AdvanceNOLA Celebrates Its Success

| December 15, 2011

On a chilly December evening, over forty public high school teachers, administrators, and leaders celebrated the end of an impressive semester. AdvanceNOLA, the Cowen Institute’s college readiness program, has grown each year since its inception in the Spring of 2009, and the success is contagious. Under the innovative leadership of Emily Remington, the Cowen Institute’s Assistant Director of Programming, AdvanceNOLA currently works with over 600 public high school students and over 30 public high school professionals. To celebrate the tremendous progress of the past semester and to discuss the work ahead, AdvanceNOLA hosted a fun and informative evening with the talented individuals that work every day to positively impact the lives of students.

AdvanceNOLA Students at Sci High Visit Tulane Research Labs

| May 2, 2011

This blog post was written by Tolulope Dawodu, a Cowen Scholar and second year Master of Public Health (MPH) student at Tulane University.

Lunching with College Readiness Innovator Deborah Bial

| January 26, 2011

Yesterday, I was lucky enough to be invited to a luncheon with Deborah Bial, founder and CEO of the Posse Foundation. Debbie’s presence on campus is a part of Tulane University’s Social Entrepreneurship Initiatives’ NewDay Speaker Series. Other luncheon attendees included: several Tulane faculty, from various departments of the University; Tulane Posse students; representatives from Urban League’s College Track program; Jones Scholars and other graduate students; and our fearless leader, Scott Cowen.

AdvanceNOLA and AP Courses in RSD-Run Schools: Clarifying the Issues

| November 11, 2010

On October 27, 2010, Diane Ravitch gave a lecture at Dillard University; her remarks have sparked much conversation and debate in New Orleans’ education circles. The focus of much of this debate, due partly to Ravitch’s own online commentary on what she learned in New Orleans, has centered on the Cowen Institute and, more specifically, the Institute’s AdvanceNOLA program. This blog post aims to clarify some of the misconceptions about the AdvanceNOLA program and the RSD's ability to offer AP courses that have arisen during this conversation and debate. For more, click on the title of the post.

Cowen Institute’s Opinion on Public School Governance

| October 19, 2010

Public education in New Orleans has come a long way in the past five years: the city’s public schools collectively have seen an increase of over 32 percent in their school performance scores and the percent of failing schools has been cut in half. However, the transformation of the city’s school system has also created new challenges. Harnessing the potential of successful reforms while addressing the challenges created by the current complex system requires a new approach to education governance. Click the title to keep reading.

AdvanceNOLA Students Admitted to Tulane’s Summer Transition Program

| May 4, 2010

We'd like to congratulate students from AdvanceNOLA partner sites on their admittance to Tulane's Summer Transition Program (STP). STP targets high achieving students from public schools in Orleans Parish to take an English 101 course in the summer between 11th and 12th grade; if students score a C or higher, they take a Tulane introductory course of their choice during the first semester of their 12th grade year. If they earn a C or higher in this course, they receive automatic admission to Tulane and preferential treatment in the Tulane financial aid process. For more information about STP, please visit their website.

Congratulations to the following students. We hope your time at Tulane will be meaningful and inspiring!

Chanel Brown - Carver

Gernice Brown - Carver

Angelina Landry - Sci High

Kenneth Motley - Walker

Terenise Robins - Walker

Jazmine Wilson - Sci High