ADVANCE BATON ROUGE BLOG

Empowerment Schools

Background

• A community partnership effort between East Baton Rouge Parish School System and ADVANCE BATON ROUGE
• Modeled after the successful New York City Empowerment Schools
• Start-up funding has been provided through a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
• One new empowerment school, the East Baton Rouge Lab Academy, opened for the 2007-2008 school year, and other new schools will open in coming years

What is an Empowerment School?

• A small school with a focused mission
• A choice for students within the public school system
• A school with an empowered risk-taking culture

How are empowerment schools different from traditional district schools?

They operate with more autonomy in exchange for a high degree of accountability which is defined in a formal agreement between the principal and the School Board:

While the East Baton Rouge Lab Academy has more site-based decision-making authority than other district schools, it is still part of the school system. The school utilizes the services of the district central office, and its principal reports to the Superintendent and School Board.

East Baton Rouge Lab Academy

East Baton Rouge Lab Academy is a college preparatory high school offering a small learning environment (the maximum enrollment per grade is 100 students). With a student-centered culture, EBR Lab features collaborative learning and a daily advisory program. It also has an extended school day and school year.

EBR Lab will start with 100 ninth graders for the 2007-2008 school year. Adding a new class of ninth graders each year, EBR Lab will have 400 students enrolled in ninth to twelfth grade for the 2010-2011 school year. Half of the available student spaces are reserved for those living in the Istrouma attendance zone. The remaining spaces are open to students from across the district.

Contact Information
3730 Winbourne Avenue
Baton Rouge, LA 70805
Phone: (225) 355-4680
Principal David Zielinski