The State of Public Education in New Orleans 2016-17 Kate Babineau Dave Hand Vincent Rossmeier The Cowen Institute - February 2017 Amanda Hill Executive Director, Cowen Institute The Cowen Institute at Tulane University opened in 2007 with the primary focus of chronicling, assessing, and analyzing the unique transformation of the K-12 education system in New Orleans. The year 2017 marks the Institute’s ten-year anniversary, and over the past decade, our mission and work have evolved to meet the needs, challenges, and complexities of our ever-shifting educational landscape. Our work has expanded to include policy, research, and programmatic initiatives focused on recon- necting opportunity youth and advancing college and career success for young people. At the same time, providing actionable analysis about the evolution of the city’s K-12 education landscape continues to be one of our three key priorities. The State of Public Education in New Orleans has served as our flag- ship publication about New Orleans’ education since the launch of the Institute, and this year’s edition provides data about schools, students, teachers, and education financing -- just as we have done in the The Cowen Institute past. at Tulane University Beginning with this year’s edition, these reports will be less retrospective, with a focus more on the The mission of the Cowen Institute is to advance public education and youth success in New Orleans and beyond. future of public education in New Orleans than on the changes following Hurricane Katrina. Given the legislation that passed in 2016, school unification is the spotlight issue for the 2017 report. To further that mission, the Cowen Institute focuses on K-12 education, college and career success, and reconnect- ing opportunity youth. As we look forward, we remain committed to ensuring that all students have access to quality public education and to meaningful pathways to college and career. The State of Public Education in New Orleans is intended primarily as an informational document. Our hope is that it will serve as a guide that The Cowen Institute is named after Tulane University President Emeritus Scott Cowen. It was founded in De- enables educators, parents, students, and the public-at-large to better understand New Orleans’ complex cember 2006 and opened its doors in March 2007. Since that time, the Institute has chronicled and analyzed the approach to public education. As such, the report is organized around key questions commonly asked transformation of public education in New Orleans. The State of Public Education in New Orleans is the Institute’s about New Orleans’ public schools. annual report on the city’s schools, students, and educators. This is the ninth edition of the report. The Cowen Institute Tulane University 1555 Poydras St., Suite 700 New Orleans, LA 70112 504.274.3690 www.coweninstitute.com This report was made possible through the generous support of Avie and Jill Glazer. 2 The Cowen Institute The State of Public Education in New Orleans 3 Table of Contents 1 Introduction ............................................................. 6 What is public education like in New Orleans? Governance .............................................................. 9 2 How are schools governed? Schools ..................................................................... 14 3 What type of schools do students attend? Students ................................................................... 18 4 Who are the students? Talent ........................................................................ 20 5 Who educates students? New Orleans will be the fi rst American city in which every family has the opportuni- Achievement ............................................................ 22 “ 6 ty to send their children to an excellent public school. Th anks to the hard work of our How have students performed? teachers, school leaders, families and community partners, our schools have made con- 26 siderable progress over the decade; now more than ever before, our schools are meeting Finances ................................................................... 7 How is public education fi nanced? the needs of our community and serving all students. Th is progress notwithstanding, we must do more to fulfi ll the promise of public education for all students. Far too many 28 8 Academic Initiatives ................................................ of our students never graduate from high schools and many hundreds more graduate What is taught in schools? without an accessible pathway to a worthwhile job or a college degree. We must work together as a community to eradicate the barriers to successful high school completion, 9 Th e Future ................................................................ 31 to reengage those young people who are disconnected – especially those caught up in Where do we go from here? the judicial system – and to ensure that every high school graduate 10 Appendix .................................................................. 34 in Orleans Parish is prepared for what’s next.” Citations & glossary Dr. Henderson Lewis, Jr., Ph.D Superintendent, Orleans Parish School Board 4 Th e Cowen Institute Th e State of Public Education in New Orleans 5 Introduction under its purview into charters.3 Today, most OPSB schools However, 2016 saw significant developments around the are also charters, and the rest are likely to become charters future of the long-term governing structure of New Orleans in the near future. As a result, New Orleans now has the schools. In 2015, the Louisiana Legislature considered a bill What is public education like in New Orleans? most decentralized public education system in the country. to place all New Orleans RSD schools under OPSB over- sight, but the measure failed to receive approval from legisla- School Unification tors. In 2016, though, legislators compromised on Act 91, a landmark bill that requires all RSD charter schools in New By almost all quantifiable indicators, school performance Orleans to come under OPSB oversight by June 30, 2018.6 has improved: academic scores, graduation rates, and New The transition will occur over two years. Charter schools Orleans’ rank among parishes statewide have all increased. under the RSD will remain charter schools under the OPSB Over the past decade, Cowen Institute polling has consis- with comparable levels of autonomy. In August 2016, the tently shown support for many of the major changes, OPSB released a plan for the unification of their schools that including charter school growth and perceptions of overall includes major milestones for the next two years. Unification school quality. Yet, the decision to split control over autho- of all schools under a locally elected school board marks a rization and the oversight of New Orleans’ schools has significant next step in the ongoing transformation of public remained controversial among many individuals and organi- education in the city. zations in the city over the past ten years. How did we get here? School Timeline Charter RSD ACT 35 1998 2003 2005 Aug Hurricane Nov Act 35 is approved by LA Dec Facing insolvency, May The May The RSD is following the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina Katrina hits New Legislature, expanding the ability the OPSB terminates the A Unique Education Landscape first Louisiana formed by BESE to Orleans, destroying vast of the RSD to take over low contracts of more than and related levee failures. The storm destroyed 80 percent of charter school take over failing regions of the city performing schools in addition to 7,000 teachers and is authorized schools across the 4 the city’s schools and infrastructure and displaced the vast along with the majority failing schools. The bill has the employees. Over the past decade, no city in the United States has expe- by OPSB. state. rienced as much change to its public education system as majority of its families, students, and teachers. In the decade of school infrastructure. most immediate and profound impact on New Orleans schools. New Orleans. The Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB) prior to the storm, the city had one of the lowest-performing recently announced its intention to convert its five directly systems in the country. Despite the presence of some excep- operated schools into charter schools. If and when this tional options, the majority of public school students did not occurs, New Orleans will become the first city in the United receive a quality education. The OPSB, which was respon- sible for operating almost all schools in the city, was also 80s States where all non-incarcerated, public education students c F attend charter schools. Charters are schools that are public- involved in a number of corruption and financial scandals h $ E $ ly-funded, but not run by a local school board as are most around the time of the storm.1 o M RSD OPSB schools in a traditional district. Schools sign a “charter” or Charter o A In the fall of 2005, the Louisiana Legislature voted to expand l contract with an authorizing agency and their operators have s the authority of the state-run Recovery School District 2016 greater autonomy over curriculum, staffing, and other deci- 2006 2007 2008 2014 sions made at the school level than do district-run schools. (RSD) to take over low-performing (rather than only failing) Jan Schools Aug The Nov BESE and May All Aug The first 2 RSD charter public schools in New Orleans. Oversight for city schools begin to reopen number of city the OPSB approve RSD schools Aug The LA legislature school elects to was separated between the OPSB and the RSD, with the in New Orleans schools reaches a master plan for are converted approves Act 91, requir- The evolution of New Orleans from a traditional school return to OPSB and the number 80, enrollment rebuilding city into charter ing New Orleans RSD district to an all-charter city began prior to 2005, when a OPSB retaining authority over only the highest-performing continues to schools, funded in schools run by oversight. of charters 5 schools to transition to handful of charter schools first opened in the city. However, schools. The RSD was tasked with improving the lowest-per- increases.