Thursday, January 05, 2012
Choice Media
New Orleans, Louisiana was chosen as host city of National School Choice Week’s opening festivities, event planners announced Wednesday. On January 21, at 10:30am CST, school choice activists will convene upon the University of New Orleans’ Lakefront Arena. The event is expected to draw thousands of parents, students and teachers from across the state and nation.
“By hosting this event in a city that has experienced the transformational benefits of school choice, we showcase the success of hardworking students, parents, teachers, and community activists in New Orleans, who work every day to create thousands of school choice success stories,” explained National School Choice Week’s Andrew Campanella.
As ChoiceMedia.TV has previously
reported, most students in New Orleans now attend charter schools – in contrast to a mere 3% nationally. Since the district was effectively “charterized” in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, student achievement levels have markedly risen. John White, Superintendent of Louisiana’s Recovery School District, told ChoiceMedia.TV that student proficiency has “more than doubled” post-Katrina.
National School Choice Week (January 22 – 28) was conceived to highlight the need for more educational options in all fifty states. Last year, more than 200 events were held from coast-to-coast. Campanella says that interest since then has only grown. “This year, we’re seeing groups plan everything from rallies, to roundtable discussions, to movie screenings, to school open houses, all focused on the benefits of empowering parents with the ability to select the best educational environments for their kids,” he said today.
“School Choice Week rocks,” said Robert Enlow, CEO of the Foundation for Educational Choice. “It is an amazing effort to bring together individuals and groups from across the political spectrum who share a common belief in making sure children get the best education possible and who are dedicated to taking the parental school choice movement to new heights,” he told ChoiceMedia.TV.
