This special edition of the Cowen Institute’s annual report marks the tenth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, a horrific event that devastated New Orleans and its people—yet also offered a unique opportunity to rebuild one of the poorest-performing school districts in the country. Authors Vincent Rossmeier and Patrick Sims offer a comprehensive look at the city’s progress thus far, as well as the unusual circumstances that have turned the Big Easy into a petri dish of education innovation.
The New Orleans system is unique for a number of reasons. Ninety-three percent of its public school students attend charters, making it the most decentralized education system in the country. (Detroit comes in second with 55 percent.) It relies heavily on nonprofit services, such as arts education, after-school programming, professional training, family services, and more. And while each charter management organization (CMO) operates autonomously, all schools in the Recovery School District work together to coordinate services that require economies of scale or are needed by every child in the district. These include a centralized enrollment system, city-wide transportation, standards of discipline and expulsion, and shared funding to special needs services and facility maintenance (demonstrating that commonsense policies can find a home in an education system free from DOE bureaucracy).
All this innovation has coincided with significantly improved student achievement. In 2005, 62 percent of students attended a failing school, the second-worst showing in Louisiana. But this past school year, that figure declined to 7 percent, outperforming twenty-five other districts. Graduation rates have improved from 56 percent in 2005 to 73 percent in 2014. New Orleans schools are still collectively below average on the state school performance score scale—but advancements abound.
The report’s tone is also praiseworthy, lauding the city’s accomplishments. Rossmeier and Simms' approach demonstrates their understanding of and respect for the cultural intricacies of a city that has seen its education system torn apart by both systemic injustices and mother nature.
Scott Cowen, founder and director of the Cowen Institute, believes that “the future of [New Orleans] is dependent on the quality of the public school system. If it does not thrive, this city will not thrive.” Indeed.
Going forward, education reformers should heed the lessons of the great education overhaul underway in New Orleans. This report is great place to start.
SOURCE: Vincent Rossmeier and Patrick Sims, “The State of Public Education in New Orleans: 10 Years After Hurricane Katrina,” Cowen Institute (June 2015).
