A Case Study of Post-Hurricane Katrina Reconstruction: Project Fleur-de-lis, A Decade of Trauma-Informed Programming in New Orleans Area Schools

Project Fleur-de-lis^TM (PFDL), an intermediate and long-term school-based mental health response to Hurricane Katrina, was designed to conduct school-based trauma-informed treatment. This case study examines the rationale, design, implementation, evaluation and impact of PFDL as a grass roots program that evolved into a model for a school-based trauma-informed system of care for nearly 100 schools in the Greater New Orleans area. Lessons learned from PFDL can assist other cities and their schools that experience disasters by informing school policy in disaster preparedness and in the immediate and long-term school-based mental health responses for students.