Tharpe resigns, school board seat now up for grabs in District 8

SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – The Caddo Parish School Board has declared the District 8 seat open and shared its process for selecting a temporary member before holding a special election.

Applications will be accepted from District 8 residents

until 4 p.m. Friday, August 29, 2025. Letters of interest should be sent to the Board president at the superintendent’s office, located at 1961 Midway Ave., or emailed to dfeibel@caddoschools.org.

Each letter must include the applicant’s date of birth, address, how long they have lived in District 8, and a short statement on why they want to serve.

The Board will hold a meeting at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, September 2, 2025, to interview all candidates.

Each person will have up to 10 minutes to share why they want the position and what experience they can bring.

At an open meeting, names of candidates will be shared with the public, and afterwards, a vote will be held to determine the new District 8 representative.

Previous board member Christine Tharpe resigned as chair of District 8 at the school board meeting held on Tuesday night.

According to a news release from Caddo Parish Schools, “Tharpe has been a strong advocate for Caddo students and families throughout her tenure. She has been particularly committed to initiatives aimed at improving truancy prevention and intervention efforts, ensuring students remain in classrooms and on track to graduate.”

Tharpe has been a part of the school board since November 2020.

The new temporary member will serve until a special election on April 18, 2026.

The election is scheduled for January 14–16, 2026.