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in Media

An Anti-Charter Hatchet Job, Annotated WWNO/Hechinger Report tries to blame McDonogh #35's struggles on charters, but fails miserably

by Peter Cook 30 April 2019, 15:26

If you’ve been following the output of the Hechinger Report over the past few years, it should be clear that those in charge at the outlet are pushing an anti-reform agenda in their coverage of New Orleans public schools. That bias is abundantly evident in their misleading, clickbait-y headlines about New Orleans schools, their continued […] More

in OPSB

Hynes Board May Have Violated State Ethics Laws Two UNO Employees On The Board Failed To Recuse Themselves From Hynes-UNO Partnership Votes

by Peter Cook 20 February 2019, 17:35

A review of records of the board of directors of Hynes Charter School has revealed that two board members may have violated state ethics laws by failing to recuse themselves from votes on the school’s partnership with the University of New Orleans (UNO) to open a new K-8 campus. The board members in question, Janice Janz […] More

in OPSB

Silence, Obfuscation & Lies A Backroom Deal Raises Serious Questions About OPSB's Commitment to Equity & Transparency

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by Peter Cook 15 February 2019, 11:44

When it was announced last November that Hynes Charter School would be partnering with the University of New Orleans (UNO) to open a new K-8 campus in fall of 2019, district officials portrayed the move as part of their broader mission to expand access to the city’s highest-performing schools. “We are very thankful to see this partnership […] More

in Media

Garbage In, Garbage Out… Zoe Sullivan's Piece on NOLA Public Schools Represents Journalism At Its Worst

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by Peter Cook 31 January 2019, 15:17

Back in 2014, in a piece I wrote in response to an error-laden NPR story on the transformation of public education in New Orleans, I explained why so many education advocates in the city had developed a sense of “journalism fatigue”: “Often, journalists fly in and build their stories around the loudest, most extreme voices […] More

in Charters

A Sibling Dispute In Court Could Spell Trouble for Smothers Academy Charter School's CEO Is Accused Of Financial Impropriety In Lawsuit Filed By Brother

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by Peter Cook 13 November 2018, 02:05

The CEO of a local charter management organization, which was investigated by the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) after a report on this blog raised questions about its management and financial practices, is being accused of financial impropriety in a lawsuit filed by his own brother. On March 28th, I published a post – “Red […] More

in NOLA

The Grades Are In… A Look At 2018 NOLA School Letter Grades & School Performance Scores

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by Peter Cook 9 November 2018, 17:21

On Thursday, the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) released annual school letter grades and School Performance Scores (SPS) – which are akin to number grades – for the 2017-18 school year. For the first time, the formulas used to measure school performance incorporate students’ growth from year to year on state standardized tests. Here’s how […] More

in Politics

Wave Of #RedForEd Candidates Crashes In The Voting Booth Very Few Teachers Running For State Office In WV, OK, KY & AZ Won On Election Night

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by Peter Cook 7 November 2018, 12:58

Update 11/15/2018: When this post was first published, it appeared that Kathy Hoffman, the Democratic candidate for Arizona’s State Superintendent of Public Instruction, had been narrowly defeated by her opponent, Frank Riggs. However, mail-in ballots shifted the tally in her favor in the week following the election and she was declared the winner on Monday, […] More

in NOLA

Peeking Behind The Curtain… Thirteen years after Katrina, UTNO is still a shadow of its former self

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by Peter Cook 6 September 2018, 23:00

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

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