Going to school in New Orleans in the early 2000s was dismal, with only one in
four children scoring at their standard grade level. The City School Board was so
corrupt that the FBI started an investigation and eventually put its
president and 30 others into jail. On top of this almost all of the teachers were
organized in unions. This ensured that even the worst teachers kept their job
for life. Idealistic educators and politicians tried to change the system
but their efforts were blocked by those in charge who did everything possible to
keep things as they were. Then things got worse. In 2005 Katrina, a massive
hurricane, struck the city and destroyed virtually everything including all
schools. As a result, everyone left the city. Kids stopped going to school. The
school board lost all of its funding and the teachers lost their jobs leading to
unions losing all of their members. It was a true disaster for everyone. In the
aftermath of Katrina politicians, bureaucrats and educators saw an
opportunity to finally bring change upon a system that had previously failed
so many kids in such a miserable way. Under the leadership of governor
Kathleen Blanco it was concluded that while they didn't know the best solution
they did know that the system had to be created using trial and error and
experimentation. They had an idea: Instead of running a top-down system of state
schools, their idea was to allow independent charter schools to take over.
Charters are schools that are fully state-funded, free of charge and run by
independent entrepreneurs who follow their mission. Charter schools hire their
own teachers and set up their own curriculums. They often even build their
own facilities and then compete with one another to attract new students. As a
result of this bold effort to reform a lot of philanthropists and nonprofit
organizations invested into New Orleans education and hundreds of charter
schools opened up. Parents and their children suddenly had a lot of choices
in picking schools aligned with their ideas regarding quality education. The
schools that didn't attract enough children closed down again.
in 2019, 15 years later, almost half of all students performed at grade level.
High school graduation rates increased and college outcomes became
significantly better. New Orleans had become the first large American city
that does not operate a single traditional public school. The story of
New Orleans schools shows what is possible when old structures break down
and people have no choice but to leave a damaged system. Good people who were
stuck in a bad system then get an opportunity to start fresh. Parents and
children have the opportunity to choose for themselves the type of schools that
they believe in. How are the schools organized in your country? Do you think
that a reform of that system would benefit the students? If so, what change
would you propose?
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