Ben Kleban is an independent consultant with a diverse background in education policy, school leadership, and financial management. Most recently, Ben served as an elected member of the Orleans Parish School Board. Prior to his service on OPSB, Ben was the Founder & CEO of New Orleans College Prep (NOCP), a charter school network he led for ten years, growing from a single grade of students to a network of four campuses serving children from birth – 12th grade. Under Ben’s leadership, NOCP achieved significant academic gains for its students, including two successful school turnarounds. While leading NOCP, Ben served on the Louisiana MFP task force, a statewide advisory council for strengthening the public school funding formula in Louisiana. He also co-founded College Beyond, a non-profit that provides coaching and financial supports to improve the college graduation rate of low income and first-generation college students from across the Greater New Orleans area.
School-funding changes over the last decade have created funding inequities for Indiana’s students from low-income communities, students with disabilities, English language learners, and students in public charter schools—inequities which will likely be exacerbated by COVID-19.