vegetable and a milk, so it’s still a full meal. But essential-
ly, you don’t get the benefits of a hot meal because of the high debts.” Zachary serves breakfast and lunch at full price and, for qualifying students, for free. For paying students, lunch costs $2.35 for elementary grades and $2.90 for secondary grades. Breakfast is $1.75 for all grades. According to the school district’s website, meal money can be paid by cash, check or money order or online using www.MySchoolBucks.com. Families can pay by the week, month or year. Coats said Zachary does not qualify for the federal Community
Eligibility Program, so it’s unable to offer free meals for all students. Necaise said enacting the alternate meal plan isn’t ideal, but he agreed with Coats that something must be done. “It’s kind of hard when you tell a student, ‘You’re not going to get a meal at all.’ That’s not necessarily the right thing to do,” he said. “On the flip side, there has to be some ownership. … It should also get the attention of the parent that if you’re not going to pay for the meal and if you’re not going to send a meal to school, you can’t run up a debt.”
Leila Pitchford AROUND ZACHARY
Easter run set
The Zachary Rotary Bunny Hop is March 21 in downtown Zachary. A 1-mile walk and run starts at 8 a.m. The 5K run and walk start at 8:30 a.m. Register at runsignup.com/ Race/LA/Zachary/ZacharyRotaryBunnyHop.
Baseball coming Zachary Youth Park spring baseball registration is open through March 15. Visit www.zacharyyouthpark. org/registration to register. Age brackets have changed. If the child is 4 years old, a parent must coach or serve as assistant coach.
A Celtic concert experience Madam Dulcimer (Amanda Roberts) and Lady Chops (Elizabeth Vidos) are bringing a Celtic concert celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with music originating from the countries of Ireland, Scotland and Wales to the East Baton Rouge Library. The show will be at 10 a.m. March 17 at the Zachary Branch Library. Check ebrpl. com to see other dates and times.
PHOTO BY FRANCES Y. SPENCER
Members of the community and elected officials march through Zachary on Jan. 19 during the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Candlelight Vigil.
Face of King’s dream evolves while mission remain the same BY FRANCES Y. SPENCER
Contributing writer
Messiah Barber is a young child, but he is the face of a dream nearly 65 years old. David McDavid grew up in a White majority, but he is the face of a dream rooted in minority oppression. Addison Valliere is a college freshman, but she is the face of a dream thirsting for knowledge and equality. The dream of slain civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is not relegated to the graveyard of history books because new faces and new leaders carry the torch lit at the foot of the Washington
Monument on Aug. 28, 1963. King was assassinated in 1968. The journey to establish a national holiday in his honor took 15 years of intense campaigning. President Ronald Reagan signed legislation that designated the third Monday in January as a federal holiday. The first official national celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day took place on Jan. 20, 1986. The lighting and carrying the torch in Zachary has been a community tradition for nearly 40 years. The latest observance was held Jan. 19, 2026. It brought together residents and leaders of all ages and backgrounds to lift the
theme “Mission Possible II: Building Community, Uniting a Nation.” One of the first voices was that of a young, but serious child. Barber led the packed crowd in the Pledge of Alliance to the American Flag signifying that despite the visual differences, the participants were unified as both believers and countrymen. MLK Zachary Committee member Tina Clark offered a welcome emphasizing King’s legacy in ending segregation, promoting political change, and securing the right to vote.
Addison Valliere, a recent graduate of Zachary High, was recognized Jan. 19 as the MLK Scholarship recipient with the highest scoring ä See DREAM, page 3G essay.
Renew pesticide certificates
EVERYBODY
A Private Pesticide Applicator Recertification training session will be March 12 at the Zachary Branch of the East Baton Rouge Parish Library, 10 a.m. to noon, 1900 Church St., Zachary. Attendees need to bring a current pesticide card and two checks — one made to the LSU AgCenter for $15 and one made to LDAF for $25. To reserve a spot, call Donna Gentry at (225) 683-3101 or dsgentry@agcenter.lsu.edu.
ON THE DANCE FLOOR Community news report
Play golf to support Zachary athletics The Zachary Athletic Foundation Golf Tournament 2026 is April 6 at Copper Mill Golf
ä See AROUND, page 4G
PROVIDED PHOTO BY D’ANDRE LEE
Lindslee Russel, Cole Fudge, Ajuani Banguel and Cullen Howard stop for photos on the dance floor at the ninth annual Zachary High School Special Needs Prom on March 2.
March 2 was a chance for students to shine at the ninth annual Zachary High School Special Needs Prom. The day was made possible by students, staff and Zachary community members. The students are treated to preparation, having their hair and makeup done, taking photos, and being driv-
ä More photos from the Zachary High School Special Needs Prom. PAGE 4G
en to the Academic Athletic Center for the dance. Their dates and attendees await their arrival. Photos are taken in front of a backdrop, then there is dancing, the crowning of prom royalty and food.
ZHS girls win back-to-back state titles Warren Brady ZACHARY SPORTS
title in a Saturday Boys team rolling consecutive nail-biter. The top seed Broncos opened in playoffs the playoffs at home against
What a week for Zachary basketball. The Zachary boys basketball team started its run for a second state championship on March 3 and the girls picked up a second
Covington in the regional round of the Division I nonselect playoffs. Covington earned the right to play the Broncos with a win in the bi-district round over Airline (61-44). Coach Jon McClinton’s Broncos
showed no rust rolling to an 81-60 win. The boys play Thursday against Denham Springs to see who makes the championship game.
On the way to the title On March 5, the top seed ZHS girls team took on the fourth seed Neville Tigers in the semifinals of Marsh Madness at Southeastern
University. The girls made short work of the Tigers to punch their ticket to the finals on March 7 and sealed the title in a 53-52 against Slidell. Senior Ava Raymond led the Broncos with 26 points and 8 rebounds in the semifinals. Asia Bell pulled off a double-double with
ä See BRADY, page 2G