Plans for a new building and updates on college placement were highlights of the Miller-McCoy school board’s monthly meeting, Feb. 27. Facilities leader Nat Jones presented a floor plan provided by the Recovery School District. The RSD has asked for approval of the plans as they stand, with the understanding that “tweaks” can be made […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Board will help finance Washington trip; parent-teacher night draws about 100
Parent-teacher conferences on Feb. 24 drew around 100 parents and guardians, principal Catherine Boozer advised the board of directors at their monthly meeting three days later. Boozer also reported that ”college week” began Feb. 6, with sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-graders visiting universities. On Feb. 8, visitors to the school from a spectrum of different careers […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
A community organizer who knew better than Goldman Sachs’ boss
Three years ago President Obama offered us some unsolicited financial advice. He said that stocks looked like a good buy for investors with a long-term perspective. At the time, you’ll recall, the country was in the Great Recession. The pace of job destruction was brutal. Every six weeks, another million people were out of work. […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Schools
Would-be local charter operators vent frustrations at state school board meeting
A frustration that’s become commonplace among community groups that feel disenfranchised by the Recovery School District’s latest decisions prevailed Wednesday night at a New Orleans meeting of the state school board. More than 100 people gathered Wednesday to hear the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education approve requests for changes to one submitted charter application, […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Band, dancers and majorettes shine during Carnival; playground and garden draw vols
Langston Hughes Academy’s Marching Eagles band, dancers and majorette unit participated in six Carnival parades this season, including two on the West Bank and one in Metairie. “How the parents made it all the way across town, on-time, every time is beyond me,” chief operating officer Adrian Morgan said in a report to the school’s […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Pre-k programs OK'd for next year at Dibert and Hughes; school finances in good shape
John Dibert Community School and Langston Hughes Academy will both offer a pre-kindergarten program next year, the FirstLine board of directors decided at its monthly meeting, Feb. 28. Interested parents will be able to apply through the Recovery School District’s “One App” enrollment form, on which they designate their first three choices for pre-k placement. […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Inmate stabbed 14 times, deputy beaten with broomstick in separate OPP incidents
By Matt Davis, The Lens staff writer | A pair of December incidents at the Orleans Parish Prison draw continued attention to security risks faced by inmates and staff at the facility. In the first incident, an inmate suffered 14 stab wounds. In the second, an inmate broke out of his cell, snapped a broomstick […]
Posted inOpinion
Key to charter success: a principal rarely found in school's front office
By Folwell Dunbar, The Lens contributing opinion writer | Over the years I have had an opportunity to conduct quality reviews of numerous charter schools here in Louisiana and throughout the country. Working with teams of national and local experts, we look at everything from leadership and assessment practices to technology integration and community engagement. […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Academic performance soars; school budget on track despite move; LPO/band concert slated
The school’s latest academic performance data show major improvements, highlighted by a school-wide reading mastery rate of 81 percent or above. Kindergarten has made extraordinary progress, with students ranked as “emerging readers” jumping from 58 to 82 percent. The data were reported by principal Michelle Douglas at the monthly meeting of the school’s board of […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Board meeting agenda released
Review the agenda for the March 1 meeting here.