LETTERS FROM CHRISTMAS VILLAGE HEADED TO SANTA, 3H
THE ZACHA Y
ADVOCATE&
THURSDAY
P R O U D LY O W N E D I N L O U I S I A N A
DECEMBER 24, 2015 H $1
THEADVOCATE.COM
2nd Year, No. 11
Zachary scores tops in state
BY HOWARD ARCENEAUX Special to The Advocate
Advocate staff photo by STACY GILL
Les Lanford, second from left, prays on Dec. 16 for his family of 10, the Fisher family of seven and friends from their church, Bethany World Prayer Center. The Lanfords and the Fishers perform a play together each year around Christmas and pray before rehearsals.
Bonding over Bethlehem BY STACY GILL
sgill@theadvocate.com
Steve Landry, who attends Bethany World Prayer Center in Baton Rouge, reviews his lines for the play ‘Emmanuel: 4,000 Years of Redemption’ on Dec. 16 in Baker.
Two Baton Rouge area families — the Lanfords and the Fishers — have bonded once again over a love of church and theater. Les and Connie Lanford, of Baton Rouge, attend Bethany World Prayer Center North in Baker, along with their eight children: Joshua, 22; Daniel, 20; Stephen, 19; Nicole, 18; Sarah, 17; Anna Joy, 15; Rachel, 14; and Jonathan, 11. About four years ago, the home-schooled siblings and their parents began hosting a small nativity scene during Christmas at Baker’s Heritage Museum. “It was simple — some caroling, angels and a donkey, but that
quickly grew into a full production with sets, costume changes, scripts, sound effects, lighting and music,â€? matriarch Connie Lanford said. After that first nativity scene at the Heritage Museum, Baker Mayor Harold Rideau offered the Lanfords the use of the city’s Municipal Auditorium for their production, which grew and eventually included the Fishers, Jessie and Marcia, of Baton Rouge, who also home-school their five children: Jessmar, 20; Marjessa, 17; Jessica, 15; Marcion, 13; and Jamaria, 10. The play, titled “Emmanuel: 4,000 Years of Redemption,â€? inäSee BONDING, page 2G
Clinic growing leaders through basketball BY STACY GILL
returns to his hometown of Zachary on Dec. 26 to host a basketball clinic at Copper Mill ElemenLawrence “Cliff� Ghoram likes tary School for area children. A former Bronco basketball to give back, and the Rice University and Texas A&M alumnus player, Ghoram grew up in a will be doing just that when he community that he says put such sgill@theadvocate.com
INSIDE Booking...................2G Schools...................2H Sports .....................1H
a strong emphasis on education. “I have always understood the importance of giving back even from a young age when I volunteered to coach upward basketball while attending ZHS,� Ghoram said. “Since then, I’ve
been fortunate to use sports as a platform to obtain a better education, and now I feel obliged to give back.� As a boy, Ghoram said he äSee BASKETBALL, page 3G
The Zachary Community School District is ranked No. 1 and not just in football. For the 11th straight year, Zachary’s schools earned the highest rating score in the state for district performance scores. School performance scores are determined by the Department of Education and are based on student achievement, academic indicators and measures of career and college readiness, such as graduation rates, Advanced Placement and ACT scores. Zachary, which also won the Class 5A football championship on Dec. 12, saw its scores dip slightly, from 114.4 a year ago to 114.1. ZCSD has been ranked first in the state and with an A grade since its scores began to count in fall 2005. “We had a great week winning the state championship and then learning the scores, and though we dropped a little, I’m not overly worried about it,� Superintendent Scott Devillier said. “The tests this year overall across the state were harder, and I think we had some areas we dropped a little, such as with graduation rates. However, definitely when you’re looking at the big picture, it’s something you consider, and of course, we want to continue to grow.� Devillier In neighboring West Feliciana Parish, the score jumped from 102.4 in 2014 to 108.4 this year, the biggest leap in the DOE’s rankings. West Feliciana is third overall and the highest rated parishwide school system in the state. “I think it’s just a long game, and we worked very hard and looked at every aspect to see how we could improve,� West Feliciana Superintendent Hollis Milton said. “We improved our ACT scores and graduation rates and jumped in both. We’ll maintain our focus on all of those important areas for students and continue to get better. Excellence is trying to get better every week, every month and every year, and we’re committed to excellence in student achievement.� East Feliciana also showed improvement, increasing its score from 77.6 in 2014 to 78.4 in 2015. It remains a C district. As for the future, Devillier said ZCSD will continue to seek improvement. “As we do every year, we celebrate our accomplishments first,� he said. “I’m extremely proud of our students, teachers, administrators and the community for working together to be the best. Once we celebrate, then we get back to work looking at the data to see where we can get better, what we can do to improve on some things and what we can do to challenge ourselves. We’re never satisfied at where we are and are constantly striving for excellence.�
Closures and bus changes for holidays Stacy Gill AROUND ZACHARY
SGILL@ THEADVOCATE.COM
For Baker area residents who use the Capital Area Transit System, CATS will run an abbreviated schedule on Christmas Eve, with service ending at 8 p.m. CATS will be closed on Christmas Day and return to its normal schedule on Saturday.
Call (225) 389-8282 or visit brcats.com with schedule questions.
BREC holiday hours
The Recreation and Park Commission for the Parish of East Baton Rouge will close its administrative offices on Thursday and Friday. Normal
operating hours will resume at all BREC facilities on Monday. All golf courses, Bluebonnet Swamp Nature Center, Cohn Arboretum and Magnolia Mound Plantation will be closed Christmas Day. BREC’s Baton Rouge Zoo will be closed Thursday and Friday, and recreation centers
and tennis centers will close at noon on Thursday and remain closed Friday. For information, call (225) 272-9200 or visit brec.org.
Aerobic, hula hoop fitness
At BREC’s Plank Road Park äSee GILL, page 2G
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