New Kids on the Block!

Faulk, Sartwell Say Caring, Commitment
Important to Central’s Schools, Chamber

Editors Note:Two men who will have a great deal to say about the future of our favorite city accepted important posts in Central recently.  Michael Faulk, who was named Superintendent of Schools for Central, is completely new to Central; and  James Sartwell, new Executive Assistant of the Central Chamber of Commerce, has lived in Central for over 20 years, but for all of that time he commuted to work in New Orleans daily and spent weekends serving in the Army Reserve, “I missed all of my kids’ ball games and I really don’t know many people in Central.” Recently we had the privilege of meeting each of these gentlemen to talk about their vision for Central. Here’s what they told us:

Michael Faulk

"I never had any connection with Central," Faulk said who is a native of Abbeville and a 1965 graduate of New Iberia High. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Northeast Louisiana State College, and he received his Masters in Education Administration and Supervision in 1980 from the University of Southwestern Louisiana.

In the 1970s Faulk taught social studies at New Iberia Senior High and at Loreauville High. He was supervisor of transportation and related instruction, principal of an elementary school and a high school before he served 13 years as superintendent of the Morehouse Parish School System. He "retired" to Coldspring, Texas, in 2002, where for the past three years he served as principal of Shepherd High School.

Faulk said he’s impressed by the community’s efforts. "You know, it took a lot of drive to get a new city and school system in place, and I don’t see anybody here letting up anytime soon," he said. "I am impressed with the drive of the people, their positive attitude and their determination to create a better quality of life for themselves and their children."

Starting On the Right Foot

Faulk said dissatisfaction with the status quo is what causes people to move to places like St. Tammany Parish and Livingston Parish where they can build a top-flight school system for their children. “I predict that many of those people will be coming back to East Baton Rouge Parish to take advantage of what Central has to offer.”

Faulk said parents and the entire community share a responsibility to children to do what it takes to turn them into responsible young people so they will become productive citizens.

“The goal must be to offer education in an environment that meets the social and physical needs of children, and the way to do that is to have quality teachers in the classroom,” he said.

Unique Situation

Faulk said the situation in Central is unique because there are not a lot of politics that goes back for years. “This situation gives us the opportunity to build from scratch. The governor appointed the school board. There are no elected school board members yet,” he said. The School Board’s entire focus, according to Faulk, was on the importance of getting someone with the background in running a school system.

“All of that was an advantage to me in getting the job, and quite simply, my focus is on getting the best people into every post,” Faulk explained.

Asked about the physical plant, Faulk – who oversaw a $24 million capital improvement project during his years as superintendent in Morehouse Parish – said he has made a quick run through. “What I see here so far is that we have a high school that is 34 or 35 years old, but it is in good shape.”

Faulk said the middle school has the greatest needs. “Tanglewood has needs but some are just cosmetic. Bellingrath is in fairly good shape.” The problem he sees is that the projected enrollment numbers at the schools will soon overwhelm the available classroom space.

Needed Improvements

The new superintendent said that in his experience people would support what they help to create. “This is why I feel confident that the people of Central will support the needed improvements,” he said.

Faulk explained that both a contingency plan and a long-range plan are in the works that will soon be brought to the people. “There is just a lot of work to be done to build a proper learning environment,” he said. “Our elementary schools are located in the middle of subdivisions with school buses going up and down streets that were not built for school buses.

“Within a year we will have the people in place, both administrators and teachers, that it takes to deliver quality instruction and programs to our children,” he said.

Set Expectations High

That is not to say Central will be number one, Faulk said. “But if we don’t set our expectations high, we won’t achieve all that we want to achieve. We must not be satisfied with just being number one in Louisiana. We must compare ourselves with national norms via the national reference tests, because our students need to compete and succeed with people all across the nation.”

Faulk said he plans to see for himself where the Central School System will be in five years. “I plan to be here to see it happen. I am not a suitcase superintendent. I am here to stay, and I am excited.”

James Sartwell

New Central Chamber of Commerce Associate Director Jim Sartwell is a 1965 graduate of Doyle High in Livingston who attended Southeastern University in Hammond for two years where he studied accounting.

Sartwell retired in August of 2003 following a 35-year career in Federal Civil Service. He was a Department of the Army Civilian in the Military Technician Program supporting a variety of Army Reserve organizations. His duties included things such as personnel administration for his unit, recruiting, supply, etc.

For the past 16 years he was the Command Executive Officer of a General Officer Army Reserve Headquarters. In March 2003, after his retirement from civil service, his Reserve Unit was mobilized. This occurred for two years, and it resulted in him spending 13 months in Kuwait serving as logistical support.

Civil Service

“I spent 39 years in the Reserves and 35 years in Civil Service,” Sartwell said. He and his wife, Debbie, live in a beautiful home on a one-acre lot in Morgan Place with their dog, Romeo. They have three grown daughters and three grandchildren.

Sartwell said that once he retired he wanted to get involved and help the community. “For many years I left Central before daylight and came back after dark. Now I am having the pleasure of meeting my neighbors for the first time. My whole life has been spent in management and administration, so I felt the Chamber position would be a good fit where I could make a contribution.”

Sartwell said Central is going to grow fast and infrastructure improvement must naturally follow. “To be successful we need a sound tax base and that means we need successful businesses in the community to bring in the income needed to make Central a truly successful city.”

250 Chamber Members

He said he was encouraged recently to learn that, while the Zachary Chamber has 260 members, the Central Chamber already has 250.

“We are setting up our Economic Council to help us grow the right way,” Sartwell said. “We also need to build a solid demographic survey so businesses thinking about Central will know exactly what we have here. We are also putting together a new business packet that will tell exactly how to get things done in Central. With these things in place, we will be ready to begin trying to attract businesses.”

Sartwell said 13 committees have been formed with a member of the Chamber’s Board heading each of them. The Public Interface Committee which will work to bring different groups within the community together, and the Member Retention Committee which will develop a plan for keeping members in the Chamber once they join.

Education is Important

“We’re looking at all of the things that make a city work, and our focus is on efforts designed to improve the health of the community,” he said. “Education is one of the most important things. If we have a good school system, the people and the businesses will come and we will be successful.”

Sartwell stressed the fact that his goal is to make a positive contribution. “I have no ownership. I just want to help, to support, and to be an asset in the effort to help Central become all that it can be,” he said. “One day soon the throughway will be finished and we definitely won’t be out in the country any more. We are talking about expanding the Chamber Board from 12 to 16 right now just so we can be sure to cover everything and get more people involved.”

Both men emphasized the importance of the continuing strong commitment of the people of Central to the success of their new city and school system. Both see a bright future for Central because of the people’s determination to make their city and new school system the best that it can be.