Benjamin Franklin High School, the city’s A-rated selective public high school, is getting a major Lakefront upgrade. The school will expand into the University of New Orleans’ Human Performance Center, picking up new classroom and athletic space as it tries to keep up with surging demand. Leaders at both institutions are pitching the move as a win-win that lets Franklin grow while UNO tightens up its campus footprint ahead of a looming institutional transition.
In a March 4 message to campus, UNO President Kathy E. Johnson announced that "Beginning in June, we will lease the Human Performance Center to Ben Franklin High School to support their planned enrollment expansion," describing the deal as a partnership that builds on a long-standing local relationship. The University of New Orleans also noted that the lease will let the university reclaim classroom space it had been sharing with Franklin and manage its facilities more strategically.
Deal specifics and what Franklin will get
According to NOLA.com, the agreement is a 30-year lease valued at roughly $360,000 annually, with Franklin taking on operational, maintenance and repair responsibilities. The Human Performance building is expected to deliver around 19 classrooms, nine offices and a full gymnasium large enough to hold the entire student body, a significant step up from squeezing into existing space.
The building is not move-in ready yet. It needs roof work and asbestos abatement, and UNO has agreed to reimburse up to half of those repair costs during the first two years of the lease, NOLA.com reported. Renovations are scheduled to begin this fall, with a target of having students in the new space for the 2027-28 school year. The outlet also noted that Franklin received about 1,000 applications this cycle and expects to enroll roughly 320 ninth-graders this fall, which would be its largest incoming class in decades.
Franklin today
Ben Franklin High School lists its campus at 2001 Leon C. Simon Drive and identifies Alex Jarrell as CEO. The school reports an enrollment of about 1,000 students and highlights a long record of statewide and national recognition. Leaders say the added space will help preserve Franklin’s selective-admissions model while opening the door to more qualified students who meet its academic standards.
University angle
From UNO’s perspective, the lease is part of a broader reshuffling of buildings as the Lakefront campus prepares for a change in governance. According to the LSU Media Center, responsibility for the Lakefront campus is scheduled to transfer to the LSU System on July 1, 2026. University officials have said the Franklin lease provides a modest but steady revenue stream as they rethink how to use campus real estate, including a plan to wind down use of the Liberal Arts Building at the end of the spring semester.
UNO’s message frames the Human Performance Center deal as both a financial move and a practical way to realign classrooms and support services during that transition.
What’s next
Renovation work, including roof repairs and asbestos remediation, is expected to start this fall. The goal is for Franklin students to begin using the new Lakefront spaces in the 2027-28 school year. Administrators on both sides describe the agreement as a long-term partnership designed to keep more New Orleans students tied to the Lakefront campus, give Franklin room to grow and offer UNO a stable, predictable source of income to reinvest locally.
