Saturday, November 19, 2011

School choice in New Orleans

New Orleans has some ambitious plans for a unified school choice plan in a city whose schools will include many independent charter schools. Here's a ten minute video of an interview with Recovery School District Superintendent John White. Starting at minute 3 it is about school choice.

This is work in which IIPSC, the Institute for Innovation in Public School Choice, is lending support in market design and technology.


Here's an earlier story: Recovery School District chief plans central enrollment system, technical training, more

"The head of the state-run Recovery School District, which governs most of the city's public schools, issued a wide-ranging strategic plan Tuesday aimed at tackling the district's most chronic shortcomings.
 ...
"He is promising a central enrollment system by next year, so parents and guardians -- especially those looking to place children midyear -- will be able to ask the district to find them an open spot, rather than having to contact one school after another.
...
"Most, if not all, of the district's schools will eventually be charters...

"On the central enrollment system ... White provided new details, explaining that parents will be asked to list their top school choices on a common application. The district will be able to weigh factors like a school's distance from a child's home, and assign each student to a building by looking at available seats in both charters and direct-run campuses."

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