Month: March 2016

The Differentiated Funding Formula – Where are we?

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

On Tuesday night, by a vote of 7-0, the Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB) directed their superintendent to allocate MFP money to schools as required by law. The impact will be to enact a new differentiated funding formula for OPSB charter schools, a formula that will also be used by the RSD for its New Orleans charters.

In response, Lusher and Lake Forest Elementary are now suing OPSB in federal court arguing that if OPSB funds them using this formula, the board will be violating their operating agreements and their rights under federal contract law.

How did we get here?

Last year, the Louisiana Legislature passed Act 467, which requires a single, differentiated funding formula for all OPSB and RSD charters.

The essence of Act 467:

Part 1 – Act 467 requires that RSD and OPSB charters be funded using a differentiated formula.

“The total amount of minimum foundation program formula funds allocated to charter schools that are located within the district shall be allocated using a district-level computation based on student characteristics or needs as determined by the state board.”

Part 2 – The Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) will help bring together district stakeholders to develop the district level allocation.

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ICYMI: Web of Support

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

In Case You Missed It (ICYMI) … Your mini news clippings

Web of Support

A program called Thread is getting results that defy expectations. Thread connects struggling high school students in Baltimore with a team of up to five volunteers who commit to support them in any way necessary – 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for 10 years. The results are impressive: 92% of students in Thread for five years graduated from high school (the city average is 72%); 90% were accepted into college; and of those who attended college, 80% completed a two- or four-year college certification program. Editor’s note: It would be really exciting to have a program like this in NOLA. Any volunteers?

Louisiana Headlines

Gov. John Bel Edwards issued his legislative agenda for the Regular Legislative Session. It includes proposals to stem the growth of charter schools in A and B-rated districts and reduce the value-added component in teacher evaluations.

State Supt. John White is worried about future funding for Louisiana’s public schools. Although state aid to public schools wasn’t cut during the Special Session, it could still be on the chopping block for next year. The Legislature did cut close to $4 million from the Department of Education’s 2015-16 budget (ending June 30, 2016), and White says he’s concerned additional cuts to the department’s 2016-17 budget could result in significant layoffs and affect essential services.

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By the Numbers: 2015 TOPS Scholarships

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

New Orleans high schools rocked it!

TOPS data for the class of 2015 shows 10% more high school graduates were eligible for TOPS college scholarships last year, and New Orleans is rapidly closing the gap with the state.

Gains in TOPS Eligibility

In five years, New Orleans closed the gap to the state average to a mere three points! 

Since 2010, the percentage of public high school graduates eligible for TOPS two-year or four-year scholarships increased 18 points, from 29% to 47%. The state increased 9 points, from 41% to 50%.

Eligible for TOPS
2010
2014
2015
5-year
gains
New Orleans
29%
37%
47%
+ 18 pts
Louisiana
41%
45%
50%
+ 9 pts

Gains in Eligibility for TOPS 4-year Scholarships

Since 2010, the percentage of public high school graduates eligible for 4-year TOPS scholarships increased 15 points, from 19% to 34%. The state increased 7 points, from 31% to 38%.

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ICYMI: A Time of Controversy

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

In Case You Missed It (ICYMI) … Your mini news clippings

School Funding Formula for the City

By a 10-1 vote (with one abstention), the Act 467 Committee, comprised of local Orleans Parish educators and community members, voted in favor a new funding formula for all RSD and OPSB public schools. These local weights will be submitted to BESE for consideration at their March 3rd and 4th meetings.

As discussed in Educate Now!’s February 17 email, this Orleans-specific formula will allocate money to every RSD and OPSB student based upon certain local weights, and this money follows the student to the school where that student enrolls. These local weights provide extra money for students with special needs, overage students, English language learners, high school students and gifted and talented (G & T) students. The heaviest weight is for students with special needs, so schools that enroll low numbers of special needs students are likely to see less money under this new formula.

To protect schools from a significant drop in funding, the Committee proposed that in addition to the local weights, the formula will include a “phase in” clause, such that no school’s average MFP per pupil will fall below 98% of its 10/1/15 MFP average per pupil. There are an estimated 14 schools that would need phase in support of varying amounts, but no school will see a reduction greater than $185/student.

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