Charlie DePietro has held a number of positions in his past thirteen years as an educator, from fourth grade math teacher to Director of Curriculum and Instruction. But there is one position that, until now, Charlie had not yet held: Principal. That all changed in Spring 2023, when Charlie was chosen to be the principal of Mildred Osborne Charter School. Osborne, the newest school to be added to the Crescent City Schools (CCS) network, was created by merging Akili Academy with Osborne (formerly operated by another charter management organization).
The merger of the two schools means that CCS will now serve roughly 2,600 students across its four campuses in New Orleans: Harriet Tubman Charter School (grades 3-8), Tubman Montessori (PreK-2), Dorothy Height Charter School (PreK-8) and Mildred Osborne Charter School (PreK-8). Merging Akili and Osborne allows CCS to provide students with expanded services and opportunities, and Charlie is excited about the possibilities created by the merger.
Leading up to the new academic year, Charlie has been actively fostering a sense of community among Osborne staff members. Recognizing the potential challenges of merging two separate schools, he organized community events, assigned buddy pairs, and created opportunities for open feedback to ensure that staff members felt heard and supported during the transition.
“I’ve spent a lot of time with the directors at my school, who are a really fun group. There are some directors coming from Akili, some directors coming from the former Osborne, and two directors coming from schools outside of the network,” Charlie said. “The directors provide a diversity of thought and ideas and a lot of fresh perspectives for things we can do or change at the school.”
Looking ahead, Charlie is determined to make a lasting impact in his new position. He has set ambitious priorities for the upcoming academic year, with a strong focus on professional development. The goal is to empower teachers to become curriculum experts, ensuring every student receives tailored instruction based on their unique needs.
“We are really focused on delivering curriculum with integrity, which means teachers all need to be experts in their content areas, relevant state standards, and curriculum,” Charlie said. “Teachers also need to develop the skills to add any necessary scaffolds, supports, or modifications to their lessons. That will ensure that we’re not just giving students the curriculum but providing the students in our classrooms with what they need.”
Additionally, Charlie aims to foster a nurturing yet accountable classroom environment. By combining warmth with a focus on structure, he hopes to create a safe space for students to thrive academically and personally.
Charlie’s overarching goal is to lead Osborne to excel in student growth. While new schools like Osborne don’t receive traditional letter grades during their first year of operation, the progress students demonstrate throughout the year reveals much about the efficacy of a school’s teaching strategies.
“The big goal is for our school to earn an “A” for student academic progress,” Charlie said. “We’re really focused on making sure that the students achieve the most growth possible because it’s what they deserve.”
