U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan visits New Orleans | NOLA.com

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan visits New Orleans | NOLA.com

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan visits New Orleans

Published: Friday, April 08, 2011, 11:44 AM Updated: Friday, April 08, 2011, 11:57 AM

By Cindy Chang, The Times-Picayune
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U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan began his visit to New Orleans today with a panel discussion about the $28 million "Investing in Innovation" grant that will be used to turn around failing schools in the city.

Drew Angerer / The Associated PressEducation Secretary Arne Duncan is pictured here last July in Washington D.C.

"I continue to be in awe of the sense of urgency, the sense of commitment, the entire community getting behind the schools," Duncan said of New Orleans.

Reform in the city, where nearly three-quarters of the schools have become independently run charters since Hurricane Katrina, is occurring at a "pace not seen elsewhere in the country," he said.

After the panel, which took place at KIPP Believe school on South Carrollton Avenue, Duncan is scheduled to deliver the keynote speech at the Education Writers Association conference. He is expected to speak about President Obama's plan for