More stories
-
in Politics
Schott Foundation Under Microscope In Federal Investigation of Gillum Campaign Grand jury issues subpoenas for information from Schott, Opportunity to Learn Action Fund
Subpoenas issued by a federal grand jury in Florida suggest that the FBI has launched an investigation into the gubernatorial campaign of former Tallahassee mayor Andrew Gillum, who lost a close election for the Sunshine State’s highest office to Republican Ron DeSantis last year. According to the Tampa Bay Times, federal investigators are also exploring […] More
-
in Politics
Pro-Tip: Don’t Confuse Mayor With Emperor LaToya Cantrell weighs-in on OneApp while trying to take money from public schools
UPDATE: 5/16/19 – A new fiscal note attached to Senate Bill 110 estimates that an increase in the City of New Orleans’ tax collection fee from 2% to 4% would cost the Orleans Parish School Board “an additional $8,600,000 beginning 2019-20 and increasing annually to $9,600,000 by 2023-24.” On Friday, the Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s newly-established […] More
-
in Media
An Anti-Charter Hatchet Job, Annotated WWNO/Hechinger Report tries to blame McDonogh #35's struggles on charters, but fails miserably
If you’ve been following the output of the Hechinger Report over the past few years, it should be clear that those in charge at the outlet are pushing an anti-reform agenda in their coverage of New Orleans public schools. That bias is abundantly evident in their misleading, clickbait-y headlines about New Orleans schools, their continued […] More
-
in OPSB
Hynes Board May Have Violated State Ethics Laws Two UNO Employees On The Board Failed To Recuse Themselves From Hynes-UNO Partnership Votes
A review of records of the board of directors of Hynes Charter School has revealed that two board members may have violated state ethics laws by failing to recuse themselves from votes on the school’s partnership with the University of New Orleans (UNO) to open a new K-8 campus. The board members in question, Janice Janz […] More
-
in OPSB
Silence, Obfuscation & Lies A Backroom Deal Raises Serious Questions About OPSB's Commitment to Equity & Transparency
When it was announced last November that Hynes Charter School would be partnering with the University of New Orleans (UNO) to open a new K-8 campus in fall of 2019, district officials portrayed the move as part of their broader mission to expand access to the city’s highest-performing schools. “We are very thankful to see this partnership […] More
-
in Media
Garbage In, Garbage Out… Zoe Sullivan's Piece on NOLA Public Schools Represents Journalism At Its Worst
Back in 2014, in a piece I wrote in response to an error-laden NPR story on the transformation of public education in New Orleans, I explained why so many education advocates in the city had developed a sense of “journalism fatigue”: “Often, journalists fly in and build their stories around the loudest, most extreme voices […] More
-
in OPSB
Don’t Give Prejudice A Pass Leslie Ellison's Anti-LGBT Views Make Her Unfit To Lead Our School Board
This Thursday, the Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB) will vote to elect a new leader. OPSB District 1 representative John Brown, who has served as board president for the past two years, cannot run for re-election due to term limits. As a result, members have been engaged in behind-the-scenes discussions in recent weeks to decide who will […] More
-
in NOLA
NOLA Public School Enrollment By Letter Grade: 2018 vs. 2005 Schools Still Have A Way To Go, But We're Light Years From Where We Started
As I detailed in a post last week, the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) recently released annual school letter grades and School Performance Scores (SPS) for the 2017-18 school year. A conversation on Facebook spurred my curiosity to find out how many students were attending A, B, C, D, and F-graded schools in New Orleans. […] More
-
in Charters
A Sibling Dispute In Court Could Spell Trouble for Smothers Academy Charter School's CEO Is Accused Of Financial Impropriety In Lawsuit Filed By Brother
The CEO of a local charter management organization, which was investigated by the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) after a report on this blog raised questions about its management and financial practices, is being accused of financial impropriety in a lawsuit filed by his own brother. On March 28th, I published a post – “Red […] More
Peter Cook