The Impact of Teachers

Developing Teachers

Teachers matter enormously in students’ lives, and teaching is the single most important school-based factor in students’ academic growth. We help New Orleans’ teachers grow and develop as educators, and provide them with support that helps them stay in the classroom for long careers. This support is tailored to what the data shows and what educators state they need.

Introducing Staying Power: A Resource for Special Educator Retention

Across the country—and here in New Orleans—special education teachers are leaving the classroom at alarming rates. These are the educators who work most closely with our students who need the greatest support, and their departure hits schools and families hardest.

At New Schools for New Orleans, we believed there had to be a way to change that. With our partners at SELF and the Gates Foundation, and with funding from the U.S. Department of Education’s Teacher and School Leader (TSL) Incentive Program, we launched the New Special Education Teacher Fellowship—a program designed to provide targeted support, professional development, and community for early-career special educators.

Read the Full Playbook Here

Our Current Programming:

NSNO launched the NOLA Reads: Literacy Leaders Cohort in 2024 to train educators in the Science of Reading, a powerful set of research and evidence-based practices that help teachers meet students’ needs as new and developing readers. The Cohort members will receive best-practice training themselves and support in implementing high-quality curriculum. This community will lead efforts to close the literacy gap among adolescents in our city. After a successful first cohort, the second cohort of LLC will begin in the fall of 2025.

With the Allstate Sugar Bowl New Orleans Teacher Community, NSNO hosts the annual NOLA STEM Summit, a dynamic gathering of science, technology, engineering, and math educators alongside curriculum providers and educational vendors from across Louisiana. Designed to spark collaboration and share best practices, the summit provides teachers with hands-on learning opportunities, access to high-quality resources, and space to connect with fellow educators who are passionate about advancing STEM education. The STEM Summit has become a valued touchpoint in our efforts to support and strengthen the professional growth of STEM teachers across the city and beyond.

Past Work

To better assist and prepare new special education teachers as they moved from teacher preparation programs to our city’s public schools, NSNO launched the New SPED Teacher Fellowship in 2022 with the Special Education Leader Fellowship (SELF). In partnership with the seven largest CMOs in New Orleans, SELF provides a strong and highly supportive experience for first year and second year special educators. The one-year New Special Education Teacher Fellowship provides trainings, professional learning communities, and support teachers need to develop the skills and expertise necessary for working with diverse learners.

The New Orleans Social Studies Consortium was created to support educators across the city with the implementation of the new social studies standards and curriculum. The content, created by New Orleans educators for New Orleans scholars, was released for the 2023-2024 school year, following the consortium’s launch during the summer of 2023.

NSNO previously coordinated professional development “hubs,” through our Instructional Quality Initiative, which provided an opportunity for teachers to connect, share ideas, practice teaching techniques, and learn how to implement high-quality curriculum.

The retention rate of teachers participating in the SPED Fellowship exceeded the retention rate of SPED teachers by nine percentage points in year two.

50%

50% of our 11th grade students are proficient on the LEAP assessment in ELA.

75%

75% of K-8 schools are implementing the Social Studies curriculum created locally.