Broussard Charter School Land Deal Closes, Eyes August 2027 Open

BROUSSARD, La. — The company behind Lafayette Parish’s two Renaissance charter academies has closed on its purchase of land in Broussard for its third campus, according to land records reviewed by the Acadiana Advocate.

Charter Schools USA bought the property at the corner of St. Nazaire and La Flamme roads from Broussard-based Billeaud Companies. The deal moves Broussard Charter Academy, a K-8 school the state approved in 2024, a step closer to breaking ground.

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Foundation Board Voted to Move Forward in March

The land purchase follows a vote by the Lafayette Charter Foundation, the nonprofit board that oversees Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy and Acadiana Renaissance Charter Academy, to formally proceed with the Broussard project. Board members approved the 900-seat school 5-2-1 at a special meeting in late March. One trustee voted no, citing budget and staffing concerns, and a second trustee abstained.

The Broussard school will be run in agreement with Charter Schools USA, a for-profit education management company based in Florida that also runs schools in Louisiana, North Carolina and South Carolina. Charter schools are tuition-free public schools.

Charter Vote Followed Comeaux Closure Fight

The foundation’s March vote came about a week after the Lafayette Parish School Board’s March 12 vote to close Comeaux High School, a decision the board later rescinded after a judge blocked it, before voting again in June to close the school for good. That March timing became central to a lawsuit challenging the closure.

Credit: Lafayette Parish School Board/YouTube

The suit argued that a Lafayette Charter Foundation board member’s family tie to a sitting school board member should have been disclosed before the vote, since Comeaux draws heavily from the same Broussard area the new charter school is set to serve.

The board’s final 5-4 vote in June sent Comeaux students to Acadiana, Lafayette and Southside High for the 2026-27 school year.

What the Land Deal Covers

Billeaud Companies plans to develop the rest of the 66-acre tract with commercial space along St. Nazaire Road and a mix of multi-family and single-family housing behind the school along La Flamme Road, company CEO Steven Hebert said. Construction on the school itself should start soon, Hebert said.

As a Type 2 charter school, Broussard Charter Academy won’t be restricted to a specific attendance zone. It can draw enrollment from anywhere in the region once it opens.

Broader Context for Lafayette Parish Families

The Broussard project adds a third Charter Schools USA campus to a parish already navigating major shifts in where students attend school.

The Lafayette Charter Foundation is the same governing body currently working through a payroll fraud investigation at Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy’s lower campus. That investigation led to the removal of the school’s principal and four employees earlier this year.

Broussard Charter Academy is on track to open in August 2027, based on the foundation’s most recent public timeline.

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