The United Teachers of New Orleans (UTNO) was once the largest union local in Louisiana and a powerful force in local politics. That changed thirteen years ago, when Hurricane Katrina flooded New Orleans, killed nearly 1,000 residents, and displaced hundreds of thousands more. In the immediate aftermath of the storm, the city’s perennially-failing public school […] More
This story has been updated with additional information below. The Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) released 2016-17 School and District Performance Scores and letter grades on Tuesday, and while the summative performance of the state’s public schools rose from a “C” to a “B” this past year, the results from New Orleans’ schools can only […] More
Voters in New Orleans will be heading to the polls next month for the first round of several high-profile citywide races. While the contests for mayor and various city council seats have drawn plenty of attention, three important school board millages are also on the ballot (literally at the very bottom, so don’t miss them). […] More
On Friday, Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB) Superintendent Henderson Lewis announced that he will turn New Orleans’ five remaining traditional public schools into charters by the start of the 2017-18 school year. Lewis will present his transition plan to the school board on Tuesday, although it will be little more than a formality. Under state […] More
A recent filing with the Louisiana Board of Ethics suggests that the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) is seeking to influence the upcoming Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB) elections. On September 16th, an AFT-affiliated political action committee called Orleans Future PAC filed a statement of organization with the state ethics board. Meladie Munch, former president […] More
I’ll be on Garland Robinette’s radio show, “The Think Tank” on WWL AM 807/FM 105.3 on Monday to discuss the ongoing legal battle over a new funding plan for New Orleans schools. Earlier this week, attorneys for Lusher and Lake Forest, two selective-admissions charter schools under the Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB), argued in federal […] More
Just when New Orleans is unifying behind a plan for a new era in school governance, the activist group Justice & Beyond is trying to drag the education system back to its dark ages. It was recently uncovered that the faux civil rights organization is backing three candidates in the upcoming Orleans Parish School Board […] More
On Tuesday, teachers at Morris Jeff Community School approved a contract between the board and the United Teachers of New Orleans (UTNO). Union members and representatives of the school’s board of directors had been negotiating the contract for over a year. On Monday, board members unanimously backed the agreement. What did teachers at Morris Jeff […] More
Last week, The Lens reported that lawyers for International High School of New Orleans (IHSNO) are challenging the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) claim of jurisdiction over their school. In May, NLRB held an election at IHSNO in which a majority (26-18) of teachers voted to form a union with the United Teachers of New Orleans (UTNO). It […] More
Teachers at Lusher Charter School have rejected an effort backed and funded by the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and United Teachers of New Orleans (UTNO) to organize the school. National Labor Relations Board officials held a secret ballot on Tuesday that asked teachers whether they wanted AFT/UTNO to serve as their exclusive bargaining representative. When […] More
Bill Murphy has spent the past 16 years as a K-12 educator. He got his start as a special education teacher in rural Louisiana. He has since worked as a teacher and special education director at a charter school in Massachusetts and as the principal of what became one of the highest-performing traditional public schools […] More
On Tuesday, teachers at Lusher Charter School will officially vote on whether to form a union. Over the past couple weeks, they have been bombarded by advocates on both sides of the debate, so I won’t belabor the points I’ve already made. However, given all the accusations flying about recently, it’s important to clear the […] More