via Forward New Orleans for Public Schools
Forward New Orleans for Public Schools seeks candidate pledges on issues to improve educational opportunities and outcomes. FNOPS is a coalition of civic, business, and neighborhood organizations committed to increasing the number of quality public school options and ensuring equal access to quality education citywide.
The coalition released an issue-based platform ahead of the Orleans Parish School Board elections scheduled for Nov. 3. The platform establishes issues FNOPS defines as most important to improving educational opportunities and outcomes for New Orleans public school students.
FNOPS will seek a pledge from each candidate to implement the platform’s action items. The candidates’ responses will be published prior to the election as a tool for voters to assess the candidates.
click to read the platform (via Forward New Orleans for Public Schools)
“As we work to confront many of the challenges facing our schools in New Orleans, we see the Forward New Orleans for Public Schools platform as a good way to build consensus among education advocacy organizations around policies and ideas that support all students,” said Judy Reese Morse, president and CEO of Urban League of Louisiana, a FNOPS member organization.
“While providing support to the School Board towards maintaining the progress and positive developments of recent years in the areas of access to quality educational opportunities and the equitable distribution of resources, we must ensure that the momentum continues and that the resolve for progress remains strong.”
Following are the eight issues of the platform: (1) racial equity evaluation, planning and training; (2) COVID-19 and emergency planning; (3) system-wide strategic planning and stakeholder engagement; (4) expansion and replication of successful schools; (5) ensuring all students have equitable access to resources; (6) school standards and accountability; (7) resource management; and (8) collaboration on best practices.
“We look forward to working as a part of Forward New Orleans for Public Schools to support our elected School Board members and hold them accountable for addressing the important issues outlined in the platform,” Morse added.
Since 2012, FNOPS has helped School Board members and other stakeholders establish priorities for on-going progress and ensure accountability even as new, important issues and challenges emerge. Central to the FNOPS mission is the engagement of parents and the community in the election process to make certain true educational champions are elected.
“Following through on the issues laid out in this platform will mean better outcomes and more options for our young people after graduation, and it also means a brighter economic future for our city, region and state,” said, Coleman D. Ridley, Jr., managing director of the Business Council of New Orleans and the River Region, a FNOPS member organization.
Forward New Orleans for Public Schools includes other organizations such as: Agenda for Children, Campaign for Grade-Level Reading, Ed Navigator, Education Reform Now LA, Greater New Orleans Foundation, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Louisiana, Kingsley House, New Orleans & Co., New Orleans Chamber of Commerce, New Orleans Regional Black Chamber of Commerce, New Schools for New Orleans, Young Leadership Council, and many more.
The FNOPS platform can be found at FNOPS.org.
