Young Audiences Charter Association to Operate Lawrence D. Crocker College Prep School

(NEW ORLEANS – January 22, 2021) – Today, NOLA Public Schools (NOLA-PS) notified Lawrence D. Crocker College Prep's faculty, staff, and families of the siting of the school to Young Audiences Charter Association (Young Audiences). Young Audiences will be responsible for the school's operation and management beginning in the 2021-2022 school year. The school serves Pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade and is located in the Milan area at 2301 Marengo Street.

In December of 2020, after failing to meet the District's renewal standards, Dr. Lewis went before the Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB) and recommended Lawrence D. Crocker College Prep not be renewed. Following board approval, NOLA-PS spent the past several weeks conducting an open siting process to determine a new operator for the school.

Two eligible operators applied to operate Crocker and submitted applications, detailing required information to NOLA-PS. The District held engagement sessions for families and staff to learn more about the interested operators, ask questions, and provide feedback. Both operators submitted complete applications and provided thoughtful and thorough plans to help transition operation of the school. In considering the applicants' required submissions, feedback provided during engagement events, and portfolio analysis, Dr. Lewis approved the siting of Lawrence D. Crocker College Prep to Young Audiences.

"Young Audiences has the strong leadership and vision needed to lead Crocker's parents, families, faculty, and staff to academic success," said NOLA-PS Superintendent of Schools Dr. Henderson Lewis, Jr. "In addition, the organization has continually shown interest in expanding its operations to Orleans Parish and would provide a robust music and arts curriculum for students, adding more options for families in the community."

"Young Audiences Charter Association is overwhelmed with enthusiasm to bring our arts-integrated, arts-intensive educational model to NOLA Public Schools. Prioritizing the arts, especially in a city that is known for its artistic self-expression and rich history of culture-bearers, brings more well-deserved opportunities for our youth to have access to a robust education that nurtures the whole child," said School Leader Brionne Marcelle for Young Audiences Charter School. "Young Audiences looks forward to serving the creative learners, families, and community of Lawrence D. Crocker. We understand the great responsibility we have to the children of New Orleans and we are confident that our creative learners will thrive both academically and artistically in a school culture of community and respect"

NOLA-PS will work closely with Lawrence D. Crocker College Prep and Young Audiences' administration and staff throughout this year to ensure the management of the school transition goes smoothly. The students at Crocker are a top priority and we will strive to ensure all these students, just as we do with all our community of schools, receive a high-quality education that fosters their individual capabilities and ensures they are prepared for civic, social, and economic success.

### 

About NOLA Public Schools: NOLA Public Schools is the public school district for Orleans Parish. It includes the district's administration and elected school board, known as the Orleans Parish School Board. NOLA Public Schools currently oversees 76 public schools and is led by Superintendent Dr. Henderson Lewis, Jr.

For more information, visit www.nolapublicschools.com. For updates, follow NOLA Public Schools on Facebook @NOLAPublicSchools, Instagram @nolaps and Twitter @NOLAPSchools.