The Cowen Institute at Tulane University is committed to conducting and publishing objective, relevant, and actionable research about governance, finances, facilities, and other operational subjects related to the new landscape of K-12 public education in New Orleans.

General information on public education financing in Louisiana [more info]

In February 2009, the Cowen Institute released a paper on public school finances. [Download here]

Notably, this is the first effort to gather and analyze financial data for all of the public schools currently operating in New Orleans. The purpose of this paper is to:

• Trace the sources of revenue that support public schools in New Orleans and to analyze how it has been allocated and spent;
• Highlight some of the financial issues arising from the complexities faced by the various school operators and districts; and
• Provide recommendations on how to eliminate the barriers to sound financial analysis.

This report takes a comprehensive look at publicly available financial documents for the Recovery School District (RSD), Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB), and a number of individual charter schools. Our findings show that individual school operators and the two school districts in New Orleans face several financial challenges. Based on the information contained in this report, we offer a number of major recommendations including the following:

• Increasing transparency and financial accountability for school districts and operators;
• Changing the rules that govern how funds are shared across schools; and
• Revising budgets to bring revenue and spending into alignment.

Recovery School District’s Budget Web Page

Orleans Parish School Board’s Budget Web Page

Louisiana Department of Education’s Web Page on MFP Funding

Please contact Nash Molpus at nmolpus@tulane.eduor 504-274-3686 for additional information.