August 2025 marks 20 years since Hurricane Katrina altered New Orleans forever. Much has been written about the storm’s destruction and the city’s long road to recovery. But tucked behind those headlines is another story. One that shaped the lives of thousands of children.
Where the Schools Went is a five-part documentary series about what happened to the city’s schools after the levees broke, and how it led to the most radical education experiment in modern American history.
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August 2025 marks 20 years since Hurricane Katrina altered New Orleans forever. Much has been written about the storm’s destruction and the city’s long road to recovery. But tucked behind those headlines is another story. One that shaped the lives of thousands of children.
Where the Schools Went is a five-part documentary series about what happened to the city’s schools after the levees broke, and how it led to the most radical education experiment in modern American history.
Years before the levees failed, New Orleans’ public schools were already in crisis. The corruption was so entrenched that the FBI even set up shop inside the district. The first episode of Where the Schools Went uncovers how decades of mismanagement and neglect turned New Orleans into a cautionary tale long before Hurricane Katrina ever made landfall, and how it set the stage for what would come after. We also follow a group of educators who fled to Houston in the aftermath of the storm and built a school for displaced students. And then we follow them – and their students – back to a city and school system struggling to rebuild.
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Where the Schools Went is an original podcast from The Branch in partnership with The 74 and MeidasTouch.
Let us know what you think of the show! Email us at wheretheschoolswent@thebranchmedia.org or follow us on X and Instagram at @thebranchmedia.
Where the Schools Went
August 2025 marks 20 years since Hurricane Katrina altered New Orleans forever. Much has been written about the storm’s destruction and the city’s long road to recovery. But tucked behind those headlines is another story. One that shaped the lives of thousands of children.
Where the Schools Went is a five-part documentary series about what happened to the city’s schools after the levees broke, and how it led to the most radical education experiment in modern American history.
