A release out of the Louisiana Department of Education…

In response to the feedback of parents and educators, the Louisiana Department of Education today announced an overhaul of its website. The website’s URL has changed to www.louisianabelieves.com, reflecting the state’s comprehensive plan to ensure every student is on track to career or college. With the change comes a redesign of the entire website with the goal of making navigation through the site easier. The Department tailored the changes to address concerns that the old site was difficult to navigate and contained dated information. The new site reflects the premise of Louisiana Believes, high expectations for students and the empowerment of parents and teachers with information and resources.

“As part of our commitment to providing clear, concise information to help families and educators make informed decisions, we redesigned our website to ensure virtual visitors can find the information they need, quickly and efficiently,” said State Superintendent of Education John White. “Rather than an expansive list of programs and regulations, the new site focuses on providing tools to support student achievement.”

Louisianabelieves.com is constructed with students, parents, and educators in mind, specifically the inclusion of separate sections for parents/students and educators. This feature will direct parents, students, and teachers to the information that is most relevant to their needs. The new website also features a Library that contains documents, forms and other information about education in Louisiana. This Library was created with the user in mind, realizing that in the past the Department’s website lacked a location that categorized and allowed for easy access to resources that teachers and parents use on a regular basis. In the new Library, families can find information and resources about the many choices offered in Louisiana to prepare their students for college and careers, and teachers can locate information and tools to support their practice, such as academic standards and Compass webinars. The Library also contains handbooks and guidelines for school districts to support their administrative functions. Data detailing the state’s academic results and funding is also located in the library to ensure ease of access for users looking to research resources and results.

Additionally, information about Department programs and initiatives are now categorized under one of eight headings -Academics, Teaching, Assessment, Accountability, Funding, Early Childhood, Schools, and Courses. The new website also will highlight “hot topics” to provide information on current events in education across Louisiana and new resources and initiatives available to students, parents, and educators.

“We encourage everyone to click around our new and improved website,” said Superintendent White. “If you have thoughts or suggestions to improve our website, please email us at louisianabelieves@la.gov. We welcome your ideas on improving our communication to the public.”

To access the Department’s redesigned website, please visit www.louisianabelieves.com.