Louisiana state seal Louisiana Ethics Administration Program
Home Charges Search EAB Decisions Search
STATE OF LOUISIANA <br /> OF LOO DEPARTMENT OF STATE CIVIL SERVICE <br /> ,tw°N ��Src`�'t <br /> ��� ,r; , �; F9,� LOUISIANA BOARD OF ETHICS <br /> " 9 P.O.BOX 4368 <br /> �%',�% . ',t. <br /> * %' * BATON ROUGE,LA 70821 <br /> �°N��oENc�. (225)219-5600 <br /> ••..o..-•' FAX:(225)381-7271 <br /> 1-800-842-6630 <br /> www.ethics.la.gov <br /> July 7, 2025 <br /> John S. Cook <br /> Durio McGoffin Stagg Guidry <br /> 220 Heymann Blvd. <br /> Lafayette, Louisiana 70505-1308 <br /> Re: Docket No. 2025-259 <br /> Advisory Opinion <br /> Dear Mr. Cook: <br /> The Louisiana Board of Ethics,at its July 3,2025 meeting,considered your request for an advisory <br /> opinion, on behalf of Vermilion Charter Foundation, Inc. ("VCF"), as to whether the Code of <br /> Govermnental Ethics ("Code") permits Kona Ice of Acadiana, a business owned by a member of <br /> the VCF Board of Trustees,to operate on the Vermilion Charter Academy campus. <br /> FACTS PROVIDED <br /> VCF, a Louisiana non-profit corporation,is authorized by the Board of Elementary and Secondary <br /> Education ("BESE") to operate Vermilion Charter Academy, a Type 2 K-8 charter school in <br /> Vermilion Parish currently serving approximately 850 students. VCF has hired Charter Schools <br /> USA t� manage and operate Vermilion Charter Academy. The VCF Board of Trustees consists of <br /> volunteer members who receive no compensation apart from the reimbursement of approved out- <br /> of-pocket expenses. <br /> Jevon Dehart, a member of the VCF Board of Trustees, owns Kona Ice of Acadiana and holds an <br /> exclusive Kona Ice franchise in the Acadiana region. Kona Ice of Acadiana operates mobile snow <br /> cone trucks with self-serve stations that can accommodate large groups more efficiently than <br /> traditional snow cone operations. Kona Ice of Acadiana is frequently brought in by local schools <br /> for events as a reward for students. The typical arrangement is that the students, not the school, <br /> pay for the snow cones, and Kona Ice of Acadiana donates a portion of the proceeds back to the <br /> school. Vermilion Charter Academy would like to enter into this same arrangement with Kona Ice <br /> of Acadiana on its campus, since there are no other snow cone businesses offering comparable <br /> services in the area. <br /> You ask whether Kona Ice of Acadiana is permitted to operate in any capacity on the Vermilion <br /> Charter Academy campus. <br /> LAW <br /> La. R.S. 17:3996B(20) provides that all officers and employees of charter schools are subject to <br /> the Code of Goverrunental Ethics. <br /> {T, j �,-- �- <br /> ���:�..� ?. �� h° ' '.J'� �.`��i; <br /> AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER <br />