News
January 5, 2010 - Alumni Spotlight: Brittany Baize
The University of Texas McCombs School of Business talks to Success Preparatory Academy’s Director of Finance and Operations. For the full article, click here:
December 23, 2009 - “Charter Schools Rise in New Orleans”
Success Preparatory Academy’s successful recruitment campaign is discussed in this article:
November 30, 2009 - “New Orleans educators fighting hunger in schools”
New Orleans educators are seeing a rising demand for local programs that combat childhood hunger outside of school hours.
For more information, click here:
http://www.nola.com/education/index.ssf/2009/11/post_59.html
November 18, 2009 - “New Orleans Schools Might Get FEMA Money Soon”
FEMA administrator Craig Fugate said Wednesday that his agency is getting close to an agreement with state officials on a lump-sum payment to the Recovery School District for damage caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
For more information, click here:
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2009/11/post_161.html
November 8, 2009 - “School Choice is a real test for parents in New Orleans”
Success Preparatory Academy’s co-principal, Niloy Gangopadhyay, discusses last summer’s mobile enrollment program, which allowed SPA to visit families in their homes and scan their enrollment documents. For more information, click here:
http://www.nola.com/education/index.ssf/2009/11/post_42.html
October 25, 2009 - “Charter Schools Concept Growing”
In Baton Rouge, charter schools, envisioned in 1995 as places to use innovative teaching methods to reach troubled students but didn’t always find success, are making a huge comeback now that the state is taking over failed public schools. For more information, click here:
http://www.thenewsstar.com/article/20091025/NEWS01/910250317
October 15, 2009 - “Obama’s Salute to a New Orleans Charter School”
President Obama visits the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Charter School for Science and Technology. It stands out as a success story, along with other New Orleans charters, when compared with the city’s traditional public schools, which are still largely classified as failing. For more information click here:
http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/1015/p08s01-comv.html
September 27, 2009 – “School within a School is New Strategy to Transform Education”
As of this August New Orleans has four transformation schools, including Success Preparatory Academy. Benjamin Mays Prep has taken over Carver Elementary’s pre-Kindergarten thru second grade. Whereas failing New Orleans schools in the past have resulted in either closing schools down completely, reconstituting them with new faculty and staff, or handing them over to new operators, this article explains the benefits of the transformation option. For more information, click here:
http://www.nola.com/education/index.ssf/2009/09/post_2.html
September 22, 2009 – “Studies Shows New York Charter School Students Score Better”
Students who entered lotteries in New York City’s charter schools and secured themselves a spot scored better on the state’s test scores than those students who entered the lottery but failed to be placed at a charter school. For more information, click here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/22/education/22charters.html
September 19, 2009 – “Department of Education Honors 9 Charter Schools with Blue Ribbon Award”
9 charter schools are being given the Blue Ribbon Award this year, with one of them being Benjamin Franklin High School in New Orleans. To see the other Blue Ribbon recipients, click here:
March 26, 2009 - RSD Announces Charter Matches at Four Transformation School Sites
Success Preparatory Academy will start in grades K through 3 at Albert Wicker Leadership Academy
Click here to read the full 3/26/09 press release
“We are in the unique position in that we can bring in the nation’s best models to improve schools,” said RSD Superintendent Paul Vallas. “Although I’m happy to say that all of our schools have made progress, some are getting better faster than others. We can’t afford to wait for change, so the purpose of these transformations is to get these schools where they need to be more quickly.”
December 4, 2008 - Success Preparatory Academy wins BESE approval
One of four RSD “transformation” charters
Click to read full 12/4/08 press release.
Today, the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) approved eight new Type 5 charter schools, four of which are “transformation” charters that will take over the lower grades of four struggling Recovery School District elementary schools in the 2009-2010 school year. The transformation charters are Arise Academy, Benjamin Mays Preparatory Academy, Pride College Preparatory Academy, and Success Preparatory Academy. Each will begin operating up to the third grade at the selected elementary schools, while collaborating with the remaining grade levels to promote a positive school-wide environment. The schools receiving the transformation charters will be the RSD’s four of lower performing elementary schools, as determined by last year’s test scores and the results of benchmarking tests and reviews this school year.