Paul+G.++Vallas

Return to Movers Shakers Trends and Benchmarks Home


 * Mover Name:** Paul G. Vallas, the New Superintendent of the New Orleans Recovery School District.


 * Basic Work:** He came up with a new plan for schools in New Orleans, after Hurricane Katrina (New Orleans Recovery School District). His plan involves making the schools be more than schools. His idea is to make the schools substitute families, and to create a better learning environment, where students want to be.


 * Key Work:** Although Vallas is a tamer of hard-case schools in Chicago and Philadelphia, the Recovery Plan in New Orleans is the only work that Vallas has done that I will be focusing on, since it seems to be of most importance. He brought about the idea of the schools being more than just the classroom which came about due to the deep poverty in New Orleans. Many children are hungry, being raised by single parents, and after the hurricane many are suffering physical, psychological, and emotional damage. Under his plan, the schools will provide what you would expect a family to provide. This includes three meals a day, dental care, and eye care. The idea is that in order for children to succeed in the classroom, they must first have their basic needs met.


 * Key Personnel:** Paul G. Vallas


 * Why/How a mover?** Vallas is clearly a mover shown by what he has done for the schools. He has been tightening things up in the classroom. He’s created a smaller student-teacher ratio, for example a class of 50 is now a class of 10. He is providing new textbooks. He is turning the schools into community centers by having schools open through dinner time, and keeping schools open 11 months out of the year. His plans are underway, and so far he has been successful getting the children back into schools, shown by the truancy rate dropping to about 15%.


 * Links:** [|http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/24/education/24orleans.html?pagewanted=1]