Post-Katrina Data Provide National Lessons in Time for Storm's 10th Anniversary

NEW ORLEANS, June 11, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The Education Research Alliance for New Orleans (ERA-New Orleans) at Tulane University, in partnership with Tulane's Cowen Institute, invites the media to the first national conference to examine a decade of reforms to the New Orleans education system. "The Urban Education Future? Lessons From New Orleans 10 Years After Hurricane Katrina," a three-day conference to be held June 18–20, will include local and national critics and supporters of the reforms. Topics include the effects of the reforms on educational outcomes as well as the roles of teachers and instructional quality, charter schools and charter management organizations, school choice, charter authorization and closure, finances, and test-based accountability in shaping and implementing reforms.

"A decade after the Hurricane Katrina tragedy,all eyes are on New Orleans, and that includes its schools. We owe it to the city and its students to have a thorough debate about the successes and failures of what have been unprecedented changes," said ERA-New Orleans Director Douglas Harris, whose organization has released two research papers examining the effects of school choice and competition in New Orleans. "The conference will provide a chance to consider new and striking evidence, and what it means for New Orleans and the country."

In addition to the ERA-New Orleans researchers who will present up to 15 new studies, local presenters will include:

• Scott Cowen, president emeritus, Tulane University
• Patrick Dobard, superintendent, Recovery School District
• Doris Hicks, principal, Dr. King Charter School, New Orleans; member, National Assessment Governing Board
• Kira Orange Jones, member, Board of Elementary and Secondary Education; executive director, Teach For America New Orleans
• Henderson Lewis, superintendent, Orleans Parish School Board
• John White, Louisiana State Superintendent of Education

National speakers include:

• Sarah Carr, education journalist, author of "Hope Against Hope"
• Rick Hess, director of education policy studies, American Enterprise Institute
• Pedro Noguera, Peter L. Agnew Professor of Education, New York University
• James Shelton, former deputy secretary, U.S. Department of Education
• Randi Weingarten, president, American Federation of Teachers

Media participation: All sessions are open to members of the credentialed media at no charge. For those who cannot attend in person, some of the sessions will be streamed live, and a video of the sessions will be available two to three weeks after the conference. To follow or join the conversation on social media during the conference, use the hashtag #NOLAed. To attend in person, you must request access in advance. ERA-New Orleans will cover travel costs for a limited number of journalists. Those interested should call Kelly Selong at 571-814-3433 or email her at [email protected].

About the event: Most sessions will cover new data from ERA-New Orleans and other organizations. For more information, including a full list of speakers, visit http://educationresearchalliancenola.org/events.

When: June 18–20, 2015

• Thursday, June 18: 6–9 p.m., opening reception
• Friday, June 19: 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m., opening plenary and topical sessions
• Saturday, June 20: 8:30 a.m.–1 p.m., topical and final plenary sessions

Where: Sheraton New Orleans Hotel, 500 Canal St., New Orleans, LA 70130

Questions: Contact Kelly Selong by phone at 571-814-3433 or by email at [email protected]  

About ERA-New Orleans: The Education Research Alliance for New Orleans is based at Tulane University. Its mission is to produce objective, rigorous and useful research to understand the post-Katrina school reforms.

SOURCE Education Research Alliance for New Orleans

Related Links

http://educationresearchalliancenola.org