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“A Perfect Storm” Part 2: The Illusion of Choice

In Part 2 of the ongoing series “A Perfect Storm: The Takeover of New Orleans Public Schools,” filmmaker Phoebe Ferguson chronicles how the city’s struggling public schools were seized by the state following Katrina and handed over to private, charter school operators.

Now, in the nation’s first all-charter school district, New Orleans parents and students must contend with the failures of this massive experiment in “school choice.” Too many schools continue to struggle, deprived of the resources they need to give all kids the educational opportunities they deserve.

Between ballooning transportation costs and the too few seats available in top performing schools, the city’s “choice” system has become little more than a way for policymakers to punt responsibility for improving schools to the invisible hand of a broken market rather than making the needed investments to put a high quality school in every neighborhood. Watch Part 2 below, and click here to catch up on Part 1.