Cosmetology Board holds special meeting to hire HR Consultant Mary Gloston @ $50/hour, minimum 18 hours/week ($46,800 annual and with an annual cap of $49,999).

Louisiana State Board of Cosmetology (LSBC) Chairman Jennifer Cobb Reed prepares to open the Special Meeting of the Board on Monday, August 31, 2026.

Late yesterday (Sunday, August 30, 2026), we received word that the LSBC was planning a meeting for today (Monday, August 31, 2026) with the only item on the agenda being the hiring of an “HR Consultant.”

We attended the meeting (for the record, Burns was the only public member in attendance), which commenced at noon, at which time the LSBC approved this HR Consulting Contract.  Since the meeting was incredibly short, we are going to provide the meeting in its entirety, which also included Burns making an apology to LSBC Executive Director Erin Marceaux which was referenced as an addendum to our last feature:

8/31/26:  LSBC Member Rene Bosworth reads the resolution authorizing the hiring of an HR Consultant (Mary Gloston).

Here is a summation of the contract’s crucial terms and parameters (but not an exhaustive list of risks and allocations, etc):

Parties

• Agency (“State”): Louisiana State Board of Cosmetology (LSBC)
• Contractor: Mary V. Gloston, 7111 Village Maison Ct, Unit 52, Baton Rouge, LA 70809; 225-931-9854
• Federal employer ID is listed as N/A (individual contractor).

Term

• Start: August 24, 2026
• End: August 23, 2027
• One optional 12-month renewal at the same price, terms, and conditions, at the State’s option and with Contractor acceptance.
• Maximum duration: 36 months.
• Work may not begin until the contract is fully executed and all required approvals are obtained.

Scope

Contractor will provide HR subject-matter expertise for LSBC: review, analysis, and consultation on policies, practices, and procedures that affect HR governance, plus review of daily operational functions including payroll and benefits.

Personal-performance clause: services must be performed solely by Mary V. Gloston. Employees, agents, or subcontractors require prior written State consent. Unauthorized delegation is a material breach and can trigger immediate termination.

Money

At $50/hour and a $49,999 cap, billable hours cannot exceed 999.98 hours for the year (~19.2 hours/week over 52 weeks). The “at least 18 hours per week” floor, if followed for a full year (~936 hours), would use most of the cap.

Late-payment interest follows La. R.S. 39:1695 / 13:4202. Applicable taxes are treated as included in the fee.

How it can end

• Immediate State termination for listed grounds (misrepresentation, fraud, statutory conflict, abusive conduct, Procurement Code violations, debarment grounds).
• For cause: 30-day written cure (or good-faith start of cure if 30 days is not enough).
• For convenience: 30 days’ notice, or a negotiated date; State pays for satisfactory work through termination.
• Non-appropriation: ends if the Legislature does not fund continuation; no penalty to the State.
• Contractor for-cause termination runs through the Chief Procurement Officer claims process (La. R.S. 39:1672.2–1672.4).

Amendments must be written, signed, and approved as required by law (compensation, dates, scope, or assignment).

So, in a nutshell, that’s it folks.  We have been asked, “What was the rush?  The regular meeting was only 14 days away (Monday, September 13, 2026).  Our answer:  “We don’t know.”

As a final note, at the end of the prior feature, Burns noted that, as an occasional “belt and suspenders guy” he was making a public records request just in case Gov. Landry did issue a written directive indicating that the use of body cameras must cease.  He indicated that he fully expected a, “there are no records responsive to your request” response.

Sure enough, on Friday, August 28, 2026 at 11:04 a.m., we received an email with this statement to us regarding our request:

“Unfortunately, there are no responsive records pertaining to your last public records request.”