Chloe Willis stands up to accept recognition from the Iberia Parish School Board at Wednesday's board meeting. Next to her is teacher Margaret Simon. 

Jefferson Island Elementary student Chloe Willis was honored at Wednesday’s Iberia Parish School Board meeting for receiving an award for an international contest. 

Chloe was recently announced as the National Elementary Award winner of the Milken Discovery contest, which had students from all over the world placing submissions for a $1,000 prize. 

Superintendent of Schools Carey Laviolette said she first learned about Chloe after she submitted an editorial to The Daily Iberian about COVID-19 mask usage. 

“It was exceptional,” Laviolette said. “I said ‘I’m going to Jefferson Island to tell this young lady how proud I am for her ability to express herself and give her opinion the right way.’”

Not long after, Laviolette said she learned of Chloe winning the award. 

“We were all exceptionally proud of this Jefferson Island student,” Laviolette said. 

For the contest, Chloe submitted a documentary containing research about her great-grandfather. 

The documentary shared the achievements of the Rev. T.J. Jemison, a civil rights activist who helped organize the bus boycott that led to the passing of Ordinance 222 by the Baton Rouge City Council, which changed the segregated seating policy on city buses.

“I really think the biggest impact he had on me was that I felt I could make a change in the world today,” Chloe said at the school board meeting. 

Chloe received a standing ovation for her achievement from the school board, as well as her parents, teacher Margaret Simon and staff from Jefferson Island. 

In other business, the board voted on a resolution regarding the Iberia Parish 2020 reapportionment plant at the meeting as well. 

Laviolette said the resolution was only a preliminary approval before larger work begins to balance out Iberia Parish school districts. 

After the new look at the population numbers of each district as well as the new boundary agreement between Iberia and Vermilion parishes, the Iberia Parish School District found that Districts 1, 2, 4, 8, 9, 10, 12 and 13 were outside the allowable 5 percent deviation from the ideal district population of 5,023.