A decade ago, Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, claiming 1,800 lives and causing unspeakable destruction. But, parenthetically, experts say, the storm gave the reeling city no choice but to hit the restart button on some of its broken systems that were long overdue for repair, including education, low-income housing and health care. Here's how the city addressed some of those challenges -- both succeeding and failing along the way.

Daja's Story: From Struggling Reader to Valedictorian.

When Daja Simmons started seventh grade at her new charter school in New Orleans, she was nowhere near her grades literacy level. In addition to lagging behind academically when she started at Cohen College Prep, Simmons also lived in a homeless shelter for a year in eighth grade, after her father lost his job, making concentrating on her school work even more challenging.

I was weak in math and reading, Simmons, now 18, told The Huffington Post. I would mix up simple words.

Fast forward to last year, when Simmons was named valedictorian, accepted to 10 colleges and won $264,000 in merit scholarships.

Before the Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans was the second-lowest-ranked district in the second-lowest-ranked state in the country. In 2005, 62 percent of students were failing, according to district records.

Simmons' story represents that of many students who might not have succeeded to the same degree without the post-Katrina education system changes, experts point out.

For Simmons, that meant attending a charter school, where she said her teachers pushed her even more once they found out about her compromising situation. They guided her to the point that she was able to add Advanced Placement courses and Chinese to her packed schedule.

Back in 2005, there was some talk about introducing more charter schools, the kind Simmons benefited from, to help revive the education system. But supporters didnt expect to see any swift changes.

There wouldve been incremental government change, Patrick Dobard, superintendent of the Recovery School District, told HuffPost. We never wouldve made the long systemic changes we see now.

Compounding the issue was the fact that critics were reluctant to accept what they viewed as a "top-down" costly system. They didnt like that it would require mass firings and wouldn't necessarily take minority students' needs into consideration.

But when Hurricane Katrina hit, -- taking down 106 schools and sparking a fierce debate about poverty and race with it -- advocates seized the chance to start over and build a stronger system.