“The State of Public Education in New Orleans: 2008 Report”
A new report examining public education in New Orleans 2½ years after Hurricane Katrina concludes that most parents, teachers, and citizens believe that public schools have improved over last year, and are better than they were before the storm struck the city.
Researchers at the Scott S. Cowen Institute for Public Education Initiatives at Tulane University also found that conditions at campuses in the state-run Recovery School District have improved considerably this year over the 2006-07 academic year, and that the the large number of charter schools that have opened since Katrina have boosted community involvement in education.
But the survey also highlights such problems as inadequate mental-health treatment for children and a lack of special education services. The researchers also conclude that both the RSD and the Orleans Parish School Board—which still runs five schools—have been spending at an unsustainable rate.
