No, this is not the cartoon that stirred controversy in a Slidell school. credit: Donkeyhotey Hurricane Isaac interrupted an appeals hearing over the firing of a man named Robert Duncan, a teacher at Boyet Junior High in Slidell. Duncan was fired for his decision to hang controversial student artwork in a school hallway. One piece […]
Posted inSchools
Orleans Parish School Board approves $42 million budget
Update, 9:36 p.m. The story has been updated to reflect the board’s budget approval. The Orleans Parish School Board approved a near $42 million general fund budget* today, close to a 5 percent decrease since last year. The decrease mainly stems from (1) a drop in expected costs associated with the August merger of McDonogh No. […]
Posted inInside the News Room
WWNO-FM, The Lens shift collaborative strategy to play to strengths
The University of New Orleans, which operates WWNO-FM, today announced revised plans to support a collaborative, nonprofit multimedia news operation, expanding the reporting role of The Lens and increasing the NPR affiliate’s focus on news and cultural information. The new plan shifts the effort from creating NewOrleansReporter.org and its newsroom to building on the established expertise, brand […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Isaac worsens building conditions; board looks to RSD to speed up improvements
Repairing the school building was a focus of attention at the monthly meeting of Einstein’s board of directors, Sept. 11. “I think it’s time we aggressively and assertively move forward to get our building up to the standards that our children deserve,” principal Shawn Toranto said. Last week Toranto, along with several teachers, voiced frustration […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Cafeteria furniture, buffet style prove challenging to littlest students
Concerns about the school’s new cafeteria and lunch service brought nearly a dozen parents to the board of directors’ monthly meeting, Sept. 10. Parent volunteers, who have been helping with lunch service over the past two weeks, reported that the cafeteria’s acoustics make the room very loud and that many students need help with the buffet-style arrangement. Tables […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Land Use, Squandered Heritage
Extreme caution: Handle with care—the billboard that is
In April, as city officials debated whether to allow its demolition, the shotgun beneath the billboard still bore some resemblance to a house. photo: Preservation Resource Center In the words of Ryan Berni, Mayor Mitch Landrieu’s director of communications, the city using “extreme caution” as it attempts the demolition of the Ninth Ward shotgun pictured […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Board wonders if Frantz School makeover will be done in time for December move
The school’s board of directors held its August meeting on Sept. 11, after delays due to Hurricane Isaac. Principal Shanda Gentry said the school has 410 students in pre-k through sixth grade, 18 shy of the projected enrollment. Gentry said she has been preparing teachers for the Recovery School District site visit, Sept. 18. This […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Jump in special-ed students poses budget challenge; overall enrollment slips
Edgar P. Harney Spirit of Excellence Academy has seen a 19 percent increase, from 58 to 69, in the number of students requiring special-education services, board members learned at their monthly meeting, Sept. 10. Special-education students pose a budgetary problem for schools because the cost of services they may require—social workers, speech therapists and other […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Charter board OK's sale of $11M in bonds for construction of new school building
At its monthly meeting, Aug. 23, the board of the New Orleans Military and Maritime Academy approved plans to sell $11 million in bonds for the construction of its future home within Algiers’ Federal City development. Though negotiations and lawsuits are still underway between some of the key parties involved in Federal City, NOMMA faced […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Board meeting agenda released
Review the Pride College Prep board meeting agenda here.