Tuesday, March 18, 2014

FirstLine Teachers Visit New York!

Group of FirstLine staff who made the trip to NYC!
A group of FirstLine staff took a trip to New York to visit excellent schools. The trip included site visits to Uncommon Leadership Prep, Success Academy, Democracy Prep, and Achievement First. All of these schools are leaders in education. While we are extremely proud that FirstLine has seen eight consecutive years of academic growth, we know there is still a long way to go. To ensure New Orleans becomes the first city in America where every child goes to a good school we must continue to be innovative and look to leaders in education for best practices. Schools across the country are working to provide all students access to high quality public schools which close the achievement gap. As we are not alone in this endeavor, we view school visits as a critical opportunity to learn from others and take away best practices in terms of culture, instruction and professional development.

The trip focused on academic rigor and engagement, student culture, and adult culture. Staff had the opportunity to explore each school and converse with colleagues.

Collaboration!
Overall the trip was a positive experience for staff:

"This was such an amazing opportunity to see some really great schools in and around NYC as well as wonderful time connecting with colleagues from various schools in the network. I am so thankful for this trip. It really opened my eyes to what's possible and has caused me to be very reflective in my own practice as well as looking for ways to influence change at my school." - FirstLine Teacher






Wednesday, March 12, 2014

AAOS Built Ashe a New Playground!

Working hard in the rain to build "The Web"
On Tuesday, March 11, over 200 volunteers worked from 8:30am to 2:30pm to build a brand new, safe and accessible playground, for the students of Arthur Ashe Charter School and the surrounding neighborhood.  The volunteers kept up their spirits and delivered a beautiful playground - all the while working through a very rainy day.  The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons made this amazing new playground a reality!

The rain won't keep this rock wall from
being built!
Volunteers started work in a downpour and continued throughout the day.  This amazing new playground will bring joy to the students at Ashe, as well as to all the children in the neighborhood.  In addition to volunteers from AAOS, and FirstLine Schools, many college students, from local and out-of-state universities, also volunteered on the build.

Volunteers that built "The Web" testing it out
The volunteers were thanked throughout the day by Ashe students in a variety of ways.  Students walked around at lunch, handing out thank you letters.  The fifth grade came out and performed a thank you song, as well as sharing why this playground is so important to them.

Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony








The ribbon-cutting ceremony featured the Ashe band; Dr. Frederick M. Azar, incoming president of AAOS; Brian Egana, Vice-Chair of the FirstLine Schools Board of Directors; Cynthia Hedge Morrell, New Orleans City Councilmember; and Sivi Domango, Co-Director of Arthur Ashe Charter School.

Thank you to all the volunteers for an amazing accessible playground that will serve ALL children.
Ashe Band at the Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony



Thursday, March 6, 2014

Wheatley Update!

John Dibert Community School is getting ready to move into their new home - the former Phillis Wheatley Elementary School campus. The school will open August of 2014.

The new building will feature a gymnasium (with views of downtown New Orleans), a computer lab, cafeteria, and even a reading porch! The new space has plenty of natural light and space for us to grow.

If you are interested in enrolling at John Dibert Community School at Phillis Wheatley, for the 2014-15 school year, please visit www.enrollnola.org. We accept the RSD OneApp! Main round applications have closed, but you can still visit a Parent Resource Center to enroll.

School entryway, which will be covered with a mural!
Classroom hallway