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FirstLine Schools

Is this your company?

Don't fall for their "teaching the whole student" marketing--go to any other network - Teacher FirstLine Schools Employee Review

1.0
Dec 21, 2020
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Truly grateful for some amazing fellow teachers

Cons

1) The district did not set me up for success. Found out I would be a cart teacher across 4 classrooms and that it would be nearly impossible to create any structures or routines for my students because we were seeing each other in different rooms and configurations every day. 2) Regardless of the lack of support, I was solely blamed for my failures, behavior issues, send-outs, etc. And when I gave feedback at the end of the year on how they could improve the position and make it more manageable, I'm told they changed nothing for my successor the year after and that she struggled and inevitably left, too. 3) They sold a total sham of Mind/Body/Spirit, Edible Schoolyard, and teaching the whole student. Truth is, they're as obsessed with test scores as any charter network in NOLA, yet act like they're above it. During the spring, my director came into my classroom and saw my students researching and writing short essays. She looked at me and asked "And so what part of this will be on the state test?" The next week, the network mandated that I do more vocab drill and kill until the annual test. So key takeaways. If your experience is like mine: they won't support you and then blame you when you fail--all while acting like they're not just another test prep factory.

Explore other reviews about FirstLine Schools

5.0
Aug 18, 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

I am going into my sixth year at FirstLine Schools and the one thing I can tell you is that FirstLine is committed to growing people and getting better! I have seen paras, teachers, and leaders grow in their careers and take on new positions. From support with becoming certified to mentor teacher opportunities, to leader fellowship programs, there is something at every level!

Cons

With so much accountablity for New Orleans Charter, the work is demanding. However, we know that is what it takes to produce quality schools for our students.

2.0
Feb 9, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Professional development was some of the best that I ever seen

Cons

So story time, I’ve worked at Firstline twice in my entire educational career. I initially left to further grow in education. When leaders found out that I wanted to leave one of them came up to me and said “you’re a great teacher but you aren’t one of the best.” LEAP scores came back and I produced some of the highest data that they ever seen in the history of their charter. I decided to come back a year later, & only decided to leave because I wanted to be closer to family. Upon finding out that I was leaving, the HR specialist try to create a brand new rule around how in what teacher should do upon work requirements when leaving I asked several times for the employee handbook to be sent to me with direct quotations of these requirements and they were never sent. I was then threatened to never receive a job back here if I didn’t come into the building to finish off my “off boarding duties” which were already completed because I am a hard worker. Being in leadership for this year, I knew that this was their way of coaching me out because I expressed to them that I was unable to come into the building due to reasons that I expressed to my direct supervisor and received the OKAY for. As someone who’s put blood sweat and tears into their time at Firstline, it was sincerely disheartening to see the treatment that I received from leadership.

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