Author: Leslie Jacobs

Special Education Revisited

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

Who is Educating Students with Disabilities, and How Are They Doing?

In New Orleans public schools, students with special needs now represent 9.1% of the overall student population. If every school enrolled a proportionate share, students with disabilities would represent 9.1% of each school’s student body. But that is not the case.

Recovery School District (RSD) schools are serving a much larger share of special needs students than are OPSB schools.

District % of Student
Population
RSD (direct-run and charter) 10.2%
OPSB (direct-run and charter) 6.7%

RSD charters exceed the city average in their percentage of students with disabilities. Continue reading →

In the News: A Clipping Service – April 4, 2011

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

In this edition of In the News:

  • New Orleans Dropout Rate Plummets
  • The State of the RSD
  • Local Education Stories
  • National Education News
  • Announcements

New Orleans Dropout Rate Plummets

New Orleans Dropout Rate Falls 31% in One Year; 50% since 2005
Educate Now! – April 4, 2011
Good News! Schools in New Orleans are doing a better job keeping kids in school. From 2008-09 to 2009-10, the city’s dropout rate for 9th-12th graders fell 31%, going from 8.3% to 5.7%. Once again, New Orleans improved faster than the state: the dropout rate for New Orleans has fallen 50% in five years, while the state average has dropped 27%. Pre-Katrina, New Orleans had a dropout rate of 11.4%, one of the worst in the country. Continue reading →

New Orleans Dropout Rate Plummets 31%

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

Schools doing a much better job keeping kids in school!

The dropout rate[1] for New Orleans public school 9th-12th graders (RSD and OPSB, charters and direct-run) fell 31% from 2008-09 to 2009-10, dropping from 8.3% to 5.7%.

Since 2005, New Orleans dropout rate has been cut in half.

Pre-Katrina, New Orleans had one of the worst dropout rates in Louisiana, and Louisiana had one of the worst dropout rates in the nation. In 2004-05, 11.4% of the city’s public high school students dropped out.

Since 2005, both New Orleans and Louisiana have improved, but New Orleans is improving at a much faster rate than the state.  The New Orleans dropout rate has fallen 50%, while the state’s rate has dropped 27%.

Translation:  More teens in school

Put in real terms, this improvement means over 300 more students stayed in school in Continue reading →

The Return Model for School Governance

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

In 2010, Educate Now! convened a Task Force to consider long-term governance alternatives for New Orleans public schools.  In a series of meetings over several months, the members of the Task Force worked on how best to restore local control of public education without imperiling the considerable academic progress since 2005.

The Task Force determined that New Orleans requires a unique governance structure to manage the new “system of schools” that has evolved since Katrina. The structure that the Task Force recommended is called the Return Model.

The Return Model:  A New Approach to Governance for Schools in Orleans Parish

Interviews:  Leslie Jacobs Explains the Return Model

Comment on the Return Model

The Return Model report lays out the governance system that the Task Force recommended.  Not every detail is attended to, and Educate Now! expects and invites community debate that will further refine the model.

 

Win Books for Students in Your Favorite Classroom!

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

 

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Educate Now! is giving students in one New Orleans
public school classroom a shopping spree at the Maple Street Book Shop!

Educate Now! is sending one lucky New Orleans public school classroom (transportation included) to the Maple Street Book Shop where each child will pick out a book of their very own to take home!

Do you want to choose the winning classroom?

Enter Educate Now!’s Share to Win competition, and if you win, you pick the lucky classroom.

To enter, go to www.sharetowinnola.com and register. Then use the website to share the contest information by email, Facebook or Twitter. The website will generate your own, unique Share to Win link to send to your friends. If you get the most number of people to sign up, you win.  So, share your link and urge your friends and colleagues to register. Be the one to pick the lucky classroom.

For complete contest terms and conditions, click here.

Educate Now! wants you to Share to Win for New Orleans public schools!

In the News: A Clipping Service – March 21, 2011

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

In this edition of In the News:

  • The Miracle of New Orleans
  • New Orleans Charter School Performance
  • LA Board of Regents’ Report UNO, SUNO and Delgado
  • U.S. Outnumbers Rest of World in High (and Low) Achievers
  • The Focus is on Teachers
  • Detroit: 41 Charters in Six Months?
  • It’s That Time Again

The Miracle of New Orleans

Educate Now! wants to share some good news about New Orleans and its recovery.

The New Orleans Miracle
Site Selection – March 10, 2011
This positive article on New Orleans, published by an international magazine for expansion planning decision-makers (CEOs, facility planners, corporate real estate executives), talks about the region’s recovery, growth, and tremendous economic potential. Continue reading →

In the News: A Clipping Service – March 7, 2011

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

In this edition of In the News:

  • Sen. Landrieu Calls N.O. Schools a Model for Reform
  • A Childless Recovery
  • Stopgap Bill Cuts Education Spending
  • Charter News
  • Debate on Personnel Practices Continues
  • A Unique Approach to Integration
  • Tools for Success
  • New Orleans News

Sen. Landrieu Calls N.O. Schools a Model for Reform

Sen. Mary Landrieu Calls For N.O. Schools to Serve as Model for National Education Reform
The State Column – March 7, 2011
According to Senator Mary Landrieu, the transformation of New Orleans public schools following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita should serve as a national model for education reform because we are transforming each and every school to be highly accountable and high-performing. Continue reading →

In the News: A Clipping Service – February 7, 2011

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

In this edition of In the News:

  • Taking Stock of Education Reform
  • Courts Weigh In
  • State and Local News
  • Announcements

Taking Stock of Education Reform

A Chance to Make History
Huntington News – February 1, 2011
In her new book A Chance to Make History TFA founder Wendy Kopp goes beyond TFA to explore the chronic problem of underperforming schools that fail students. The book features inspirational success stories, highlights New Orleans’ groundbreaking school reform efforts, and offers realistic solutions that should help inform the national debate. Note: Educate Now! congratulates TFA on its 20th anniversary. Continue reading →

In the News: A Clipping Service – January 24, 2010

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

In this edition of In the News:

  • Tough Economic Times Impact K-12 Schools
  • Tackling Barriers to Academic Achievement
  • How Does Louisiana Measure Up?
  • Other Charter News
  • Orleans Study Predicts Continued Growth in K-12 Enrollment

Tough Economic Times Impact K-12 Schools

Recession’s Toll on K-12 Budgets Both Wide and Deep
Education Week – January 13, 2011
Louisiana is not alone in facing budget shortfalls. Across the nation, districts are dealing with budget cuts, increasing class sizes, and cutting programs. Continue reading →