Local School Gets National Mention

February 12, 2016 by Charlie London

story sent in by Brian Beabout

The U.S. Secretary of Education, John King, recently gave kudos to Morris Jeff Community School as he announced a budget proposal for community-based solutions for public school integration:

“Morris Jeff’s diversity benefited all of its students, offering students preparation for the real world they will inhabit as adults, and offering the kind of contact and connections that have been shown to boost empathy and reduce bias.”

Morris Jeff Community School is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization
Morris Jeff Community School is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization

U.S. Secretary of Education, John King’s statement is below:

Stronger Together: Why our budget supports voluntary, community-led efforts to increase diversity

When families and educators in New Orleans joined together to establish the Morris Jeff Community School, they had a clear vision for the kind of world they wanted to create for their children, starting in the preschool years.

They believed that all of their children could learn more if they went to school together. In their vision, children from families of limited means and those from more affluent families would attend school together, entirely by their own choice. The three pre-K classes were strong enough to attract families who could pay, who made up about a third of the program, but open to all — with enough interest to drive a waiting list, both fee-paying and not, and nearly equal proportions of African-American and white students, plus a small proportion of students who were Hispanic or of mixed race.

diversitykidsThe result: not just diversity of wealth and race, but strong results for all. At the beginning of the year, only about a quarter of students were demonstrating age-appropriate skills in math, and only about 1 in 10 reached that level in language. By year’s end, about 80 percent had age-appropriate skills in both subjects.

Morris Jeff’s diversity benefited all of its students, offering students preparation for the real world they will inhabit as adults, and offering the kind of contact and connections that have been shown to boost empathy and reduce bias. And it can play a particularly important role in helping low-income students. For example, in Montgomery County, Maryland, children in public housing who attended the district’s most advantaged elementary schools performed better over time than those attending higher-poverty schools, despite additional per-student funding provided at higher-poverty schools.

These are among a number of promising examples demonstrating what research has shown: increasing diversity has the power to pay off for everyone. From corporate boards to the scientific world, there are increasing indications that diversity isn’t just a feel-good nicety — it’s a clear path to better outcomes in school and in life.

betterstart1aThat’s why our administration is proposing Stronger Together — grants to support districts with strong voluntary, community-developed plans that increase socioeconomic diversity in their schools. No district would be required to participate, but it would increase the options available for interested communities and enhance the research base for effective strategies. Among the elements of the proposal are planning funds that support communities that wish to explore new possibilities for increasing diversity, looking carefully at the data and engaging the entire community in developing solutions. From there, implementation grants would help communities move forward with bringing their plans to fruition, including through robust family and community involvement.

In today’s economy, diversity isn’t some vague ideal. It’s a path to better outcomes for all of America’s children. And the proposal we are announcing today will help show us the most effective ways meet that goal.

The reasons to think carefully about new diversity strategies are powerful. As it stands today, high-income kids are more than six times as likely as lower-income students to graduate from college — which is not setting our nation up for success. And it’s hard to miss the fact that when the children of welders and bankers are confined to separate schools, access to opportunity is not equal. It’s no secret whose school ends up with the resources to succeed — from shiny new buildings with updated technology to AP courses that will set them up for success in college.

Moreover, we know that the ability to work with men and women from every background — rich or poor, black, white, or brown — will be a core competency for the jobs we want our kids to have some day.

We need all our children on a path to achievement. That’s why we need to do more to ensure families and communities can offer students opportunities to learn to work together in school as they will need to in their lives ahead.

I’ve seen the benefits of such voluntary opportunities up close–as a student, educator, and parent. While I was Commissioner of New York Schools, I used federal funds to launch an innovative pilot program to help struggling schools improve performance by boosting socioeconomic diversity. These grants aimed to help reduce class isolation in New York’s schools by giving districts support to pilot innovative programs designed to increase school diversity while improving student achievement.

It’s time that we offer strong, locally-designed, voluntary options that allow many more communities to accomplish what parents and educators did at the Morris Jeff Community School. Stronger Together will help.

Many Faubourg St. John neighbors have been supportive of the Morris Jeff Community School:
Suzanne Accorsi, Jolene Jeff, Brod Sr. & Debby Bagert, Broderick Bagert Jr. and Celeste Lofton-Bagert, Shawn Anglim & Anne Daniell, Jenny Bagert and Dave Sobel, Abram Himelstein & Shana Sassoon, Brian Beabout & Laura Krebs, Jennifer & Erich Weishaupt, Sarah & Tommy Usdin, Aesha Rasheed, Karin Barbee, Stacy Stanfill & Dan Winkert, Zelice Odom, Jared Zeller & Jennifer Pearl, Dorothy Nicholas, and Tommy Crane have all helped to make Morris Jeff Community School what it is today.

Filed Under: Featured, HISTORY, Living Well Tagged With: Abram Himelstein & Shana Sassoon, Aesha Rasheed, bayou st john, best neighborhood in New Orleans, better idea, better start, Brian Beabout & Laura Krebs, Brod Sr. & Debby Bagert, Broderick Bagert Jr. and Celeste Lofton-Bagert, childhood education, diversity, Dorothy Nicholas, education, faubourg st john, fresh start, Jared Zeller & Jennifer Pearl, Jennifer & Erich Weishaupt, Jenny Bagert and Dave Sobel, john king, Jolene Jeff, karin barbee, learn, learning, New Orleans, primary education, Sarah & Tommy Usdin, school, secretary of education, Shawn Anglim & Anne Daniell, Stacy Stanfill & Dan Winkert, Suzanne Accorsi, Tommy Crane, u.s. secretary of education, Zelice Odom

Get Your GED

March 15, 2013 by Charlie London

GED
GED1
GED2
ged_250x251New Student Registration for the Adult Education (GED) Program at Delgado Community College is upon us again. Registration will take place on March 22, 2013 at 9am in Building 2, Room 108 on the City Park Campus.

•Registration Announcement on Facebook
•Program Details on delgado.edu

As always, the program is free and open to any adult that is seeking a GED. Offered are structured classes in the mornings, afternoons, and evenings, at four sites throughout New Orleans (City Park, Mid-City, West Bank, and Metairie), and we are flexible in finding a class schedule that fits any student’s availability. Students are welcomed and encouraged to stay in the program as long as needed. We also offer unique opportunities for students to begin college level classes at Delgado as they finish earning a GED. Additionally, we offer several other programs, including:

•Free ESL classes at our Metairie Campus – Registration for our ESL Program will be held on Tuesday, March 19th, 2013 from 9am-12pm at our Metairie Campus (5200 Blair Drive)
•Free Computer Literacy seminars at our City Park location that are held every Friday from 1-3pm in the Library Classroom (Bldg. 10, Rm. 134)

As one of the largest and most successful Adult Education programs in the city and state, we are looking forward to continuing to provide high quality education programs to students without a GED, and propelling them towards college and career pathways.

Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or comments.

Sincerely,
Joey Lehrman | Instructor
Adult Education Program | Delgado Community College

[email protected]

o| (504) 671-5436

c| (763) 442-6879

Join us on Facebook!
www.dcc.edu/adult-ed

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: adult, delgado, diploma, education, ged, high school, New Orleans

Prepare to Renovate!

December 21, 2011 by Charlie London

Prepare to Renovate! Start off 2012 right with PRC’s newest educational program, the Advanced Renovation Workshop

This series includes three workshops:

Wednesday, Jan. 11 · 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Wednesday, Jan. 18 · 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Wednesday, Jan. 25 · 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

At the PRC
923 Tchoupitoulas St.
(in the Warehouse District)

Attend the inaugural class of PRC’s newest education seminar!

For beginners and experienced renovators alike, this series of workshops taught by local professionals will prepare you to tackle your own renovation.

Topics covered include:
Project Management
Building Systems
Sustainable Renovation Techniques
Working Successfully with Your Contractor
Navigating Permitting Agencies
How to Interpret Construction Documents
Maintaining the Historic Character of Your House and Local Resources

Presenters include:
Wardlaw Witherspoon
Peter Trapolin, AIA
Allison Saunders
Bill Robinson
Harvey Wier
Jennifer Farwell
Chris Draper

For more information, or to register: www.prcno.org

Suzanne N. Blaum
Director of Education and Outreach
Preservation Resource Center
923 Tchoupitoulas St
New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 636-3399
[email protected]
www.prcno.org

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: center, education, louisiana, New Orleans, prc, preservation, Project Management, renovate, resource

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