The St. Martin Parish School Board voted to hire Allen Blanchard Jr. as the new superintendent Wednesday night. 

Blanchard took over the superintendent position in an interim capacity after former Superintendent Lottie Beebe was terminated last year. The school board has been paying for two superintendents since September. 

Dr. Lottie Beebe and the St. Martin Parish School Board handled her termination without a lawsuit. In the settlement Dr. Beebe was placed on administrative leave and will remain on payroll with full benefits to the July 1 of 2019. The board also paid $10,000 of her attorney fees. According to her lawyer the process of terminating Dr. Beebe and hiring Dr. Blanchard as interim superintend it cost St. Martin Parish about $160,000. 

Blanchard started his career 28 years ago as a teacher and has held numerous rules. He previously served as the director of Human Resources, Operations and Transportation for the St. Martin Parish School District.