Partnerships

Partnerships

At McGehee, service to and in our community is one of the foundation stones of our mission. Through our partnerships with external organizations McGehee’s roots in the Greater New Orleans community grow deeper and broader in knowledge and understanding. A true partnership is one where mutual benefit happens. We are thrilled and proud to have such partnerships with the following organizations.

Ochsner Health System

This year we have a new strategic partnership with the Educational Outreach Department in the Ochsner Health System. As we continue to build our STEAM program in grades PreK-12, this partnership will allow for exciting science and healthcare opportunities for our students both on and off campus. Currently, students in grades 10 and 12 will complete innovative biotechnology experiments related to their curriculum, and students in grades 9 and 10 will connect with health care professionals through their seminar to learn more about career possibilities in research, imaging, and telecommunications. As we look forward to expanding this program, students in grades 11 and 12 will have opportunities to complete internships on one of the Ochsner campuses.

Electric Girls

Electric Girls' mission—to build girls' confidence and capabilities by engaging them through STEM ​(science, technology, engineering, and math)—aligns perfectly with McGehee’s. After spending a year operating virtually only, the Electric Girls team needed a place to house an in-person Summer Camp. With the help of a grant from the Ochsner Health System to cover administrative costs, McGehee was able to host 160 Electric Girls and their counselors in their scientific pursuits.

Children’s Hospital-LCMC

Children’s Hospital New Orleans led and highlighted the #High5 Project, a community-wide movement to meet the mental health needs of Louisiana’s children and McGehee was proud to partner with LCMC on this campaign to advance the mental well being of all children. To celebrate and commemorate the one year anniversary of their new Behavioral Health Center, LCMC worked with many community partners for a relaunch of the #High5 Project. Look for this campaign on streetcars, at bus stops and other locations around town.

Grace at the Greenlight

Since 2015, our sophomore classes have worked alongside Grace at the Greenlight to serve breakfast to the local homeless population.  As part of their study of the attainability of the American Dream, students reflect on their interactions with people experiencing homelessness to consider issues and solutions to upward mobility. Although others have since followed suit, McGehee forged the first service learning partnership with GGL in the New Orleans area.

New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity and St. Bernard Project

The service learning component of our 11th grade Government class is enriched by partnerships with nonprofits committed to affordable housing.  Twice per year for seven years and counting, students have joined Habitat families to help renovate or build their homes, or volunteered construction hours for the Opportunity Housing Program of SBP. In turn, our students benefit from the hands-on experiences and local connections that invigorate their study of federal policy.

Second Harvest Food Bank

For over a decade, our students have been regular partners with Second Harvest, engaging in annual food drives, backpack drives, satsuma or turnip gleaning, and food sorting at the warehouse. In turn, Second Harvest has enriched our students’ understanding of food insecurity, not only by these hands-on experiences but also through frequent speakers, warehouse tours, and hunger simulation activities.

University of New Orleans and LADC-GEMM

As our students move through the Upper School Science classes, one of the main goals is to teach them the skills necessary to succeed in STEAM related careers. This year Senior science students will be working with Kendal Leftwich, a doctoral student and physics instructor at the University of New Orleans (UNO), to assess and understand the impact of environmental stresses and human activity on the marine mammals living in the Gulf of Mexico. Leftwich is a researcher for the Littoral Acoustic Demonstration Center Gulf Ecological Monitoring and Modeling consortium (LADC-GEMM), and he will be sharing acoustic data files collected on marine species for our students to analyze. This partnership will give our students the unique opportunity to analyze authentic data sets and contribute to scholarly research. As such, the semester long research project will culminate in a scientific poster presentation as part of the Innovate UNO research symposium.