Quick Take: Expulsions in NOLA Schools Fall 14% Falling Expulsion Rate Undermines Critics' Portrayal of Schools

On Wednesday, the Recovery School District (RSD) released data showing that expulsions fell 14% across the city’s schools between the 2013-14 and 2014-15 school years. In total, 199 students were expelled last year out of 45,803 enrolled in New Orleans schools; in S.Y. 2013-14, 231 students out of 44,306 were expelled.

In 2012, the RSD established a city-wide expulsion hearing process to ensure that schools were not unfairly kicking out students, and since that time, New Orleans’ expulsion rate has continued to fall. While that hasn’t stopped critics of the city’s post-Katrina reforms from portraying the city’s schools as draconian prisons, the truth is that the expulsion rate from New Orleans public schools is the lowest it has ever been.

Check out the interactive data map I created below to compare the expulsion rates at various New Orleans schools¹. You can also read more about the results here or analyze the RSD’s expulsion data spreadsheet for yourself here.