Adults in New Orleans often advocate for improving youth experiences but rarely involve young people in the process. School performance scores, crime rates, and football scores dominate headlines, along with stories of individuals’ “resilience.”
The most critical perspectives are missing from this conversation: those of our young people themselves. What dreams do they have for their lives in New Orleans? How do they view the institutions meant to serve them? What resources and support would allow them to thrive? And perhaps most importantly, how can we move beyond celebrating resilience, to create a city where young people don’t need to be resilient just to survive?
Since 2019, the Education Research Alliance for New Orleans has led a coalition of community organizations dedicated to amplifying the voices of this city’s youth. The results of the first Citywide Youth Survey shared an optimistic perspective of students’ aspirations and beliefs in the importance of education, but the last survey, completed after the COVID-19 pandemic, saw worsening trends in both areas.
Students did report better perceptions of teaching and equity in their schools, along with greater social support, but mental health concerns have only increased. These surveys have also revealed deep, persistent racial divides in how Black and White students experience their schools and neighborhoods.
These surveys are created not just to point out problems—but to open doors to change. Armed with the survey’s data, community organizations have pushed for vital reforms, advocating for Black students’ access to advanced courses, more experienced teachers, and expanded mental health services. Some school leaders have taken the opportunity to adjust their practices, such as implementing stronger mechanisms for student input in decision-making and improving students’ sense of belonging.
These efforts are all aimed at addressing the needs of New Orleans’ youth, With the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina approaching, this work underlines where progress has been made and which areas still require work.
This year’s 2024-2025 New Orleans Citywide Youth Survey marks the third edition of its kind, and it will be our greatest and most challenging undertaking yet. In addition to providing updated insights from students in public schools, the survey will also include private schools for the first time. If we want to create a better future for our city’s youth, we need to listen to the voices of all students, and we need to do it now.
Supporting New Orleans youth starts with asking better questions, and listening to students’ perspectives. The Citywide Youth Survey offers a unique opportunity to do just that. If you’re a school leader, make sure your students have the chance to participate in this anonymous, 20-minute survey. If you’re part of the private or public school community, encourage your school leader to sign up. And if you’re a parent of a middle or high school student, urge your child to take the survey seriously—it’s an opportunity to speak up on behalf of all students.
Let’s not miss this chance to listen, learn, and act.
Please sign up HERE for more information.
Jamie M. Carroll and Denise Woltering Vargas are the Associate Directors for the Education Research Alliance for New Orleans, a research center that collaborates with local education stakeholders to produce objective, rigorous, and useful research to inform the community’s understanding of how to improve students’ experiences in schools and beyond. The signatories below and the rest of the steering committee work together to ensure the New Orleans Citywide Youth Survey program provides essential information to school and city leaders about how to help New Orleans youth thrive.
Since 2019, the Education Research Alliance for New Orleans has led a coalition of community organizations dedicated to amplifying the voices of this city’s youth, including the signatories below.
SIGNATORIES
Dr. James Dabney, Ph.D., Executive Director, New Orleans Youth Alliance
Dr. Amanda Hill, Executive Director, Cowen Institute at Tulane University
Tamiko Massey-Haynes, Director of Admissions and Special Initiatives, St. Mary’s Academy
Terrence Lockett, Executive Director, Education Reform Now-Louisiana
Kate Mehok, CEO, Crescent City Schools
Dana Peterson, CEO, New Schools for New Orleans
Vincent Rossmeier, Policy Director at the Cowen Institute at Tulane University
Cate Swinburn, Co-Founder, President & CEO, YouthForce NOLA