Our Work: Applied Research

Research | Public Policy | Clearinghouse | Programs

The institute’s Applied Research area strives to understand how public schools and school systems can be successful and to determine the best way to measure their performance, especially in an environment with autonomous schools. 

Identifing, developing, and sharing best practices and research on what makes public schools and school systems successful.

In order to identify, develop, and share actionable research on what makes public schools and public school systems successful, the Cowen Institute will develop and archive a body of proven best practices based on established research.  The institute will also host information sessions for school leaders and administrators to disseminate its research.  Finally, the institute plans to bring together a network of education experts from across the country to work with school administrators, educators, and the community.

Measuring the performance of public schools and enable school accountability by tracking school performance.

In an effort to measure the performance of New Orleans’ public schools, the institute will develop a broad set of school performance indicators. Through the Faculty Research Grant Program, established in partnership with Tulane’s Center for Public Service, the Cowen Institute will fund research by Tulane faculty and students to determine the best indicators for measuring school performance and quality.  Using these metrics, the institute will develop a detailed School Performance Scorecard to track the progress of individual schools and the entire school system in order to enable school accountability.

Creating a special research focus on autonomous schools, including charters.

As public education moves toward a decentralized system of schools, the institute will create a special research focus on autonomous schools to support and sustain the success of both individual schools and the overall system. The Cowen Institute hopes eventually to host an annual summit of education thought-leaders, local school leaders, and community members to share ideas and strategies for autonomous schools gleaned from research and experience.

Chronicling the transformation of public education in New Orleans.

Because the institute is well situated to document the transformation of New Orleans’ public education landscape, it will produce and enable research to chronicle the public school system’s changes for use by a wider, national audience that has an interest in urban public education reform.  After the School Performance Scorecard has been developed, the Cowen Institute will create and maintain a unified school performance database. This database, accessible to the public, will help ensure school accountability and track the progress of the school system over time.  The institute will also release a school system progress report in the Fall of each year and an annual State of Public Education in New Orleans report to keep public focus on school performance.