Edna Karr Junior High School opened on February 3, 1964, and quickly established itself as the premier public secondary school on the Westbank of Orleans Parish. Excelling in academics, athletics, and an unprecedented range of extracurricular activities, Edna Karr soon proved that its motto, ‘Second to None,” was more than mere rhetoric. “Second to None” became a challenge to each group of incoming students to uphold and further Karr’s burgeoning reputation for excellence–and they have.
Recognizing the increasing need for a dedicated, college preparatory public high school on the Westbank, the Orleans Parish School Board in May 1990, designated Edna Karr a magnet school and charged the administration, faculty, and community to embrace this new challenge. With the addition of grades ten, eleven, and twelve over the next three years, accompanied by appropriate changes in curriculum and services, Edna Karr Secondary School proudly graduated its first senior class in May 1993. In May 2000, Edna Karr was honored by the U. S. Department of Education as a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence. In May of 2005, Edna Karr was honored again as a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence. Edna Karr is one of only a few schools nationwide to have won this prestigious award twice.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Edna Karr was one of the first schools to reopen in the City of New Orleans. As a part of the Algiers Charter Schools Association, Karr reopened as an open access college preparatory high school, accepting students from all over Orleans Parish with an open admissions policy. Beginning in 2013, Edna Karr High School became a founding school as part of InspireNOLA Charter Schools. Now, after over 50 years of service to the children of New Orleans, Edna Karr continues to expand its reputation for excellence by attracting the best students and teachers, continuing to provide quality education, and instilling in all the desire to succeed.
