CLE is pleased to publish this study that identifies a path forward for New Orleans’ uniquely decentralized school system to coordinate services for students with disabilities through an Educational Service Agency while maintaining its commitment to autonomous charter schools.
In September 2022, CLE initiated a multi-phase study in New Orleans to assess the feasibility of centralizing aspects of special education by creating an Educational Service Agency. CLE initiated this study in partnership with local stakeholders to help the all-charter school system identify structural solutions to its ongoing challenges, ensuring that New Orleans students with disabilities have equitable access to high-quality supports and services.
According to our stakeholder engagement, a large majority of school stakeholders (73%) agreed that centralizing aspects of special education would improve their ability to meet the needs of students with disabilities. Stakeholders emphasized the potential benefits of centralization and the specific services and programs that should be considered for centralization. Given the well-documented challenges, centralization presents an opportunity to impact students and address systemic inequities directly.
CLE’s findings include:
- New Orleans school and family perceptions of the current state of special education program implementation.
- Recommendations and findings on the core issue: the feasibility of establishing an organization to centralize aspects of special education, including the suitable host and the essential criteria for autonomous charter schools to consider participation.
- Exploring centralization through an Educational Service Agency hosted by NOLA Public Schools.
We shared our comprehensive findings on December 5, 2023, in New Orleans to an audience of over 50 local charter school and special education leaders, nonprofit partners, local funders, and community members. Local education leaders mobilized in response to our recommendations, and NOLA Public Schools began work to explore implementation. We are currently supporting NOLA Public Schools to design an Educational Service Agency with interested local charter schools, and have recruited a team of external consultants from Trepwise Strategy Consulting and Afton Partners to contribute to the design process.
read the executive summary | Dec. 2023 Read the Full Report
Educational Service Agency Handout Current and Proposed Future State Model
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