The leadership of Lycée Français de la Nouvelle Orléans will travel to Baton Rouge on Monday morning to discuss its second-grade expansion with the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.
The BESE School Innovation and Turnaround Committee (which is chaired by New Orleans-area members Kira Orange Jones and Jim Garvey) includes “a report on the status of Lycee Francais de la Nouvelle Orleans spring enrollment process” on its Monday morning agenda. Lycee Francais board president Jean Montes said in an email that he plans to attend the meeting, and that he is asking the other board members and parent-teacher organization members to attend as well.
The summary of the agenda item included with the board materials online is as follows:
At its March meeting, BESE heard a request from Lycee Francais de la Nouvelle Orleans (LFNO) to accelerate its growth and add a second grade for the 2012-2013 school year. As part of their material amendment, the school also requested that their second grade be open enrollment and not include requirements around language proficiency. BESE approved both material amendments and requested that the Department provide a report on the “report regarding the success of the expansion of the French foreign language program at Lycee Francais de la Nouvelle-Orleans to include 2nd grade students with no prior ability to speak French.”
Immediately following the BESE meeting, LFNO conducted their enrollment process as proposed in the material amendment request. LFNO provided the LDE with information regarding the outreach done by the school to families and the results of the school’s lottery, which was conducted shortly after the school’s open enrollment period ended. The school received 36 applications for second grade and conducted a lottery which resulted in 30 students being admitted. Of the 30 students admitted 6 students had no prior French experience and 12 were assessed as beginners in their language acquisition. The school, as stated in their material amendment request, is offering a free summer course for all students that were enrolled through the spring lottery and 29 of the 30 students have stated their intention to attend.
The committee meets at 9:45 a.m. Monday in Room 1-100, The Louisiana Purchase Room, of the Claiborne Building at 1201 N. Third Street in Baton Rouge.
Why is the PTO attending?
I can only assume that they want the PTO show their support for the expansion.
Why do they have to show support? Hasn’t the 2nd grade been approved, or is it in jeopardy? Just seems odd to me- not the kind of thing most ptos take part in.
At one of the PTO meetings, many parents voiced to the board that they wanted to be kept in the loop about 2nd grade and some were upset that they weren’t receiving status updates about whether or not 2nd grade would be added for next year. I think the board is simply inviting all parents to attend if they want.
Besides that, it simply makes sense that the parents of the school (PTO) would be the ones most interested in supporting the school before a state meeting.
LFNO is in a pickle indeed. Selfish board members wanted a second grade, but , to receive Federal start up money the second grade had to be open enrollment. Not only does that blow the French Accredidation out of the water, but also the first impression that LFNO makes as a French school. This Board member had to have been aware that the French National exams started in second grade? Is this another reason Jill Otis was so concerned and current the French principal? How are these new kids going take this exam? Did this board member assume that she could just take the best and the brightest from Audubon charter? 12 kids with limited French and 6 with none? Her quest to drestoy the two other French schools may backfire ( and the problems seem to keep adding up, beginning with only an 8% minority count according to the MFP numbers and no free and reduced lunch children, and possibly misusing public funds, not disclosing their budgets……….) BESE has been informed , the problem is that they do nothing, but it will catch up with them.
Again with the no free or reduced lunch children?! WE DID NOT HAVE LUNCH SERVICE LAST YEAR!!!! We all provided out own lunches. There are several families that qualify for it for this upcoming year. Where are you getting your information? Through rumors and innuendos? 8% minority count. Sounds low I agree but when you have a campus of only 135 kids 8% is 8%.
POSSIBLY misusing public funds? Possibly is a very general word to throw out there with no back up which takes us back to the rumors and innuendos.
I wouldn’t get too worked up over anything this Kally person has to say. Obviously from all of her past posts, she has a huge personal problem with this school and will say anything, true or not. I don’t understand the hatred and meaness behind it. No one, not even Paige, is out to “destroy” the other French schools. That makes NO sense at all! Competition is a good thing, it makes one rise to the occasion and perform at their best. There is enough demand and need in this city that we can easily have 2 charter French schools and one should not “destroy” the other. The mean, nasty remarks from bitter people will continue, but eventually those are the same people who will continue on to another issue to be bitter and mean over. I believe wanting a school to fail so bad says more about her than the school. I hope this school succeeds and I hope the others strive even harder to be greater than they already are because of the competition!
Also, if anyone can clarify, the last statement says 29 of 30 will attend…..Does that mean attend the summer program?
I totally agree ACS Parent. If there is enough interest for immersion learning this area can support many immersion schools. In fact I’m glad that BESE has allowed Lycee to be Type II. This allows families outside of Orleans Parish to participate. Though JP has immersion programs (2 counting the new ISL option), the threat of losing funds or not getting the school board support is something my family chose not to pursue any longer.
Seeing any immersion school thrive is important because it shows that it is a type of education that is important to the growth of a student not only academically but also globally.
LFNO and Audubon are not immersion programs. Language immersion programs teach the Louisiana curriculum in a foreign language. LFNO and Audubon teach the French government curriculum along with Louisiana’s in French. There is a major distinction there. The French government curriculum has the best mathematics curricula in the world, and it has a far more rigorous curriculum in general than that of Louisiana’s.
I have to disagree with your statements in regard to competition. Seems as if you have adopted John White’s excuse for making a bad decision in regard to a neophyte school’s expansion. I agree that all schools are in competition with one another, and should be. However, poaching and competition are two different things. This is about a LFNO board member poaching students from other schools. This is not about competition. I was a party to this board member’s antics while serving on the LFNO interim board. It wasn’t pretty. I was smart enough to recognize that she would be the undoing of the board, and perhaps the school, and stepped down. If indeed you are an ACS parent, which I doubt, why would you sanction such unscrupulous behavior by another school’s board member in regard to poaching students from your French program? Isn’t Audubon losing students from its French program to LFNO? Does that not jeopardize the ACS’ program? LFNO’s French program is not accredited by the French government, but Audubon’s is. The LFNO’s expansion to grade 2, over the objection of the French government, might prove to have caused French accreditation to be years in the making. Which is more important – premature expansion or accreditation? I can only surmise that the French government thought poaching was not up to its standards. If competition is your point, why would a parent remove his or her child from an accredited French program that has a record of accomplishment to a non accredited one that is a year old? That is the quandary.
Your notion that some people are mean, nasty and bitter is also bogus. We are all different. Because some do not agree with your opinion does not relegate them to the aforementioned status. Dealing with the conduct of the LFNO board in how it handles LFNO’s business is frustrating and provokes passionate responses from a group of people that do not want to see this school destroyed. That is the issue, and you, and others of your ilk do not get it. It is not about the board – anyone can serve on a board, but ensuring that a school which can achieve greatness survives to accomplish that goal. Again, the primary reason for a charter school’s demise is its board. I doubt very seriously that if this board were trained into oblivion, that it could ever become a seat of competency. Is that a mean statement? No, from my point of view, it is an accurate one. Look at the board’s history up to this point. If you contend that it is one of excellence or even competence then I have to think that you know nothing of accountability and performance. That is what the taxpayer demands.
why would a parent remove his or her child from an accredited French program that has a record of accomplishment to a non accredited one that is a year old? That is the quandary.
Look I have no knowledge of ACS or what they provide. Unfortunately, they are a Type I charter and my child is not allowed to attend. But I do know how JP schools are run and I’m much happier in this situation than in our previous year in immersion. Not that Ellis isn’t a wonderful school and my child’s teacher was excellent, but I just didn’t see the support from the school board to insure that my child would be able to attend this type of education through graduation. If in fact Lycee poached from ACS, there had to be some other underlying reason for people to leave in such multitudes. And of the 30 kids that are able to attend this year, could the have come from ISL, JP, Hynes and/or ACS. Not to mention the other children w/ little to no background in French they had to been unhappy from somewhere or just moving into our area.
It seems to me that will now 2 members of our board leaving and the new school year coming upon us LFNO is in store for a lot of changes. I say bring it on! And regardless of what my “ilk’ is, I am a passionate, involved parent & taxpayer. I see this school as a public school that is working hard for the betterment of its students and as a whole. I’m sorry if you can’t get past the hurt you have toward the school’s board and its members & families to see that we are working together for all the students. Most of your comments are negative toward how policies have been put into place and how the day to day functions occur. But what about our top notch education that is being provided to our students and the experiences that have had just in the 1 short year we have been open.
The comments about the French government not being happy w/ the school or practices seem to be unfounded. Please provide links, soundbites, quotes something to prove these to be factual. I have not seen anything in print or otherwise that would show approval or disapproval for that matter, so is what you are saying true? Who knows at this point. But it seems to be very disheartening that for someone that may have worked so hard to see Lycee open to be so negative towards it after the fact. Instead of wagging your tongue about all the wrong doing maybe you should be proud for what it has done.
I did not say that the French government was unhappy with the school. I said that it did not approve of the expansion to the second grade. Call the French Consulate. They should be able to field your questions. Common sense would dictate that the French government would not be happy about recruiting students out of the first school that it accredited to expand another school at that school’s expense.
I have no hurt in regard to the board. It may seem way to you. It was my decision to leave. I willingly worked with all of the board members but continually saw conflicts of interest. Frankly, I tired of an individual who made the board’s work difficult and trying. I invested a lot of time and energy in getting the charter approved. I do not want to see the school fail because the board does not act responsibly. Can I prove that? Look at the articles printed on this website. That is your proof . If you do not see board dysfunction in the stories, then there is nothing left to be said.
I believe that the LFNO children are receiving a good education. That comes not from the board, but from effective teaching. French teachers are well trained, and the French curriculum is outstanding. The French government sends those teachers to the school in hopes that the school will become a credit to the education community. However, the board sets the tone for the school. As a parent, you should be demanding transparency. Do you really believe that parents are receiving it? Have you read a copy of the charter? It should be on the website. Parents have been asking for two or three months for it to be placed on the website. The board hired Mary Carstens to update the website. Isn’t she an employee? How hard is it for her to place the charter on the LFNO website? Why no charter? Why doesn’t the board want the parents to have access to the charter? However, IBCrazy is right, I have beat this dead horse with a stick also. So glad that you are happy with your child’s education. That is a plus for you.
Joyous,
Check your facts, the charter is on the website: http://www.lfno.org/lfno/charter/
When you were employed by the school system there may not have been websites so I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you don’t understand how websites work. Typically, webmasters place content on websites given to them by their clients. They don’t create the content themselves. That being said, as a Lycee parent, I wanted to see the charter and so I emailed the Chairman of the board and he sent me the charter.
I’d love to see you channel your venom and anger into something positive.
Kevin.
The Charter was finally put up on their website yesterday. Joyous and others have been asking for this for months. This is one Step in the right direction. Joyous did do her homework, she probably just did not check the website YESTERDAY as it has not been there.
Joyous is also correct that most posts are just calling for this board to wake up and do the right and ethical thing. That in NO way means that people are calling for the school to close.
Kally,
I’m not sure when the charter was placed on the website but I first saw it after last week’s board meeting on Tuesday morning. Where is the outrage at Lusher for not having their charter online or Hynes or any of the other schools. If you want it- ASK for it! Public records request- surely you know what that is.
What is the ‘right and ethical thing’. Name calling and rumor spreading? Our children are happy and receiving and excellent education in a nurturing environment. Get a real cause.
I would hardly say that what Ms vanbuskirk and others are saying are rumors. These statements seem pretty well substantiated to me. No one is trying to close the school- just make the board follow the law and act ethically.
It’s obvious, Joyous, that you do not have the best interests of LFNO in mind when you rant over and over about the same points. Just the notion of board or the school “poaching” students is laughable at best! Since your comments have become so predictable at this point, maybe you should find some fresh content or move on to another obsession.
Perhaps you are right IBCrazy. My comments have become predictable. Your chinese stick was a bit much. If people do not agree with you, they are branded communists? However, rather than sticking my head in the sand, I am trying to get this board to act responsibly. If you think that it is okay to violate state laws, then you are part of the problem. Perhaps you want to return to the wild west. I do not. My concern is to see that this school continues. However, there are legal remedies to get this board to comply with the law. I will not continue to beat a dead horse with a stick. The law will do that for me. Thank you so much for the nudge.
There are a lot of people out there that are trying everyday to bring equality and to raise the education standards to NOLA’s public schools. A great deal of these people have been doing this for decades. They are wonderful people and should be admired for all their efforts and the progress that has been made.
A few of you think that a few of these previous posts are spreading rumors……making up info about Lycee…out to destroy the Lycee.. etc
BUT THE FACTS ARE THE FACTS!!!
Please, read all this attached/below information before you call and verbally attack or accuse people of spreading rumors! My question to you and it needs not be answered is–what have you done for equality in NOLA’s public schools? How have you raised standards in the public school system? Demand the Lycee’s board for answers!! Ask BESE to step up!
From the Multiple Statistics By SiteCode For MFP and Other Public School Funded Student Membership
Data: Counts and percentages by gender, race/ethnicity, free/reduced lunch, at-risk, English proficiency, grade placement, and age over 21.
The Lycee only has reported (all public schools do this–you have to remember the Lycee’s pre-k program is private and by law can use ZERO federal funds!!)
4 minority males
5 minority females
ZERO free lunch
ZERO reduced lunch
3 are considered MFP at-risk
http://www.researchonreforms.org/html/documents/LyceeFrancais-CharterSchoolwithTuition.pdf
Lycee Francais Charter School:
Charging Tuition Violates Federal Charter School Funding Rules
Dr. Barbara Ferguson Research on Reforms, Inc. (October 2011)
The Lycee Francais de la Nouvelle Orleans charter school opened this year with only prekindergarten and kindergarten. Lycee Francais received a federal Public Charter School Program (PCSP) grant, which requires the school to be tuition-free; and, at the same time, the school collected nearly $5,000 tuition for each child enrolled in prekindergarten. Lycee Francais included prekindergarten in its application for federal funds, but did not disclose that it charged tuition. But, in a separate application, which it submitted to BESE for approval as a charter school, Lycee Francais acknowledged that it charged tuition for prekindergarten. Since prekindergarten children are re-enrolled into the tuition-free kindergarten, and since only prekindergarten and kindergarten are entry levels into the elementary grades, Lycee Francais is able to manipulate its enrollment in favor of those who can afford to pay for prekindergarten. The misuse of federal funds in support of a tuition program, along with the re-enrollment of those prekindergarten children, who pay tuition, into the tuition-free elementary grades is a tragic example of how the charter school concept is manipulated.
Lycee Francais, like most charter schools in New Orleans, are not schools of choice for parents. Rather, it is the school that chooses its students; and, in this case, the choice is based on wealth. By request of readers, additional information on this misuse of the charter school concept is provided in this article.
It takes a lot of money to get into Lycee Francais de la Nouvelle Orleans charter school in uptown New Orleans. According to their brochure (Appendix A), the cost of prekindergarten is $4,720, which includes tuition of $4,570 plus a consumables fee of $150.
Prekindergarten children pay tuition. Kindergarten and the following elementary grades, which are planned to be added each year, are tuition-free. But, the catch is that prekindergarten and kindergarten are the only entry level grades to the elementary school.i
Entering prekindergarten is through tuition. Entering kindergarten is through re-enrollmentii first, and then through a lottery. The prekindergarten children who paid tuition of nearly $5,000 each get to fill up the kindergarten spots, and eventually fill up the entire school, since there are no other entry level grades.
What does it take to get into Lycee Francais?
The Deceptive Lycee Francais Application for Federal Charter School Grant Funding –
— Tuition Not Mentioned
The Lycee Francais application for federal funds from the Public Charter School Program (PCSP) was submitted to the United States Department of Education, and funding was granted in the amount of nearly $140,000. (Appendix B) On the Cover Page of the Lycee Francais application: http://www.researchonreforms.org/html/documents/LyceeFrancaisPCSPApplicationCover.pdf , there is a signed assurance that the school will “comply with all provisions of the Non-regulatory Guidance for the Public School Grant Program of the United States Department of Education: http://www.researchonreforms.org/html/documents/USDOECharterSchoolsGuidance.pdf This guidance states that:
“The enactment of State charter school laws is solely a State prerogative, and the definition of a “charter school” under State law is a matter of State policy. However, in order to receive CSP funds, a charter school must meet the definition in section 5210(1) of the ESEA, which is as follows: The term “charter school” means a public school that: Does not charge tuition.”
And, according to the application submitted for the federal charter school funds, Lycee Francais included prekindergarten as a part of its charter school, and included prekindergarten in the budget submitted with the application.iii However, Lycee Francais does not disclose that the prekindergarten is a tuition program.
The Louisiana State Department of Education office that oversees charter schools claims that the prekindergarten can charge tuition since that office only regulates kindergarten – 12th.iv However, their statement is not consistent with the Lycee Francais Application for PCSP funds: http://www.researchonreforms.org/html/documents/LyceeFrancaisPCSPApplication.pdf , which specifically includes prekindergarten as a part of the charter school, and which specifically includes a request for funds for prekindergarten as well as other grades:
• “Lycee Francais de la Nouvelle Orleans will be a Pre-K through 12th grade school.” (p.1) • “The curriculum begins at the pre-kindergarten level and continues through the 12th
grade.” (p.2) • “Lycee Francais will be the first Pre-K through 12th grade French school within the
universe of public U.S. Charter Schools.” (p.3) • “LFNO will open with Pre-K3 – Kindergarten and add one or more grade level(s) each
year thereafter culminating in 12th grade. The first year’s student age range will be 3 – 5
or 6. Ultimately, the student age range will be 3 – 18 or 19.” (p.3) • “LFNO offers PreK-3 in addition to PreK-4 to prepare kids for Kindergarten (p.4) • “Lycee Francais will have space for 135 Pre-K through Kindergarten students the very
first year.” (p.6) (Source: Lycee Francais Application for Public Charter School Program (PCSP) Funds)
The Lycee Francais PCSP Budget: http://www.researchonreforms.org/html/documents/LyceeFrancaisPCSPBudget.xls that accompanies its application lists funds to be used to purchase supplies and equipment for the prekindergarten.v
The Lycee Francais application never reveals to the U.S. Department of Education that the prekindergarten charges tuition. Lycee Francais does not disclose this because the PCSP federal funds can only be used for a charter schools that is “tuition-free.”
It can only be concluded that “Yes, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education knew of this deception” because BESE first received and approved the Lycee Francais application for the PCSP funds. The U.S. Department of Education entrusts BESE and other state school boards to distribute the federal charter funds received for the state.
BESE knew that Lycee Francais was going to operate a tuition prekindergarten,vi as this information was contained in Lycee Francais’ application to BESE for charter school approval. (See Lycee Francais Charter School Application: http://www.researchonreforms.org/html/documents/2010ApplicationforLyceeFrancaisNewOrleans.p df ) Prior to applying for federal funds, Lycee Francais had to first become approved as a charter school.
In applying to BESE to become a charter school, Lycee Francais advised that the prekindergarten will be a tuition program:
“Lycee Francais will not charge tuition except for its prekindergarten.” (p.45)
The Louisiana Department of Education attempts to justify allowing Lycee Francais to charge tuition in prekindergarten by stating that Louisiana’s charter school office only monitors grades kindergarten through 12th. However, that justification falls short when the Louisiana Department of Education advances federal charter school funds to Lycee Francais for its tuition prekindergarten program.
While a state can define a charter school however it wants, only charter schools that meet the federal definition can receive charter school funds. In applying for federal charter school funds, the state and the operators of the charter school must sign an assurance that they will abide by the Non-regulatory Guidance for the Public School Grant Program of the United States Department of Education: http://www.researchonreforms.org/html/documents/USDOECharterSchoolsGuidance.pdf . ” This guidance states that: The term “charter school” means a public school that: Does not charge tuition.”
Nearly $140,000 of federal charter school funds was granted to Lycee Francais, whose application did not disclose that the prekindergarten charged tuition, but whose application did include funding for prekindergarten.
This misuse of the charter school concept, and this misuse of federal charter school funds, abuses the purpose for which charter schools are intended.
Did the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education Know of this Deception?
Conclusion
Endnotes:
i Lycee Francais Charter School Application, p. 8. ii Lycee Francais Charter School Application, p. 47. iii Lycee Francais Public Charter School Grant Program application, pages 3, 4 and 6. iv Email from Veronica Brooks, Office of Parental Options, La Dept. of Educ., September 13, 2011: “Preschools are not technically part of charter schools since . . . no charter school grants/funding can be used towards pre-K.” v Budget contained within Lycee Francais Public Charter School Grant Program application. vi Lycee Francais Charter School Application, p. 45.
APPENDICES A – B:
http://theneworleanstribune.com/charterschools.htm
The Enrollment Practices
of New Orleans Charter Schools:
Intended and Unintended Consequences
Over the years, opponents of charter schools and voucher programs have cited numerous concerns and the adverse consequences of such programs in offering a quality education for all children. One of the most feared concerns is that charter schools and voucher programs can be used to limit student access to particular schools based on race, class or ethnicity. Almost 60 years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the Brown vs. Board of Education that “separate but equal” was unconstitutional and ordered the integration of all public schools. Given the autonomy and lack of oversight of charter schools in New Orleans it appears that it is quite easy to ignore the ruling in the Brown Case. Have we gone back in time?
In December 2011, the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) approved the charter for a new French Immersion School intended to serve the greater New Orleans area. French immersion is a form of bilingual education in which a child who does not speak French as his or her first language receives instruction in school in French. In most French-immersion schools, children will learn to speak French and learn subjects such as history, geography and science in French. French Immersion Schools generally cater to a relative small population of families. There were two such schools in New Orleans. In most cities there is only one French Immersion School due to the limited interest of the population. The Lycee Francais de la Nouvelle Orleans (Lycee Francais) has now been open for almost an entire school year. In its infancy it has managed to give a black eye to the already tenuous charter school movement governed by the BESE Board and sponsored by the state of Louisiana.
Lycee Francais entered the charter school “scene” under the radar using word of mouth, Facebook and other social networking methods to recruit children for their inaugural school year. This was unusual given the marketing practices of other charter schools that utilize billboards, bus stop boards, radio and TV to solicit students. It is not surprising, given the under-the-radar application process, that the racial make-up of this very special Uptown French charter school is only 16.98 percent minority and 7.55 percent African American. It is even more alarming to note that this school has absolutely no children who qualify for free or reduced lunch.
Based on Lycee Francais’ original charter application, BESE promised the school $600,000 ($200,000 annually for three years) in federal “start-up” funding which is intended for open enrollment schools that do not have selective admissions. However, Lycee Francais’ original charter specifically included a tuition-only pre-Kindergarten that would ultimately become the non-tuition paying kindergartens. The charter also required French proficiency for any child to enter first grade. Lycee Francais was allowed to open, recruit and promote pre-Kindergarten and kindergarten-age children (and later children entering first grade) based on these two original requirements that almost guaranteed that the Lycee Francais would remain predominately white and wealthy.
Shell games
Let’s fast forward to October of 2011, when lip service was given to the idea of a new lottery for kindergarten that would eliminate the issue of tuition-paying students automatically receiving a space in the “public” kindergarten. The tuition paying pre-K students were told additional kindergarten classes would be opened to accommodate all of them if necessary. The “open lottery” never happened. Lycee Francais merely moved their application period to January 2012 and then back to December 2011 (a short school month) with very little notice. This was a clever move that again promised an applicant pool small enough to avoid a lottery thus guaranteeing the predominately white and affluent tuition-paying students a place in the program.
In keeping with natural matriculation, current kindergarten students would feed into the newly-opened first grade and new applications for first grade were accepted with the French proficiency requirement still firmly in place in the school’s charter. Posed with the threat of losing (or not receiving) the federal start-up funding, Lycee Francais requested that BESE allow them to remove the French proficiency requirement from their charter. But, by removing this requirement the school in essence is not, by definition, a French Immersion school. It is noteworthy that this request was made to BESE and subsequently approved only a couple of weeks after Lycee Francais’ shell game of an application period closed. A move, yet again, impeccably timed to keep Lycee Francais’ current racial and socio-economic make up safe.
After initiating a coup with the Archdiocese of New Orleans to displace Milestone Sabis Academy (a charter school with 98.99 percent minority children, 94.68 percent black children, and 97.2 percent “at-risk children”), Lycee Francais is now occupying one of the few viable school buildings in Uptown New Orleans with BESE’s blessing. Habitable school buildings in New Orleans are in high demand. The Milestone Sabis Academy will have to struggle to find a new place for their student body.
So, now we have a new charter school receiving federal start-up funding, because they have revised their charter to indicate they are “open enrollment.” However, in practice it will only be possible for Lycee Francais to be an “open enrollment” school if it revises its current French immersion curriculum to include an English-speaking component.
The charter of Lycee Francais states that outreach to the Haitian community will serve as a vehicle to attract an “at-risk” population, but where are the “at-risk” Haitian children? The charter further commits to pay for a French teacher for McMillan’s First Steps, an effort that would have presumably assisted with racial diversity. But, where are the Black children? Where are the poor children?
Latest census data indicate that New Orleans’ population is approximately 60 percent Black. Forty-two percent of New Orleans’ children live in poverty. If the goal of the charter school movement is to serve the communities in which the schools are located, why are there so few Black children at Lycee Francais? Why are there no poor children at Lycee Francais? And where is the outrage?
It is obvious the Lycee Francais has manipulated its enrollment practices with BESE’s approval to ensure a white student population, which is not representative of New Orleans. In 2012, we have a public school using public funds that operates an enrollment system that eliminates equal access for all children. This school has solicited students, established a tuition-paid feeder pre-K program that guarantees enrollment into kindergarten each year. This can only happen in an unaccountable school system with no oversight by BESE and the Recovery School District.
In this charter school craze, it is apparent that we have overlooked some critical issues around the relationship of charter schools and government. First we must realize when a charter school opens it has a contractual agreement with the government just like any other public service that government contracts out to private vendors. The contracting of a public service is done for two reasons; cost savings and efficiency. In establishing such contracts, the government establishes the ground rules for the execution of the contract and monitors the work of the contractors. With that, charter schools are contractors just like any other contractor hired by government to perform a government service. However, in the establishment of charter schools, we have not established the necessary ground rules or monitored the execution of the contract. Lycee Francais charter school is the perfect example. This is evident by the following:
• Why would BESE approve a French Immersion School when two schools already existed in New Orleans? Just a little research would have told them that two schools were more than adequate to serve the population. Additionally, there are more pressing educational needs that must be addressed in New Orleans.
• Why would BESE allow this school to have a tuition-paid pre-Kindergarten program with “guaranteed” admission into an open enrollment school.To have such a practice is clearly allowing schools using public funds to openly practice class discrimination.
The purpose of reforming the public school district post Hurricane Katrina was to improve the learning environment for the tens of thousands of students suffering in “failing schools”. In its recent assessment, the Louisiana State Department of Education ranked the Recovery School District (charter and non-charter schools) academically 69 out of 70 school districts in Louisiana. Despite the billions of dollars, despite all of the media spin, and despite claims from state education officials, the education reforms in New Orleans have failed.
As state and local proponents of the privatization of public education proudly claim success, the realities are that in addition to the reforms failing our children academically, we have gone back in time to system that produced some scary consequences. The privatization of public education in New Orleans has created an environment where a charter school, managed by a private board and using public funds, can circumvent federal, state and local policy and admit students based on race and class. This situation raises a pressing question that in many ways explains the unfounded success being touted by state education officials.
Dr. Raynard Sanders is an education consultant and host of The New Orleans Imperative, a weekly radio show that focuses on public education for more info please visit http://www.theneworleansimperative.org.
Karran Harper-Royal is a long time education activist and Assistant Director of the Pyramid Community Parent Resource Center for more info please visit http://www.pyramidparentcenter.org.
Audubon also charges for pre K French, with guaranteed admission into Kindergarten. I cannot afford private school, but I was able to pay (sliding fee) tuition monthly through First Bank & Trust. Does anyone know if Lycee offers this as well? And as far as free and reduced lunch children, how does that work if the school does not offer a lunch program yet?
Well you’ve hit the nail on the head Louie. I had hoped that Lycee would bring the level of education up for the “at risk” in the city of New Orleans. I had hoped that this would be a small part of the long term solution to our crime epidemic. Instead Lycee provides a taxpayer funded facility for the well to do.
Well good for you all for clawing back some of your tax dollars from the government. But bad for the future of our city and bad for the other taxpayers, as you have just created another separate but (un-)equal education opportunity for those well to do families that still leaves the poor out in the cold.
So far so good, you’ve clearly pulled the wool over the eyes of the BESE board, and you’ll likely string this along long enough that the system will be entrenched by the time anyone in Baton Rouge gets goaded into action.
This is it completely. I do NOT hope this school fails. I want them to be a New Orleans Public School, with all sorts of kids. I realize that there are many parents out there who have put their eggs in the Lycee “basket.” Their public school options (if their children are older than Kindergarten age) are iffy at best. I would hate to see them without a school for their kids. That said, I am terribly upset that BESE has allowed this school to receive start up funding when it did not initially meet the criteria to be eligible for that funding. They still may not be in compliance (who can tell…a budget has not been posted). I am upset that Lycee’s board has undermined other schools and poached children (and that this has been a long term issue, not a short term one). I am upset that this board has rewritten or broken the rules at every turn and then they just say oops! BESE then says..OK..no problem. I am upset that the private Pre-K feeds the upper levels with no sliding scale.
I wonder how a zoo campus will be funded. I have heard rumblings that the Lycee Board has decided to rotate their K through 2 classes into and out of the Zoo campus throughout the year. Is this an effort to pay for the space with public funds? If the upper levels are there even for a short time, can they pay the rent with federal money? Rotating children in and out of a campus could be disconcerting for the kids at best. Is this something parents want? It just does not seem like the board is making choices based on what is best for the kids. Growth and ambition seem to be playing a large part in this. Lycee’s Board and the State Government both need to review their motives. What has happened with Lycee has opened my eyes to the practices of our State Goverment with regard to the fate of New Orleans’ Public School System…this and then vouchers…what is next?
Ms. Van Buskirk-
“Why would a parent remove his or her child from an accredited French program that has a record of accomplishment to a non accredited one that is a year old”, you ask? I am in fact an Audubon Parent and can answer this question for you:
Outdated, unsafe, disgusting classrooms, bathrooms that are unfit for children to use, rude administration with no vision, rude and disrespectful board of directors, I could go on and on. Before the Charter school movement we had to put up with that. Not anymore.
Let me ask you, what do you know about Audubon as it stands today? When was the last time you were on either ACS campus? When was the last time you went to the office and attempted to register your child only to be ignored or talked down to? When was the last time your child came home from school and told you that he/she was afraid to use the bathroom so they didn’t ALL day?? Or that the bathroom floor was covered in water that came up past the middle of their shoes so they went inside to the ‘cleaner’ bathrooms only to be yelled at b/c they weren’t allowed to use the inside restrooms? When was the last time you sat in a PTO meeting regarding lead soil on the site of your child’s school and were yelled at by the Chairman of the Board and watched as he (Rev. Tilton) said “Sit down and Be Quiet, Boy” to another parent, among other things?? When was the last time you spoke to a parent or student in the French program at Audubon? How dare you write about a subject you know nothing about?
The truth is, Ms. Van Buskirk, no one is “poaching” students from ACS. We are leaving in droves, and for good reason. Take a look at the numbers of the 6th grade class at Audubon. Lusher opens another class in 6th grade for a reason and I believe it is in part to accommodate the many unhappy Audubon families.
Audubon parents have been unhappy for a long time. ISL, Ecole Bilingue and now Lycee were all created initially by disgruntled Audubon parents. Over the years many of us have attempted to make a difference, speaking to the FAME Board, administration, city council, OPSB, only to be told that if we didn’t like it we could go. Well now we are!
You are wrong– Ecole bilingue was founded as a private preschool. Years later the parents there wanted it to expand into an elementary school.
Isl and Haynes were co-founded by a group that wanted more children to have the rights to attend French schools and gave high school options that Audubon was not offering. Also, those two allowed children not from Orleans parish to have this option!
The last I heard both Audubon campus’ are being renovated. The lower campus a major overhaul and the upper campus is getting brand new restrooms.
I have grandchildren at Audubon and people are not leaving there in droves! WHY would a parent take their greatest investment out of an French accredited
My post was sent too early
Why would a parent take their greatest investment out of a highly rated French accredited school and put them in a public school with no track record! The Lycee is not accredited and it will be years maybe decades before that is even considered. Why would a parent pull their child from accredited French program put their child into grades 1,2, and soon the older grades that are open enrollment— meaning the students speaks no French! Why? Why?
Parents need
I am sorry–my old laptop keeps freezing up on me.
A couple of my grandchildren attend Audubon-by First and Second grades in the French accredited curriculum the students are reading and writing in French!! Doing wonderful French math. Once again–WHY WHY would any parent take their child from a proven accredited program and put them into one that is not. The Lycee has announced most of the children in these upper grades have no prior French or if so at very low levels. This will hold back any child coming from Audubon or Ecole Bilingue.
Remember your children–your grandchildren are not experiments. They are the future–they are our greatest investment.
Another Audubon Parent–I could tell you plenty of stories of having to use an outhouse in the snow and rain. Your child is attending a public school–not private. If you want nicer facilities–provide them, raise funds, go paint the school–stop your complaining and help improve.
So Louie, you’re saying that only children at private schools are entitled to clean restrooms or state of the art facilities? Guess what, Louie- Audubon receives $8800 in MFP funds to educate my child. Many private schools charge much less. Parochial school tuition is around $5000 annually. Somehow they manage to provide clean safe facilities for their students.
Outhouses??? It’s 2012. You’re correct, I could go paint the school or just send my child to a school that is doing the job much better. That’s the great thing about parent choice and the charter movement.
Any questions about ACS renovating bathrooms can be read at the link below.:).
https://uptownmessenger.com/2012/05/audubon-charter-school-may-board-meeting-live-coverage/
Louis is correct. You ARE wrong. To add to Louie’s statement, Ecole Bilingue was created years ago prior to Audubon becoming a charter school and also prior to the current Audubon Administration. EB was a Pre-K option because Audubon could only offer half day gifted pre-k. EB became a better full service option to prepare children for Audubon. The parents then decided to add classes and become a private grade school as well. ISL also was created well before Audubon became a charter school and before the current administration. As I understand it there was an administrative falling out of sorts with other administrators (I am not so sure it was a major parent thing). ISL offered more language and became a different type of program that really started to thrive AFTER Katrina when the State took over schools in New Orleans. Talk about beating a dead horse .. how about with this angry parent thing…and the bathroom thing…
Nola and Louie are asking the question why, but when they hear about it first-hand from a parent who is trying to answer their question they try to discredit her/him and drown her/him out. If you are a parent who is reading these comments in an attempt to make an educated decision on whether to send your children to LFNO, then I encourage you to take the time to attend a PTO meeting or engage the board members and faculty in person. Only then will you be able to decipher the truth about the school and its future. Please be very careful when considering any of the misleading and negative comments that are being made regularly by the same malcontent individuals (I’m not naming names but… Nola, Louie, Kally, and Joyous.)
Another Audubon Parent,
I second everything you have said. With two children in the ACS French Program for many years, I am over the moon to be able to get out of ACS (at least for one of my children, the other is too old). For many years ACS has been the only French government curriculum public school so I felt was stuck there. My children have generally had a very good experience inside of the classroom. The good ends there. I have been talked down to by administration & FAME board alike. I was in attendance at the lead meeting you referred to and can confirm the borderline abusive language by Rev. Tilton to a room full of parents/students/staff. At that point (during the stunned silence) after Rev. Tilton said “That is why you alls children act the way they do.” He must have read my mind and every other parents mind in the room because Rev. Tilton then said, “That’s right. I said it,” as if he was proud of himself. If I have to be spoken to that way when I go to a meeting about my child’s welfare guess what happens? I start to hate the school.
My child has also endured horrible classrooms and restrooms that are not only barely functioning (something that is difficult to blame on ACS because of building/repair cost) but unsanitary because they almost NEVER have toilet paper or soap. I asked the janitor on duty daily for soap and toilet paper to be put in the restroom. I checked every day when I picked up my child for two weeks and it was never supplied. My child carries these daily.
I seriously contemplated taking out a loan and putting my kids in EB at the expense of other family necessities, but I just could not swing it when I crunched the numbers.
I am an active parent/volunteer for the school. I give to the annual fund and do everything I can to help the school. The last few years it has become apparent to me that ACS is not where I want to be/participate. If the school is right for your child, your family stay there and love it. But PLEASE do not denigrate, denounce or cast aspersions toward people who wish to leave. LFNO did not drive me away from ACS. ACS did that on its own.
I am not sure that the intention of the board member was to destroy competition, but I do believe it was a selfish act. After knowing this board member for years, it is my belief that this issue was about driving to two schools. This sounds petty and ridiculous, but this is about the reality of convenience. Adding a second grade at LFNO resolved that problem. I also think that she wanted her children to attend LFNO because she believes that it is a good school, and it is. However, last year, LFNO was not the right fit for her as it did not offer a LA4 program, for her four-year old, which was free . She would have had to pay tuition at LFNO. Audubon provided that convenience for her last year. It seems as if this board member is all about what works for her.
I am very concerned about the outcome of this second grade expansion as it places an undue burden upon the two new second grade French teachers. They are facing 29 students who are either not fluent in French or have no French experience. Because these students have not matriculated through the LFNO program in K or first, it is unclear if all or some are on grade level. Add to that component that most have not been engaged in the French government curriculum, and you might have a recipe for disaster. The test adds another challenge as its outcome will determine the real academic reputation of the school. Up to this point, LFNO has none. If some of the new second grade students cannot be brought up to snuff, their test scores could lower the academic standing of the school. Compounding this reality, add in the space problem. LFNO will move into a new building this year. It has one classroom at the zoo, and three at the Claiborne campus. With the addition of one more pre-K 3 class totaling 3, two more pre-K 4’s totaling 4, 4 more K’s – two more than last year, two first grades and two second, and it might cause yet another catastrophe, as school space in New Orleans is at a premium. The reality is that the school might outgrow its space at the end of this new school year. There is no room for growth, as the current students move up in grade levels and what about the proposed middle grades in 2013. Mix into this probable situation, other charter schools competing for any space, and this could prove to create a major crisis for LFNO. When LFNO is out in the open market competing for more space, how will it be received? Already, the board has created contention with its competitors because of the school’s expansion, poaching other students, and the method used to acquire the new building. It has damaged its community reputation and appeal. What are the chances of LFNO acquiring a building over its competitors with this history? Has the board ever considered long and short-term planning?
In the end, choices and their consequences tend to teach us about reality. Because of my legislative background, I had to always consider the impact that our legislation had in years to come. What were its outcomes, and would the legislation harm rather than help?I have learned the hard way not just to think about today, because in reality, it is only about tomorrow.