How Katrina Transformed New Orleans Schools

The Sunday Story podcast explores the transformation of New Orleans' public school system following Hurricane Katrina. The discussion covers the pre-Katrina struggles of the school system, including corruption and mismanagement, and the subsequent state takeover that led to a nearly all-charter school system. While test scores and graduation rates improved, the podcast also examines the challenges, such as the displacement of veteran teachers, the initial lack of community connection, and the overemphasis on test scores, which led to the closure of a school focused on innovative, hands-on learning. The episode further explores the debate over whether the charter school experiment was a success, highlighting the complexities and the ongoing efforts to refine the system by incorporating diverse measures of success and considering a return to more traditional, directly-run schools.