In case you aren’t engaged with what’s been happening in New Orleans public education for the past 19 years, all but two of our public schools are now privatized, which means their operations are contracted (or “chartered”) to private, nonprofit organizations. These 72 schools are run by 37 private operators – some subsidiaries of national charter school groups, some homegrown. Each charter operator has a board of directors, but these boards are not publicly elected.

Today, educators at Lycée Français de la Nouvelle-Orléans won their union election 52-12. The election was conducted by the National Labor Relations Board at two of the three campuses for LFNO. The educators, collectively known as Union des Educateurs du LFNO (UELFNO), voted to join the United Teachers of New Orleans (UTNO).

The contract marks major improvements in pay, retention of important parental leave policies, clear methods for collaboration to problem solve and constantly improve education in the school

Bricolage Academy Educators United, a chapter of the United Teachers of New Orleans, ratified their first collective bargaining agreement April 12, 2024. The Contract was ratified by the Bricolage Board on April 8th, 2024.

UTNO joins our voices with other labor unions across the country to call loudly for a ceasefire as part of the National Labor Network for Ceasefire.