ABSTRACT
Is education reform in New Orleans a model for urban school districts across the United States? Senator Mary Landrieu (Democrat–Louisiana) believes so. On March 1, 2012, Landrieu, co-chair of the Senate Public Charter School Caucus with Senator Lamar Alexander (Republican–Tennessee), hosted a forum for education policymakers in Washington, DC. The forum centered on New Orleans-Style Education Reform: A Guide for Cities (Lessons Learned, 2004–2010), a report published by the charter school incubator New Schools for New Orleans (Brinson, Boast, Hassel, & Kingsland, 2012). Landrieu proclaimed:
With its Guide for Cities, New Schools for New Orleans is doing the important work of sharing lessons learned throughout the transformation of New Orleans' public schools. Through relentless focus on accountability, human capital, and charter school development, New Orleans has become a national leader in education reform. ... I hope that this story and the Guide for Cities will inspire and equip other cities to follow New Orleans' lead.
(Landrieu, 2012, para. 2)
