Schools
Renewal rules to change for state-authorized charter schools | NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune – As of December 2015, charter schools would need at least a C grade for renewal (or demonstrate at least five points of growth per year in their school performance score). The current threshold for renewal is a D grade.
Big jumps in enrollment forecast at Landry-Walker and Algiers Tech Academy | The Lens – In addition to optimistic enrollment forecasts, upgrades ranging from parking to air conditioning are sought for three schools governed by the Algiers Charter School Association.
Standardized testing: I opted my kids out. The schools freaked out. Now I know why | Slate – A Colorado parent describes the resistance and support she received when she opted to have her children not take the state’s standardized test.
Government & Politics
Justice and economics converge in debate over right-sizing minimum wage | The Lens – Edgar “Dooky” Chase does the math and tells us precisely what our minimum wage should be, to sustain U.S. productivity.
Jindal outlines session priorities | Associated Press – Gov. Bobby Jindal’s top legislative priority this session will be to align the state’s school systems to serve upcoming workforce needs, especially in the burgeoning petrochemical industry. Said Jindal: “I think our big challenge this session is getting ready for this manufacturing expansion.”
Inside Report: Sexual orientation laws in state face legislative scrutiny | The New Orleans Advocate – A state representative from a rural district files a bill to outlaw workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Criminal Justice
Judge Janice Clark faces possible censure for ‘judicial misconduct’ | The Advocate
The request for censure marks the commission’s fourth formal charge in 12 years against Judge Janice Clark, of the 19th Judicial District, but is only the first to be made public, court records show. … The commission found Clark dismissed [a defamation] lawsuit in April 2011 despite neither party having a motion to dismiss pending before the court…
Mardi Gras by the numbers: Arrests down by half, EMS service calls hit record highs | NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune – Peaceful crowds and poor weather are credited for arrests dropping from 879 in 2013 to 421 this Carnival season.
Audubon Nature Institute beats drum for support of a 50-year tax plan | NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune – The property tax proposal would bring in $12 million per year, but District C Council Member Kristin Gisleson Palmer “questioned why public dollars are being used for an institution that charges admission fees that can burden poorer families.”
Environment
New report: incomplete documentation makes determining Coast Guard progress after BP oil spill difficult | NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune – The Coast Guard can’t show that it has complied with hundreds of recommendations to improve its disaster response.
Assessors eye La. salt caverns as revenue source | The Advocate
Some Louisiana parishes with salt dome caverns are following Assumption Parish’s lead in trying to bring the massive man-made cavities carved from the giant deposits of salt onto their tax rolls — a move that could result in millions of dollars in tax revenue for the local governments.
Researchers aim to resolve inequity in Miami’s flood preparation | Al Jazeera America – “New research is throwing a wrench in how planners should consider risk. When maps are superimposed where sea level rise will affect communities with a high density of older residents, in low-income areas and at very low elevation, the risk areas are broader.”
Land Use
Civil Service Commission approves ferry contract | The Advocate – “Private operation of New Orleans area ferries is projected to save the state $1.7 million annually and improve services to customers, a state Department of Transportation and Development official said Wednesday.”
Getting citizens involved: how cities can use smart technology and social media for improvement | Knowledge – “The high-water problem in Venice has encouraged a collective of open-data activists, #opendatavenezia, to introduce the Acqualta project. They aim to use citizens as sensors, producing data coming from a shared source.”