No Experience Neccessary: How the New Orleans School Takeover Experiment Devalues Experienced Teachers
The United Teachers of New Orleans (UTNO), Louisiana Federation of Teachers (LFT), and American Federation of Teachers (AFT)
June 2007

Abstract:


This report details the problems New Orleans faces recruiting and retaining qualified teachers. According to the report, veteran teachers (three or more years of experience) returned to New Orleans at half the rate that the students did after Katrina. As a result, in January of 2007, at least 300 students were not admitted to a school and were forced to be waitlisted. As it is, class sizes are often abnormally large and teachers in Orleans Parish, on average, work a comparatively longer day. It is recommended that the experienced teachers in the city be granted a more integral role in the rebuilding efforts, and that the working environment is made more conducive to teacher retention.