Better Together
There is more to police work than chasing down bad guys. Civilian jobs in the Beaumont Police Department, such as dispatcher positions, start at $21 an hour. It’s great money for someone with only a high school diploma and Beaumont Police Department officials say they encourage Beaumont ISD students to investigate these opportunities. The Police and Fire Department (Career) Pipeline was among the topics of discussion at the May 1, 2024 Joint Meeting of the Board of the Beaumont Independent School District and the City of Beaumont Council Members. The meeting was held at the Downtown Event Centre and was the fifth such event since both organizations began holding collective sessions in 2021.
Beaumont Assistant Chief of Police Jason Plunkett was one of the presenters at the Wednesday night meeting. “It gets your foot in the door at the police department,” Plunkett said of the dispatcher role. “You get to see how a police department works. You get to see how police officers respond to calls from the other end of the call.”
BISD Superintendent of Schools Dr. Shannon Allen told audience members that the District is working to create job opportunities for students and that BISD would examine offering these options to students at a younger age. She introduced Dr. Donna Prudhomme, Director of the Career and Technical Education Center, who elaborated on existing programs. “Currently, we have about 24 programs of study in Beaumont ISD,” Prudhomme shared. “We are already in partnership with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department where we have several students that are interning with the Sheriff’s Department.” She went on to say that the key element to consider is that the District’s funding is tied to local trends in the workplace. “We can only offer programs of study that are unique, that’s trending to our local economy,” Prudhomme stated.
The City of Beaumont also revealed plans for Fannett Road sidewalks that would benefit walkers near Beaumont United High School. The project involves the construction of a five-foot walkway improvement along both sides of Fannett Road from Sarah Street to Edmonds Avenue to Fourth Street. The enhancement would include ramps and driveway removal and replacement to meet the requirements of the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990. The existing crosswalk on Fannett Road would be improved with new pavement markings and signage and an additional crosswalk would be added on Fannett Road. Public Works Director Bart Bartkowiak says the bidding process for the project should begin in mid-June.
The next collaboration between Beaumont ISD and the City of Beaumont takes place Friday, May 10, 2024, from 1-4 p.m. at Sprott Park for the “Keep Texas Beautiful” City-Wide Community Clean Up. Participants will receive their location assignments at Sprott Park. Gloves and trash bags will be given to all volunteers. Participants can register individually or with a group by visiting www.beaumonttexas.gov/spring-cleanup.
