Baltimore City Public Schools School Portfolio Review and Recommendations 2013-14

Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners

Shanaysha Sauls, Chair David Stone, Vice-Chair Lisa Akchin Cheryl A. Casciani Marnell A. Cooper Robert Heck Tina Hike-Hubbard Peter Kannam Cody L. Dorsey, Student Commissioner

Tisha Edwards, Interim Chief Executive Officer, Baltimore City Public Schools

Report presented to the Board of School Commissioners November 12, 2013 Table of Contents

Overview……….3 In Summary: The Portfolio Review Process The Role of Communities in the Portfolio Review Process

City Schools’ Portfolio Review—In Three Parts……….6 Program Review Program Review for Operator-Run Schools 21st-Century Buildings Plan Review

2013-14 Portfolio Review: Summary of Recommendations……….10

2013-14 Portfolio Review: Recommendations……….13 Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School Baltimore Civitas Middle/High School Baltimore Community High School Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School Baltimore Talent Development High School Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy Middle Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West City Neighbors Hamilton Excel Academy at Francis M. Wood High School Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology Friendship Academy of Science and Technology The Green School of Baltimore Grove Park Elementary/Middle School KIPP Harmony Academy NACA Freedom and Democracy II New Era Academy The REACH! Partnership School Rosemont Elementary/Middle School Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy One Elementary/Middle School in Cherry Hill A New Elementary/Middle School in Canton

Appendix A: Renewal Report for Charter and Operator-Run Schools…….26

Appendix B: School Closure Recommendation Reports……….80

Overview

Each of Baltimore City Public Schools’ 85,000 students has unique interests and needs, and the district is committed to making sure they all have access to the programs, opportunities and supports they need to succeed academically and in life after school.

This commitment to student success has generated major changes to the district’s landscape in recent years: City Schools has gone from being a district where most students were required to attend zoned schools closest to their homes, regardless of quality or focus, to a district where students have a wide range of quality options and a far greater opportunity to choose the school they attend, regardless of where they live. City Schools is building a portfolio of high-quality school programs spanning different grade configurations, governance structures, academic programs and themes.

This transformation of City Schools is guided by the key reform principles and priorities that have been articulated by district leadership and the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners. These reform principles spell out the district’s commitment to

• Fair and open decision making • School autonomy and accountability for student progress • Broad public engagement in the district’s reforms

And the priorities call for

• High-quality curricula and instruction that increase learning • Effective, supported staff • High-quality, collaborative work and learning environments • Family and community ownership of schools and student success • Strong fiscal stewardship and management practices • A portfolio of great schools of all types, in all areas of the city

City Schools’ work to create a portfolio of great school options is a direct outgrowth of the reform principles. It launched initially as an annual review of schools to ensure (a) a broad range of school options in every area of the city, and (b) that all schools were doing the best job possible of positioning students to succeed. From this review the district developed recommendations to expand programs that proved effective and to shore up or close programs that were chronically low performing. This review became the process by which the district now manages its school portfolio to ensure that all students in all schools receive the quality education they deserve.

Over the years, City Schools’ portfolio review has expanded to reflect the growing number and complexity of the district’s efforts to ensure excellent teaching and learning for every student, in every classroom, in every school. City Schools increased its number of charter schools, and the consideration of charter applications was folded into the portfolio review process. It developed a new middle-high school model and entered into contracts with external operators to create and run these schools; this, too, became part of the portfolio review process. And for several years when the district received federal stimulus funds to “turn around” struggling schools, the designation of these schools also fell under the portfolio review.

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As the scope of the district’s portfolio review has expanded, its analysis has become more robust and its recommendations more far reaching. The district has developed new systems to capture more and deeper data from and about schools, and it has aligned the portfolio review work with other reform efforts. This year, City Schools’ portfolio review incorporates an improved renewal process for charter and operator-run schools, and a yearly evaluation of school buildings the district now conducts to update its 21st-Century Buildings Plan, which will guide the renovation and replacement of all district school buildings in the coming years.

City Schools’ portfolio review process today advances each of the district’s six priorities and serves as a point of intersection for multiple reform initiatives.

In Summary: The Portfolio Review Process The district’s portfolio review process is detailed and thorough, and the underlying analysis considers a range of factors, including schools’ academic performance, enrollment trends and buildings needs; the range of school options available in different areas of the city; and opportunities to create new schools. Based on its portfolio review findings, City Schools recommends that the Board of School Commissioners consider changes for certain school programs, operators and buildings. All of these recommendations are put forth in the spirit of providing a higher quality academic experience for as many students as possible, as quickly as possible and where the need is greatest.

The portfolio review comprises three layers, and these can overlap as both individual schools and groups of schools are considered.

Program Review This is a look at the program offerings, enrollment and student achievement of all schools, except those operated by outside organizations through a contractual arrangement with the district.

Program Review for Operator-Run Schools This applies only to schools that are operated by outside organizations. It is similar to the review described above, but also includes measures specific to the governance role of these schools’ operators. Every three to five years, as determined by their individual charters or contracts, these schools go through a process to determine if they will receive a new term to operate in the district. The renewal process, a routine part of the life of these schools, considers school performance in three areas: student achievement, school climate and school management.

21st-Century Buildings Plan Review This looks at schools’ buildings, within the context of City Schools’ 21st-Century Buildings Plan and the most recent updates to its implementation. Implementation of the plan is guided by a set of nearly 140 individual school recommendations approved by the Board of School Commissioners in January 2013. But because implementation will take place over several years and demographic trends, economic conditions and the needs of schools and communities shift over time, the district must come back each year and assess whether it needs to make amendments to its original recommendations. This review factors in the full range of issues that affect the degree to which buildings and their use support excellent teaching and learning.

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The Role of Communities in the Portfolio Review Process Transparent decision making and community engagement are among City Schools’ key reform principles. Because of this, the district consistently engages its students’ families and the broader public in critical decisions that affect school communities. Additionally, the relocation and closure of school programs requires community input under the Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR).

This report presents a range of recommendations designed to improve the educational experience of students throughout the city. It also officially launches the accompanying public review that will culminate in December 2013 with a vote on the recommendations by the Board of School Commissioners. The district urges the public to provide input to inform this process and to help make sure the district is taking the necessary steps to meet the needs of its students, families and school communities.

Between November 12, 2013, when the recommendations are presented to the Board, and December 17, when the Board is scheduled to vote on the recommendations, City Schools is holding school-based parent, staff and community meetings at each of the schools directly affected by this year’s portfolio recommendations to close school programs or amend the buildings plan. On Monday, December 2, and Tuesday, December 10, City Schools and the Board will hold state- mandated public hearings for schools recommended for closure. At that time, the public will have the opportunity to comment on all of this year’s portfolio recommendations. Locations and times for each hearing are as follows:

Digital Harbor High School 1100 Covington Street Baltimore, MD 21230 Monday, December 2, 2013 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

City Schools District Office First Floor Board Room 200 E. North Avenue Baltimore, MD 21202 Tuesday, December 10, 2013 4:30 to 6 p.m.

In addition to the hearings, the Board is accepting written comment until 5 p.m. on Friday, December 13, 2013. Please send your comments to the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners, 200 E. North Ave., Room 406, Baltimore, MD 21202, or email to [email protected]. In order for the Board legally to accept written comments, the sender must fully identify him- or herself in the submission.

The Board expects to vote on all portfolio recommendations at a special meeting on Tuesday, December 17, 2013, beginning at 6 p.m.

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City Schools’ Portfolio Review—In Three Parts

Program Review Every year City Schools conducts a rigorous review of its schools and programs, placing academic performance within the context of enrollment trends, school climate, the range of options for families in a given geographic area and opportunities for school mergers and new school creation. The analysis focuses on and includes a broad range of measures, including

• Student achievement—schoolwide performance on state assessments and student growth measures • School climate—student attendance, suspensions, enrollment, graduation and dropout rates; school choice data for middle and high schools; and school survey results from parents, teachers and students

From this analysis, the district determines which schools are meeting the needs of students and which schools are not—and what actions it as a district can take to provide a higher quality academic experience for students in low-performing schools.

Program Review for Operator-Run Schools The operator renewal review is similar to the program review the district conducts for all of its schools, but it includes indicators of elements that are unique to charter and operator-run schools. These include annual audits, school budget submissions, grants management and board documentation to assess an operator’s financial management and governance practices; academic programming for all student populations; and school compliance with laws, rules, policies and regulations as measures of effective management. Also part of the program review for operator-run schools are their renewal applications and an on-site school effectiveness review. All of these components are evaluated based on a renewal rubric developed specifically for schools operated by external organizations.

Operator renewal criteria are based on state law, Board of School Commissioners policy and City Schools’ administrative regulations. The current review is also the result of a recent, two-year effort to strengthen the district’s approach to contract renewals. In 2011, City Schools formed the Renewal Stakeholders Working Group—composed of school operators from a range of school types and school choice advocates—to develop a methodology for evaluating the performance of operator schools. The result: A fair, transparent and rigorous renewal review that takes into consideration schools’ unique nature and innovative contributions to student achievement. This renewal review was used for the first time during the 2012-13 school year. Since then, staff has partnered with key stakeholders to identify areas for possible improvement while maintaining a level of predictability for schools up for renewal in 2013-14.

Review Process The New and Charter School Advisory Board—whose members represent foundations, nonprofit organizations, school choice advocates, school operators and district staff—conducts the program review for operator-run schools to determine whether operator contracts should be renewed. These

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recommendations generate ratings (“Highly Effective,” “Effective,” “Developing” or “Not Effective”) in these categories:

• Academics (at least 50 percent of an operator’s overall rating) • Climate • Management

The advisory board’s recommendations go to City Schools’ CEO as part of the district’s larger set of portfolio review recommendations and are then voted on by the Board of School Commissioners. According to Board policy, City Schools may determine that a public charter or operator-run school is eligible for a full renewal (a five-year contract term), a partial renewal (a three-year contract term) or nonrenewal.

Renewal reports and recommendations for schools whose contracts or charters are up for renewal at the end of the 2013-14 school year are included in Appendix A. For more detailed information about the program review for operator-run schools and to view individual operator renewal reports from past years, visit the City Schools website at www.baltimorecityschools.org.

21st-Century Buildings Plan Review In January 2013 the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners approved City Schools’ 21st- Century Buildings Plan and in so doing committed to transforming the district’s outdated, overcrowded and under-utilized school buildings into modern, high-quality learning environments that support innovative teaching and learning and 21st-century standards of excellence.

To fulfill that commitment and inform development of the recommendations in City Schools’ buildings plan, the Board articulated the guiding principles that underlie all school building recommendations. These guiding principles, developed with community input, are to

1. Invest to support academic success for all students 2. Maximize fiscal responsibility and stewardship of resources 3. Engage school communities to inform the creation of excellent buildings for their students 4. Align school buildings with demographic and enrollment trends, parent and student choices 5. Invest to have maximum impact on community stability, growth or development 6. Provide diverse options in every geographic area of the city 7. Create school buildings on the cutting edge of technology and environmental sustainability

Review Process The process City Schools used for developing the recommendations in its 21st-Century Buildings Plan required complex analysis, a wide range of considerations and the input of many stakeholders. Because no two school communities are alike, the analysis entailed an up-close look at each of the schools housed in district-owned buildings. While the focus was on—and particular attention was given to—the physical condition and plant of each school building, this up-close look also considered schools’ programming (which the buildings need to support) and the strengths and needs

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 7 of the communities the school buildings inhabit and serve. This “ecology of schools” is a holistic look at all factors that affect how students experience school.

Many of the “ecological” factors the district weighed in developing its initial recommendations are reflected in the following set of considerations that guided the work of City Schools staff in this year’s portfolio review:

• Prioritize buildings with the worst conditions • Prioritize buildings that will serve students of schools being vacated or closed • Prioritize buildings that are expected to need large-scale improvements in coming years • Sequence building construction and movement of students to minimize disruption • Align building size to demographic trends and to support academic success • Prioritize student safety, including traffic and commute time to/from school • Consider interaction of potential decisions with nearby schools • Consider enrollment trends • Coordinate planning and implementation with other citywide agencies that affect neighborhoods • Consider historical significance • Consider past investment in school building • Consider particular building/space needs of special programs • Consider potential school-supporting uses (athletic complex, central kitchen, etc.)

It is important to note that for the buildings plan as approved in January 2013, City Schools conducted analysis of and developed recommendations only for schools housed in district buildings. It is also important to note that the recommendations were based on the landscape of, and assumptions about, the district in 2012-13. But because the buildings plan will be implemented over many years, changes may occur, forcing the district to adapt accordingly and modify the specifics of the plan. Factors that could lead to adjustments to the original recommendations include

• Student enrollment and building utilization targets • Possible changes in school status for those charter and operator-run schools going through a renewal process • City Schools’ annual portfolio review of schools, in which it makes recommendations to the Board to expand, merge, open or close school programs • The required Board vote on all recommended school program closures, which are spread over multiple years in the 21st-Century Buildings Plan • Shifts in anticipated populations as a result of community development • Changes in timing of school actions based on information that comes to light during the design and construction process • Opportunities to move more students into 21st-century buildings more quickly • Available options if students must be relocated while school buildings are under construction • Economic forces, such as prevailing interest rates

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Given these factors, City Schools’ 21st-Century Buildings Plan must be viewed as a living document, and the district and larger community must be open to revisiting recommendations throughout the plan’s implementation.

Based on the preceding guiding principles, considerations and various analyses, City Schools developed recommendations to renovate, renovate or replace or vacate buildings. Within these categories, buildings may also be slated for increases or decreases to their current size-—changes achieved through building additions, reductions or replacements, based on feasibility studies during the design process. Through these recommendations the district aims to increase its current buildings utilization rate, which at present is low, particularly in the middle and high school grades, where in some cases buildings are at half capacity.

As approved in January 2013, City Schools’ 21st-Century Buildings Plan sets out to

• Renovate 87 buildings (including 22 with additions and 1 with reduction) • Renovate or replace 49 buildings (including 13 with increased size and 10 with reduction) • Vacate 26 school buildings • Relocate 12 schools to different buildings • Close 17 school programs • Eliminate the need to use portable classroom buildings

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2013-14 Portfolio Review: Summary of Recommendations

City Schools’ review of schools must be informed by areas of priority focus and high need. In 2013- 14 these include • Aligning the number and range of secondary school options to reflect need and demand • Making sure school programs are sustainable and able to provide robust programming • Making sure all seats in all schools are high quality • Moving more students into 21st-century buildings more quickly Each of the following school recommendations aligns to at least one of these areas of focus.

School Program Recommendation Building Recommendation* Augusta Fells Savage Close in June 2017 Change from renovate/replace Institute of Visual Arts in Year 1 to vacate (with the possibility of renovation to house another program) Baltimore Antioch Diploma Do not renew operator Move forward with original Plus High School contract; close in June 2014 recommendation to vacate, adjusting timing to coincide with relocation of Achievement Academy Baltimore Civitas Close in June 2014 Change from renovate in Year Middle/High School 10 to vacate in 2014 Baltimore Community High Close in June 2014 Move forward with original School recommendation to vacate in 2014 Baltimore Liberation Do not renew operator Move forward with original Diploma Plus High School contract; close in June 2014 recommendation to renovate in Year 8 Baltimore Talent Do not renew operator Change from renovate/replace Development High School contract; close in June 2014 in Year 1 to vacate (with the possibility of renovation to house another program) Bluford Drew Jemison Close in June 2014 No recommendation (building STEM Academy Middle rented from the city and not in the district’s portfolio) Bluford Drew Jemison Do not renew operator Change from renovate in Year STEM Academy West contract; close in June 2014 10 to vacate in 2014 City Neighbors Hamilton Renew operator contract for a Move forward with original three-year term recommendation to renovate in Year 8 continued next page

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School Program Recommendation Building Recommendation* Excel Academy at Francis Change existing Change from vacate to M. Wood High School recommendation from close to renovate in Year 10 keep open Friendship Academy of Renew operator contract for a Move forward with original Engineering and three-year term recommendation to renovate in Technology Year 6 Friendship Academy of Renew operator contract for a Change from renovate in Year Science and Technology three-year term 3 to renovate in Year 2 to house a program to serve pre-k to grade 8; relocate Friendship Academy of Science and Technology to another school building The Green School of Renew operator contract for a No recommendation (privately Baltimore five-year term owned building not in the district’s portfolio) Grove Park Elementary/ Close in June 2017 Change from renovate in Year Middle School 5 to vacate upon closure of program KIPP Harmony Academy Renew operator contract for a Move forward with original five-year term recommendation to renovate in Year 8 NACA Freedom and Renew operator contract for a Move forward with original Democracy II three-year term recommendation to renovate in Year 6 New Era Academy Renew operator contract for a Move forward with original three-year term recommendation to renovate in Year 5 The REACH! Partnership Renew operator contract for a Move forward with original School three-year term; transition from recommendation to renovate grades 6-12 configuration to or replace in Year 1 grades 9-12 Rosemont Renew operator contract for a Move forward with original Elementary/Middle School five-year term recommendation to renovate in Year 7 Vivien T. Thomas Medical No recommendation Change from renovate in Year Arts Academy 8 to renovate in Year 2 continued next page

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School Program Recommendation Building Recommendation* One elementary/middle Close one program in 2017, Vacate one building upon school in Cherry Hill reconfigure grade spans of two closure of program; renovate remaining programs to serve two buildings to serve needs of pre-k to grade 2 and grades 3 to reconfigured programs 8 A new elementary/middle Open a new school to address Relocate Friendship Academy school in Canton overcrowding in the elementary of Science and Technology; and middle grades in the change Canton building southeast portion of the city recommendation from renovate in Year 3 to renovate in Year 2

*City Schools’ 21st-Century Buildings Plan recommendations, as approved by the Board of School Commissioners in January 2013, were sequenced over 10 years, with Year 1 representing 2014-15. Since then, a number of factors have altered the timeline. Year 1 now represents 2015-16. For example, a recommendation to renovate a school building in Year 1 means the newly renovated school will open in 2017.

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2013-14 Portfolio Review: Recommendations

Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts Recommendation Program: Close in June 2017 Building: Change original recommendation from renovate/replace in Year 1 to vacate in Year 1

Opportunity Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts is one of two small school programs in the Harlem Park building, a large campus in West Baltimore that, even with both schools, is significantly under- utilized. As of September 30, 2013, Augusta Fells Savage had 386 students enrolled and the co- located program, Baltimore Talent Development High School, had 394 students—for a combined enrollment of 780. The building, meanwhile, has the capacity to serve 1,739 students.

As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools is recommending that the contract of the operator running Baltimore Talent Development not be renewed and the program be closed at the end of the current 2013-14 school year. If approved, this recommendation will reduce further the Harlem Park building’s already low utilization rate.

Also included in the district’s current portfolio review is a recommendation to move up the renovation of the nearby Francis M. Wood building that houses Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy from Year 8 to Year 2 and to allow for an expansion of that program, which has experienced high levels of demand during the high school choice process. A feasibility study will assess both the Harlem Park and the Francis M. Wood buildings to determine whether it makes most sense to renovate the existing Francis M. Wood building or to expand the Vivien T. Thomas program into a renovated Harlem Park building.

Closing two small high schools and expanding one, larger high school with a strong program in high demand is the quickest way to put the most students possible in a high-quality school supported by a modern, high-quality building in this part of the city.

Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School Recommendation Program: Do not renew the operator’s contract, and close in June 2014 Building: Move forward with original recommendation to vacate, adjusting timing as needed to coincide with relocation of Achievement Academy

Opportunity Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School is an operator-run school in northeast Baltimore that serves students in grades 6 to 12 who are older than their grade-level peers and behind on credits. The operator renewal process, part of the district’s portfolio review this year, yielded a Not Effective rating for this program in academic performance, a Developing rating for climate and an Effective rating for financial management and governance. Based on these findings, the district is recommending that the operator’s contract not be renewed and that the program be closed at the end of the current school year. School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 13

The building that Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus occupies is under-utilized and not cost effective to maintain, and the district has recommended that it be vacated under its 21st-Century Buildings Plan. The district recommends moving forward with that recommendation so that it can close the building.

Baltimore Civitas Middle/High School Recommendation Program: Close in June 2014 Building: Change original recommendation from renovate in Year 10 to vacate

Opportunity Baltimore Civitas Middle/High School was an operator-run school until last year when, as part of City Schools’ portfolio review, the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners approved a recommendation not to renew the operator’s contract. The district assumed operation of the school for the current 2013-14 school year. This year’s portfolio review shows that poor academic performance at the school persists, and that students there are not being positioned to succeed. The district is recommending the program be closed at the end of the current school year and that students have the opportunity to participate in school choice this year, in order to attend better schools next year.

Civitas is one of two small school programs in the Walbrook building, a large campus in West Baltimore that, even with both schools, is severely under-utilized. As of September 30, 2013, Civitas had 344 students enrolled and the other program, Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West (BDJ West), had 541 students—a combined enrollment of 885. The building, meanwhile, has the capacity to serve 1,829 students.

BDJ West is run by an outside operator. As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools is recommending that the operator’s contract not be renewed and that the BDJ West program be closed at the end of the current 2013-14 school year. If approved, this recommendation will reduce further the Walbrook building’s already low utilization rate.

By closing the two relatively small, low-performing schools with poor prospects for enrollment growth in the large Walbrook building, City Schools can vacate the building.

Baltimore Community High School Recommendation Program: Close in June 2014 Building: Move forward with original recommendation to vacate in 2014

Opportunity Located in southeast Baltimore almost at the city line, Baltimore Community High School serves under-credited students from 14 to 21 years of age. At the time of City Schools’ portfolio review last year, the school’s operator chose not to seek renewal of its contract; the district is operating the school for the current 2013-14 school year.

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Low performance at Baltimore Community High School persists this year, and the school is not positioning students for success. City Schools recommends closing the program and encouraging students to participate in school choice this year or offering them seats at other, better alternative high school programs.

The Baltimore Community High School building is already slated to be vacated under the district’s 21st-Century Buildings Plan.

Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School Recommendation Program: Do not renew the operator’s contract, and close in June 2014 Building: Move forward with original recommendation to renovate in Year 8

Opportunity Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School is an operator-run school in northwest Baltimore that serves students who are over-age and behind on their credits. As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools conducted the program review for operator-run schools to determine whether it should renew the operator’s contract for another term. The review yielded a Not Effective rating in academics, and Effective ratings in the areas of climate and financial management and governance. Based on these findings, the district is recommending that the operator’s contract not be renewed and the program be closed at the end of the current school year.

Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus is co-located with two charter schools in the Lemmel building, which is slated for renovation in Year 8 of City Schools’ 21st-Century Buildings Plan. The district recommends moving forward with that recommendation.

Baltimore Talent Development High School Recommendation Program: Do not renew the operator’s contract, and close in June 2014 Building: Change original recommendation from renovate/replace in Year 1 to vacate in 2014

Opportunity Baltimore Talent Development High School is an operator-run school that shares the Harlem Park building in West Baltimore with another small high school, August Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts.

As part of its portfolio review last year, City Schools granted the operator a one-year contract extension, with the proviso that the operator participate in a renewal review again this year. As part of its portfolio review this year, the district again took Baltimore Talent Development High School through the renewal process to determine whether the contract with the operator should be recommended for renewal. This renewal process yielded a Not Effective rating in the area of academic performance, and Developing ratings in the areas of climate and financial management and governance. Based on these ratings, City Schools is recommending that the operator’s contract not be renewed.

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Both the Baltimore Talent Development and Augusta Fells Savage programs that occupy the Harlem Park building are small and, even with both schools, the building is significantly under- utilized. As of September 30, 2013, Baltimore Talent Development had 394 students enrolled and Augusta Fells Savage had 386—for a combined enrollment of 780. The building, meanwhile, has the capacity to serve 1,739 students.

Also included in the district’s current portfolio review is a recommendation to move up the renovation of the nearby Francis M. Wood building that houses Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy from Year 8 to Year 2 and to allow for an expansion of that program, which has experienced high levels of demand during the high school choice process. A feasibility study will assess both the Harlem Park and the Francis M. Wood buildings to determine whether it makes most sense to renovate the existing Francis M. Wood building or to expand the Vivien T. Thomas program into a renovated Harlem Park building.

Closing two small high schools and expanding one, larger high school with a strong program in high demand is the quickest way to put the most students possible in a high-quality program supported by a modern, high-quality building in this part of the city.

Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy Middle Recommendation Program: Close in June 2014 Building: City-owned building not in the district’s buildings portfolio; no recommendation

Opportunity Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy Middle (BDJ Middle) is an all-boys middle school in east Baltimore that until last year had been run by an outside operator. As part of its portfolio review last year, City Schools recommended nonrenewal of the operator’s contract. The Board approved the recommendation and the district assumed operation of the school for the current 2013-14 school year.

BDJ Middle is a low-performing school with low enrollment and poor prospects of enrollment growth; as of September 30, 2013, the school had 260 students. For these reasons, BDJ Middle is not a strong school option for students; City Schools recommends that the program be closed at the end of the current school year and that current students participate in school choice this year, in order to attend better programs next year.

City Schools recognizes that some students and families favor the all-boy educational experience and the district remains committed to providing single-gender schools as part of its portfolio of school options. Two new, all-boys charter schools are slated to open in the district in the next two years.

Because BDJ Middle is located in a city-owned building, closing the school would have no implications for the City Schools buildings portfolio; however, it would have a positive impact for the district financially, in terms of savings on rent.

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Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West Recommendation Program: Do not renew operator contract, close in June 2014 Building: Change original recommendation from renovate in Year 10 to vacate in 2014

Opportunity Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West (BDJ West) is an operator-run, middle-high school in northwest Baltimore that serves an all-male student population.

As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools conducted a renewal review for BDJ West to determine whether it should renew the operator’s contract for another term. The review yielded a Not Effective rating in the area of academic performance and Developing ratings in the areas of climate and financial management and governance. For these reasons, City Schools recommends not renewing the operator’s contract. Because the school is low performing and it is not positioning students for success, City Schools also recommends closing the program at the end of the current school year.

BDJ West is one of two small school programs in the Walbrook building, a large campus in West Baltimore that, even with both schools, is severely under-utilized. As of September 30, 2013, BDJ West had 541 students enrolled while the collocated program, Baltimore Civitas Middle/High School, had 344 students—for a combined enrollment of 885. The building, meanwhile, has the capacity to serve 1,826 students.

Also as part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools is recommending the closure of Baltimore Civitas Middle/High School. If approved, this recommendation will reduce further the Walbrook building’s already low utilization rate. By closing the two relatively small, low-performing schools with poor prospects for enrollment growth in the large Walbrook building, City Schools can vacate the building.

Finally, City Schools recognizes that some students and families favor the all-boy educational experience and the district remains committed to providing single-gender schools as part of its portfolio of school options. Two new, all-boys charter schools are slated to open in the district in the next two years.

City Neighbors Hamilton Recommendation Program: Renew the operator’s contract for a three-year term Building: Move forward with original recommendation to renovate in Year 8

Opportunity City Neighbors Hamilton is a charter school in northeast Baltimore that serves students in kindergarten through 7th grade in the 2013-14 school year (and is adding grades). As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools conducted a renewal review for the operator of City Neighbors Hamilton. That analysis generated a Developing rating in the area of academic performance, an Effective rating for climate and a Highly Effective rating for financial management

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and governance. Based on these ratings, City Schools recommends renewing the operator’s contract for a three-year term.

City Neighbors is housed in the district’s Hamilton building which, under the 21st-Century Buildings Plan, is slated for renovation in Year 8. City Schools recommends moving forward with that recommendation.

By renewing its contract with the City Neighbors Hamilton operator, City Schools retains the ability to offer students and families a strong charter school option in northeast Baltimore.

Excel Academy at Francis M. Wood High School Recommendation Program: Change the existing recommendation from close to keep open Building: Change original recommendation from vacate to renovate in Year 10

Opportunity Through small class sizes, targeted remediation, online learning and a focus on career readiness, Excel Academy provides an accelerated credit recovery program that allows over-age, under-credited students to earn the necessary credits to graduate high school.

As part of its portfolio review last year, City Schools recommended closing the Excel program and vacating the building at the end of the current 2013-14 school year. Within the context of this year’s portfolio review recommendations—particularly those to close Baltimore Community High School, Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School and Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School, all high school programs that serve a similar population—City Schools recommends keeping Excel Academy open. The district also recommends expanding the Excel Academy program to serve over- age middle school students in grades 6 to 8. This expansion will increase program enrollment, which in turn will increase utilization of the district’s Harbor City building that houses Excel Academy.

With the recommendation to retain the program, City Schools also now recommends changing the original 21st-Century Buildings Plan recommendation to vacate the Harbor City building; instead, the building would be renovated in Year 10 of the plan.

By recommending that Excel Academy remain open, City Schools continues to be able to meet the alternative programming needs of City Schools high school students, particularly those on the west side of the city.

Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology Recommendation Program: Renew the operator’s contract for a three-year term Building: Move forward with original recommendation to renovate in Year 6

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Opportunity Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology (FAET) is an operator-run school in northeast Baltimore that serves students in grades 6 to 12, with a focus on career preparation in engineering, networking, software development and architectural design.

As part of its portfolio review last year, City Schools granted the operator a one-year contract extension, with the proviso that the operator participate in a renewal review again this year. As part of its portfolio review this year, the district again took FAET through the renewal process to determine whether the contract with the operator should be recommended for renewal. This analysis generated a Developing rating in the area of academic performance and Effective ratings for climate and financial management and governance. Based on these ratings, City Schools recommends renewing the operator’s contract for a three-year term.

The building FAET occupies, the district’s Professional Development Center, was recommended for renovation in Year 6 of City Schools’ 21st-Century Buildings Plan. The district recommends moving forward with that recommendation.

By renewing the contract with the FAET operator, the district further secures a range of quality programs in its portfolio of school options for students in the middle and high school grades.

Friendship Academy of Science and Technology Recommendation Program: Renew the operator’s contract for a three-year term Building: Change original recommendation from renovate in Year 3 to renovate in Year 2, relocating the Friendship Academy of Science and Technology program so that a new elementary/middle school can be housed in this building

Opportunity Friendship Academy of Science and Technology (FAST) is an operator-run school that serves students in grades 6 to 12, with a focus on career preparation in environmental science, biosciences, medical sciences and computer networking.

As part of its portfolio review last year, City Schools granted the operator a one-year contract extension, with the proviso that the operator participate in a renewal review again this year. As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools again took FAST through the renewal process to determine whether the contract with the operator should be recommended for renewal. This analysis generated Developing ratings in the areas of academic performance and climate and an Effective rating for financial management and governance. Based on these ratings, City Schools recommends renewing the operator’s contract for a three-year term.

FAST occupies the Canton building, located in the southeast part of the city where there is severe overcrowding in the elementary grades and growing demand for seats in pre-k to grade 5. Last year, schools in the area served 6,001 students with a capacity to serve just 5,336.

To alleviate this overcrowding, as part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools recommends moving FAST to another district building, moving up the current recommendation to renovate the Canton building in Year 3 of the 21st-Century Buildings Plan to renovating it in Year 2 and creating a

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 19

new elementary/middle school in the building to serve the southeast area. The district will identify a new location for FAST for 2016.

By renewing the operator contract for FAST for three years, City Schools retains the ability to bolster its college and career readiness programming, the diversity of its school portfolio and the opportunity to work with FAST to make it a stronger school option. By moving the program and repurposing the Canton building for a new elementary/middle school, the district reduces overcrowding at other, nearby schools with elementary grades and creates a new school in a newly renovated building for students in southeast Baltimore.

The Green School of Baltimore Recommendation Program: Renew the operator’s contract for a five-year term Building: Privately owned, no recommendation

Opportunity The Green School of Baltimore is a charter school in northeast Baltimore that serves students in kindergarten through 5th grade. As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools conducted a renewal review for The Green School’s operator. That analysis generated across-the-board Effective ratings for academic performance, climate and financial management and governance. Based on these ratings, City Schools recommends renewing the operator’s contract for a five-year term.

The Green School is housed in a privately owned building, so the district does not have a building recommendation for the school.

By renewing its contract with The Green School’s operator, City Schools retains a strong elementary charter school in its portfolio of options for Baltimore families.

Grove Park Elementary/Middle School Recommendation Program: Close in June 2017 Building: Change original recommendation from renovate in Year 5 to vacate upon closure of the program

Opportunity Grove Park Elementary/Middle School is a small school in northwest Baltimore. As of September 30, 2013, the school had 319 students enrolled, and that number is projected to decline. Because the district’s school funding model is tied to student enrollment, Grove Park’s persistently small size limits its ability to provide the necessary opportunities for students over its grade span—especially in the middle grades when program offerings must expand to meet academic requirements.

Two other nearby schools, Arlington Elementary/Middle School and Calvin M. Rodwell Elementary School, are recommended for action in the first phase of City Schools’ 21st-Century Buildings Plan: Arlington is recommended for renovation or replacement in Year 1 of the plan, and Calvin M.

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Rodwell is recommended for renovation or replacement in Year 2, with expansion of its program to serve pre-k through grade 8. Meanwhile, Grove Park is slated for renovation in Year 5 of the plan.

As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools recommends closing the Grove Park program once construction at Calvin M. Rodwell and Arlington is complete, and giving Grove Park students the option of attending either of these two schools.

The district also recommends changing its original recommendation to renovate the Grove Park building in Year 5 of its buildings plan to a recommendation to vacate the building when the program closes. Under this recommendation, the Grove Park community would be able to participate in the design process for the new or renovated school buildings at Arlington and Calvin M. Rodwell as they get underway.

Closing Grove Park and transitioning Grove Park students to the Calvin M. Rodwell and Arlington programs will consolidate resources at these two schools and allow for richer academic programming for all students—programming that will be further enhanced by newly modernized school buildings. This recommendation places as many students as possible in this part of northwest Baltimore into strong school programs in modern, high-quality buildings as quickly as possible.

KIPP Harmony Academy Recommendation Program: Renew the operator’s contract for a five-year term Building: Move forward with original recommendation to renovate in Year 8

Opportunity KIPP Harmony Academy is a charter school in northwest Baltimore that serves students in kindergarten through 4th grade (and is adding grades). As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools conducted a renewal review for the operator of KIPP Harmony. That analysis generated Effective ratings in the areas of academic performance and climate and a Highly Effective rating for financial management and governance. Based on these ratings, City Schools recommends renewing the operator’s contract for a five-year term.

KIPP Harmony is housed in the district’s Roland Patterson building which, under the 21st-Century Buildings Plan, is slated for renovation in Year 8 of the plan. City Schools recommends moving forward with that recommendation.

By granting the KIPP Harmony operator a new five-year term, City Schools maintains its ability to offer students and families a strong charter school option in northwest Baltimore.

NACA Freedom and Democracy II Recommendation Program: Renew the operator’s contract for a three-year term Building: Move forward with original recommendation to renovate in Year 6

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 21

Opportunity NACA Freedom and Democracy II (NACA II) is an operator-run, combined middle/high school in northeast Baltimore with a college preparatory focus and social justice theme. It serves grades 6 to 10 in the 2013-14 school year, and is adding grades. As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools conducted a renewal review for the operator of NACA II. That analysis generated across- the-board Developing ratings in the areas of academic performance, climate and financial management and governance. Based on these ratings, City Schools recommends renewing the operator’s contract for a three-year term.

The building where NACA II is located, the district’s Professional Development Center, is recommended for renovation in Year 6 of City Schools’ 21st-Century Buildings Plan. The district recommends moving forward with that recommendation.

By renewing its contract with the NACA II operator for another three years, City Schools secures the opportunity to work with the NACA II community to make it a stronger school option for students, and continues its ability to offer students and families a range of unique programs across its portfolio of schools.

New Era Academy Recommendation Program: Renew the operator’s contract for a three-year term Building: Move forward with original recommendation to renovate in Year 5

Opportunity New Era Academy is an operator-run, combined middle/high school in southwest Baltimore with a leadership development theme. As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools conducted a renewal review for the operator of New Era. That analysis generated Developing ratings in the areas of academic performance, climate and financial management and governance. Based on these ratings, City Schools recommends renewing the operator’s contract for a three-year term.

The building New Era occupies is recommended for renovation or replacement with a possible reduction in size in Year 5 of City Schools’ 21st-Century Buildings Plan. The district recommends moving forward with that recommendation.

By renewing its contract with the New Era operator for another three years and moving forward with its recommendation to renovate the building that houses this program, City Schools secures the opportunity to work with the New Era community to further strengthen programming at the school, and to support a middle and high school option in a high-quality building to serve students and families in the southwest part of the city.

The REACH! Partnership School Recommendation Program: Renew the operator’s contract for a three-year term, transition from serving grades 6 to 12 to serving grades 9 to 12 Building: Move forward with the original recommendation to renovate or replace in Year 1

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Opportunity The REACH! Partnership School is an operator-run, combined middle/high school in northeast Baltimore that prepares students for postsecondary education as well as entry-level positions in the fields of healthcare and construction.

As part of its portfolio review last year, City Schools granted the operator a one-year contract extension, with the proviso that the operator participate in a renewal review again this year. As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools again took REACH! through the renewal process to determine whether the contract with the operator should be recommended for renewal. This analysis generated Developing ratings in the areas of academic performance and climate and an Effective rating for financial management and governance. Based on these ratings, City Schools recommends renewing the operator’s contract for a three-year term.

As part of this recommendation, the district also recommends that REACH! phase out its middle grades and transition to serving high school students only. To do so, the school would accept no new 6th-grade students in coming school years, so that it will serve grades 7 to 12 in 2014-15; grades 7 and 8 would then be phased out in the ensuing years. Existing middle grade students will have the option of continuing to attend REACH! through grade 8, and then selecting REACH! or another school through the high school choice process. This recommendation is in keeping with the operator’s own preference of focusing on high school grades and career preparation, where it has the most expertise.

REACH! is located in the Lake Clifton building in northeast Baltimore. Under City Schools’ 21st- Century Buildings Plan, the Lake Clifton campus is slated for renovation or replacement with a possible reduction in size in Year 1. Design work is already underway.

By renewing the REACH! operator’s contract and reconfiguring the school’s grade span, City Schools is positioning the school for continued improvement and retaining its own ability to offer students a high school in a high-quality building in this northeast part of the city.

Rosemont Elementary/Middle School Recommendation Program: Renew the operator’s contract for a five-year term Building: Move forward with original recommendation to renovate in Year 7

Opportunity Rosemont Elementary/Middle School is a neighborhood charter school in southwest Baltimore that serves students in pre-k to grade 8. As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools conducted a renewal review for the operator of Rosemont. That analysis generated across-the-board Effective ratings in the areas of academic performance, climate and management. Based on these ratings, City Schools recommends renewing the operator’s contract for a five-year term.

Rosemont’s building is recommended for renovation in Year 7 of City Schools’ 21st-Century Buildings Plan. The district recommends moving forward with that recommendation.

By renewing the Rosemont operator’s contract, City Schools retains a strong program in its portfolio of school options for this part of the city.

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 23

Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy Recommendation Program: No recommendation Building: Change original recommendation from renovate in Year 8 to renovate in Year 2

Opportunity Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy is a comprehensive high school focused on preparing students for college and careers in the health professions. It is located in the Francis M. Wood building in southwest Baltimore.

As part of its portfolio review this year, City Schools is recommending the closure of two high school programs located near Vivien T. Thomas: Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts and Baltimore Talent Development High School. Both are small, struggling schools with poor prospects for enrollment growth, and they are colocated in the district’s large and severely under-utilized Harlem Park building.

In order to accommodate Augusta Fells Savage and Baltimore Talent Development students—and in keeping with its commitment to place as many students as possible in strong school programs with modernized, high-quality buildings—the district recommends expanding Vivien T. Thomas from 500 to 1,000 students and moving up the current recommendation in its 21st-Century Buildings Plan to renovate the Vivien T. Thomas building in Year 8 to Year 2. The district will conduct a feasibility study of the Francis M. Wood building to determine how it may best support robust high school academic and extracurricular programming. The study may determine that the Harlem Park building, where Augusta Fells Savage and Baltimore Talent Development are currently housed, is the better site for an expanded Vivien T. Thomas.

By expanding Vivien T. Thomas and moving up the renovation of its building to accommodate that expansion, City Schools strengthens its high school offerings in this part of the city and provides more students with a high-quality education in a high-quality, modernized building.

One Elementary/Middle School in Cherry Hill Recommendation Program: Close in 2017 Building: Vacate building upon closure of program

Opportunity Three elementary/middle schools within a half-mile of one another currently serve the Cherry Hill community and its 1,000 pre-k to grade 8 students. The small size of these schools presents persistent challenges to each school’s budget, particularly in the middle grades where required academic offerings require more resources but there are frequently insufficient students to allow more than a single class at each grade level. In order to provide the strongest possible elementary and middle grades programming in this part of the city, City Schools recommends closing one of the three programs and vacating that school’s building.

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The district also recommends converting one of the remaining two programs to an early childhood center that serves students in pre-k to grade 2 (and potentially provides services offered by partners to reach children younger than pre-k), and converting the other program to one that serves students in grade 3 to 8. A feasibility study is currently underway to determine the best location for these two programs.

By reducing the number of elementary/middle schools in Cherry Hill and redirecting the focus of the remaining schools, City Schools will be better able to meet that community’s educational needs.

A New Elementary/Middle School in Canton Recommendation Program: Open a new elementary/middle school program Building: Relocate Friendship Academy of Science and Technology; change original recommendation to renovate the Canton building in Year 3 to renovate in Year 2 to house the new program

Opportunity The elementary and middle schools in the southeast region of Baltimore are overcrowded: In the 2012-13 school year, they served 6,001 pre-k to 8th-grade students in buildings with capacity to serve just 5,336. City Schools’ 21st-Century Buildings Plan as approved by the Board of School Commissioners in January 2013 calls for renovation of the neighborhood’s current school buildings in the later years of the plan, meaning that overcrowding would persist past the plan’s first phase.

Friendship Academy of Science and Technology (FAST), an operator-run school that serves students in grades 6 to 12, occupies the Canton building, located in the southeast part of the city. To alleviate overcrowding in the elementary and middle grades in the southeast more quickly than possible under the January 2013 buildings plan, City Schools recommends moving FAST to another district building, moving up the current recommendation to renovate the Canton building in Year 3 to renovating it in Year 2 and creating a new elementary/middle school in the building to serve the southeast area.

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 25

Appendix A: Renewal Reports for Charter and Operator-Run Schools

The renewal report is a summary of findings and a resulting recommendation regarding renewal of the charter or contract for an operator-run school. The findings draw on analysis of multiple sources of information, including School Effectiveness Reviews (qualitative reviews the district conducts for all schools as part of its work to gauge and strengthen overall school effectiveness), the school’s renewal application and evaluation of other key measures of school performance included in the district’s Renewal Rubric.

City Schools renewal criteria are based on state law (§ 9-101, et seq., MD. CODE ANN., EDUC.), Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners (Board) policy IHB and City Schools CEO administrative regulations IHB-RA and JFA-RA. Board policy IHB requires that schools up for renewal be evaluated on multiple measures including, but not limited to, the following:

• Student achievement (performance on state assessments, student growth measures/value- added measures, unique indicators and a school’s fidelity to its charter, with all student achievement measures together comprising at least 50 percent of the renewal score); • School climate (attendance, suspensions, enrollment, graduation and dropout rates, student choice data and school survey response data from parents, teachers and students); • Financial management and governance (annual audits, school budget submissions, grants management and board documentation); and • Effective management (school compliance with applicable federal, state and local laws, rules, policies and regulations).

The current renewal process is the result of a recent, two-year effort to strengthen City Schools’ approach to renewals of contracts and charters with school operators. As with the annual review of schools that are not run by outside operators, the operator renewal process is designed to ensure that students and families across the district have access to school options that meet their interests and needs, no matter where they live.

In 2011, City Schools formed the Renewal Stakeholders Working Group—composed of school operators from a range of school types, Supporting Public Schools of Choice and the Maryland Charter School Network—to develop a methodology for evaluating the performance of operator schools. The result: A fair, transparent and rigorous renewal process that reflects schools’ unique nature and innovative contributions to student achievement.

The new renewal process was used for the first time during the 2012-13 school year. Since then, staff has engaged with key stakeholders in a comprehensive review of the process to identify areas for possible improvement while maintaining a level of predictability for schools up for renewal in the 2013-14 school year. Changes made to the Renewal Rubric as a result of this review include adding a College and Career Readiness measure for middle/high and high schools, considering absolute performance and trend performance using Stanford 10 or annual pass rates on the Maryland High School Assessment (HSA) for growing schools or schools that are adding grade levels, adding a measure to assess operator capacity and development of unique measures for alternative options programs (please refer to the Renewal Rubric for more details).

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The Process The review process has the following components:

• Renewal Rubric (includes data from standardized assessments, school surveys and the “5 Essentials” survey) • Application for renewal • Data tables prepared by City Schools • School Effectiveness Review

The New and Charter School Advisory Board, whose members represent foundations, nonprofit organizations, school choice advocates, school operators and district representatives, reviews each of these components to determine whether schools should be renewed and makes recommendations to City Schools’ CEO. Renewal recommendations are then voted on by the Board of School Commissioners. According to Board policy, City Schools may determine that a public charter or operator-run school is eligible for a full renewal (a five-year contract term), a partial renewal (a three- year contract term) or nonrenewal.

For the 13 charter or operator-run schools whose contracts are due to expire at the end of the current 2013-14 school year, the steps in the renewal process and timeline are as listed in the table below.

Actions Timeline

Schools submit renewal applications September 5, 2013

New and Charter School Advisory Board reviews renewal September to October 2013 applications and makes recommendations to the CEO

District presents recommendations to Board at public meeting November 12, 2013

Board conducts work session to allow for comment from November 14, 2013 operators of affected schools

Board votes on renewal recommendations December 17, 2013 (tentative)

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 27

Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School #366

Operator: Third Sector New England, Inc., and Diploma Plus, Inc. Grade configuration: High school (over-age and under-credited students) Type of school: Alternative options transformation

Recommendation Nonrenewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Not Effective

Does the school have a strong school climate? Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Effective and governance practices?

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with Third Sector New England, Inc., and Diploma Plus, Inc., to operate Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School not be renewed.

As summarized above, the school was rated Not Effective in academic performance (which by Board policy constitutes 50 percent of the weight of the Renewal Rubric), Developing in climate and Effective in financial management and governance.

Recognizing the particularly complex nature of schools designed to serve students who are older than their grade-level peers and behind in credits, unique measures were developed as part of the renewal process for schools such as Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus, with each measure in the academic performance section of the rubric having the same weight. Additionally, for most of the academic measures, ratings were determined based on the school’s ability to improve performance over time.

Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus received a rating of Not Effective for 9th- and 10th-grade student performance on HSA Algebra, with only 12.7 percent of students improving HSA scores or passing the exam. It was also rated Not Effective in HSA English in grades 9 and 10, with only 18.2 percent of students passing or improving on the HSA. The school was rated Developing in credit accumulation, based on the percentage of students who earned at least five credits or reached 21 credits during the school year; only 43.1 percent of students met one or both of these criteria. The school was rated Not Effective in college and career readiness, with only 9.4 percent of students meeting the criteria, which consider the percent of students who took the ACT in 2012 or the SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an Advanced Placement (AP) exam in 2012 or 2013 or have taken at least three years of courses in a Career and Technology Education (CTE) pathway (thereby being designated “CTE concentrators”).

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Findings Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School

School Number Grade Configuration School Type Alternative 366 High (serving students who are over age and under credited) options transformation

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating

Percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA or who Not improved within the year – Algebra, annual pass rates (grades Effective 1.1 Absolute 9-10) (2013) Student Percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA or who Achievement Not improved within the year – English, annual pass rates (Grades Effective 9 and 10) (2013) Percent of students who earned at least five credits or reached 1.2 Credit Not 21 credits in the school year (students must have been Accumulation Effective enrolled in the school for at least 91 days in the school year) Percent of students active at the end of SY2012-13 who took 1.3 College and an ACT in 2012 or an SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an AP Not Career Readiness exam in 2012 or 2013 or were designated as CTE Effective concentrators in 2012 The extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality 1.4 Fidelity to programming for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to Charter/Application Developing assess its efficacy, and (4) effectively addressed any challenges Overall evident from the data, particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Not Effective

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25% ) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Developing Instruction 2.2 Talented People See School Effectiveness Review Developing 2.3 Engaged Families and See School Effectiveness Review Developing Community

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 29

Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Developing responses) Teachers: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Not 2.4 Parent, Teacher, responses) Effective and Student Students: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Satisfaction Developing responses) Not Students: School survey response rate Effective 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, based Not Retention on grade band Effective 2.6 Student Evidence that the school is aware of its attendance data Attendance and globally and for individual students and has implemented Improvement in Developing effective strategies that have kept attendance high and on a School-Level trajectory of growth over the course of the contract Attendance Extent to which the school has implemented effective 2.7 Suspensions strategies that have kept suspensions low over the course of Developing the contract Extent to which the school has demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities to 2.8 Effective students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming for decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Not Students with climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and Effective Disabilities has effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract 2.9 Student Percent of students who graduated or were still enrolled after Graduation Rate Effective the 5th year of attendance Plus Still Enrolled

Overall climate rating: Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time each 3.1 Audit of the five previous years (or over the course of the previous Effective Submission contract) Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in each 3.2 Audit Content, of the years of the charter term; extent to which statements of Effective Internal Controls cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure

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Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent financial 3.3 State/Federal controls over state/federal grant monies, complied with all Developing Grant Money required reporting and proactively ensured that such funds are restricted to acceptable uses Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may be Effective Capacity considered includes compliance with state or federal reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Effective Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review)

Overall effective management and governance rating: Effective

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 31

Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School #365

Operator: Third Sector New England, Inc., and Diploma Plus, Inc. Grade configuration: High school (over-age and under-credited students) Type of school: Alternative options transformation

Recommendation Nonrenewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Not Effective

Does the school have a strong school climate? Effective

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Effective and governance practices?

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with Third Sector New England, Inc. and Diploma Plus, Inc. to operate Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School not be renewed.

As summarized above, the school received a rating of Not Effective in academic performance (which by Board policy constitutes 50 percent of the weight of the Renewal Rubric) and Effective in the other two key areas of climate and financial management and governance.

Recognizing the particularly complex nature of schools designed to serve students who are older than their grade-level peers and behind in credits, unique measures were developed as part of the renewal process for schools such as Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus, with each measure in the academic performance section of the rubric having the same weight. Additionally, for most of the academic measures, ratings were determined based on the school’s ability to improve performance.

Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus received a rating of Not Effective for 9th- and 10th-grade student performance on HSA Algebra, with only 14.3 percent of students improving HSA scores or passing the exam. It was also rated Not Effective in HSA English in grades 9 and 10, with only 11.1 percent of students passing or improving on the HSA. The school was rated Developing in credit accumulation, based on the percentage of students who earned at least five credits or reached 21 credits during the school year; only 33.1 percent of students met one or both of these criteria. The school was rated Not Effective in college and career readiness, with only 5.5 percent of students meeting the criteria, which consider the percent of students who took the ACT in 2012 or the SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an Advanced Placement (AP) exam in 2012 or 2013 or have taken at least three years of courses in a Career and Technology Education (CTE) pathway (thereby being designated “CTE concentrators). While the school performed well in the climate and financial management and governance sections of the rubric, the contract is recommended for nonrenewal

32 Baltimore City Public Schools based on poor performance in the academic performance section, since academics is the main work of schools.

Findings Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School

School Number Grade Configuration School Type Alternative 365 High (serving students who are over age and under credited) options transformation

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating Percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA or who Not improved within the year – Algebra, annual pass rates (grades Effective 1.1 Absolute 9-10) (2013) Student Percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA or who Achievement Not improved within the year – English, annual pass rates (Grades Effective 9 and 10) (2013) Percent of students who earned at least five credits or reached 1.2 Credit 21 credits in the school year (students must have been Developing Accumulation enrolled in the school for at least 91 days in the school year)

Percent of students active at the end of SY2012-13 who took 1.3 College and an ACT in 2012 or an SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an AP Not Career Readiness exam in 2012 or 2013 or were designated as CTE Effective concentrators in 2012 The extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality 1.4 Fidelity to programming for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to Charter Application Developing assess its efficacy, and (4) effectively addressed any challenges Overall evident from the data, particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Not effective

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Developing Instruction 2.2 Talented People See School Effectiveness Review Effective

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 33

2.3 Engaged Families and See School Effectiveness Review Effective Community Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Developing responses) Teachers: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Not 2.4 Parent, Teacher responses) Effective and Student Students: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Not Satisfaction responses) Effective Not Students: School survey response rate Effective 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, based Highly Retention on grade band Effective 2.6 Student Evidence that the school is aware of its attendance data Attendance and globally and for individual students and has implemented Improvement in Developing effective strategies that have kept attendance high and on a School-Level trajectory of growth over the course of the contract Attendance Extent to which the school has implemented effective 2.7 Suspensions strategies that have kept suspensions low over the course of Developing the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities to 2.8 Effective students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming for decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Not Students with climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and Effective Disabilities has effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract 2.9 Student Percent of students who graduated or were still enrolled after Highly Graduation Rate the 5th year of attendance Effective Plus Still Enrolled

Overall climate rating: Effective

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time each 3.1 Audit of the five previous years (or over the course of the previous Effective Submission contract)

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Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in each 3.2 Audit Content, of the years of the charter term; extent to which statements of Effective Internal Controls cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent financial 3.3 State/Federal controls over state/federal grant monies, complied with all Effective Grant Money required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may be Effective Capacity considered includes compliance with state or federal reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Effective Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review) Overall management rating: Effective

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 35

Baltimore Talent Development High School #428

Operator: Center for Social Organization of Schools at the Johns Hopkins University Grade configuration: High school (grades 9 to12) Type of school: Innovation

Recommendation Nonrenewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Not Effective

Does the school have a strong school climate? Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Developing and governance practices?

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with the Center for Social Organization of Schools at Johns Hopkins University to operate Baltimore Talent Development High School not be renewed.

As summarized above, the school received a rating of Not Effective in academic performance (which by Board policy constitutes 50 percent of the weight of the Renewal Rubric) and Developing in the other two key areas of climate and financial management and governance.

The school was rated Not Effective in every measure in the academic performance section of the rubric. In college and career readiness, one of the most heavily weighted categories in the rubric, Baltimore Talent Development High School placed in the 41st percentile of schools; only 36.2 percent of students met the criteria, which consider the percent of students who took the ACT in 2012 or the SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an Advanced Placement (AP) exam in 2012 or 2013 or who have taken three years of courses within a Career and Technology Education (CTE) pathway (thereby being designated as “CTE concentrators”). The school received a Not Effective rating for its absolute 12th-grade cumulative pass rates for the HSA in Algebra, placing in the 14th percentile with 33 percent of students proficient or advanced, and Not Effective in HSA English, placing in the 36th percentile of schools with 45.1 percent of students proficient or advanced. The school was rated Developing in the area of engaged families and community, as evidenced by the School Effectiveness Review. Finally, the school was rated Not Effective in operator capacity, which measures the extent to which a school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand during the contract period.

36 Baltimore City Public Schools

Findings Baltimore Talent Development High School School Number Grade Configuration School Type 428 High School (grades 9-12) Innovation

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating Percent of 12th-grade students passing HSA at any point prior to graduating -- Algebra (calculated only when schools Not Effective 1.1 Absolute have at least three years of data; 2013) Student Achievement Percent of 12th-grade students passing HSA at any point prior to graduating -- English (calculated only when schools Not Effective have at least three years of data; 2013) Change in percent of 12th-grade students proficient or Not Effective 1.2 Student advanced on HSA Algebra (2009-13) Achievement Trend Change in percent of 12th-grade students proficient or Not Effective advanced on HSA English (2009-13) Percent of students active at the end of SY2012-13 who took 1.3 College and an ACT in 2012 or an SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an AP Not Effective Career Readiness exam in 2012 or 2013 or were designated as CTE concentrators in 2012 Extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality 1.4 Fidelity to programming for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to Charter Application Not Effective assess its efficacy, and (4) effectively addressed any challenges Overall evident in the data, particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Not effective

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Developing Instruction 2.2 Talented People See School Effectiveness Review Developing 2.3 Engaged Families and See School Effectiveness Review Developing Community

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 37

2.4 Parent, Teacher Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Not and Student responses) Effective Satisfaction Teachers and students: 5 Essentials survey Developing 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, based Developing Retention on grade band 2.6 Student Extent to which the school has implemented effective Attendance, strategies that have kept student attendance high and chronic Effective Chronic Absences absences low over the course of the contract Extent to which the school has implemented effective 2.7 Suspensions strategies that have kept suspensions low over the course of Developing the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities to 2.8 Effective students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming for decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Not Students with climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and Effective Disabilities has effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract 2.9 Student Graduation Rate, 4- Includes students who graduated from City Schools with a Effective Year Cohort regular Maryland High School Diploma Graduation Rate

Overall climate rating: Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time each 3.1 Audit of the five previous years (or over the course of the previous n/a Submission contract) Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in each 3.2 Audit Content, of the years of the charter term; extent to which statements of n/a Internal Controls cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent financial 3.3 State/Federal controls over state/federal grant monies, complied with all n/a Grant Money required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses

38 Baltimore City Public Schools

Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Not Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may be Capacity Effective considered includes compliance with state or federal reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Developing Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review)

Overall management rating: Developing

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 39

Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West #364

Operator: Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy, Inc. Grade configuration: Middle/high (grades 6 to 12; added grade 12 in 2013-14 school year) Type of school: Transformation

Recommendation Nonrenewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Not Effective

Does the school have a strong school climate? Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Developing and governance practices?

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy, Inc., to operate Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West not be renewed.

As summarized above, the school was rated Not Effective in academic performance (which by Board policy constitutes 50 percent of the Renewal Rubric) and Developing in the other two key areas of climate and financial management and governance.

The school received a rating of Not Effective in student growth on the Maryland School Assessment (MSA) in reading for students in grades 6 to 8, placing in the 7th percentile of schools with 40.6 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency; it also received a Not Effective for growth on the MSA in math, placing in the 25th percentile of schools with 36.4 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency. Growth on the MSA, which is heavily weighted in the academic performance section of the rubric, measures the percentage of students who improved or maintained performance from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the operator’s contract.

The school was also rated Not Effective in absolute proficiency shown on the MSA in reading, placing in the 13th percentile of schools with 46.3 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced. It was also rated Not Effective in MSA math proficiency, placing in the 30th percentile of schools with 34.8 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced. Finally, the school received a Not Effective rating in the area of student and teacher satisfaction, as evidenced by the 5 Essentials Survey.

40 Baltimore City Public Schools

Findings Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West School Number Grade Configuration School Type Middle/high (grades 6 to 12; added grade 12 in school year 364 Transformation 2013-14)

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating

Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA math Not Effective 1.1 Absolute (grades 6-8) (2013) Student Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA reading Achievement Not Effective (grades 6-8) (2013) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Developing 1.2 Student MSA math (grades 6-8) (weighted) Achievement Trend Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective MSA reading (grades 6-8) (weighted) Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA math Not Effective from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term 1.3 Student of the contract (grades 6-8) Achievement and Growth Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA Not Effective reading from one year to the next, averaged over the five- year term of the contract (grades 6-8) Extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality 1.4 Fidelity to programming for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to Charter Application assess its efficacy, and (4) effectively addressed any Developing Overall challenges evident in the data, particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Not effective

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Developing Instruction 2.2 Talented People See School Effectiveness Review Developing

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 41

2.3 Engaged Families and See School Effectiveness Review Developing Community 2.4 Parent, Teacher Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Highly and Student responses) Effective Satisfaction Teachers and students: 5 Essentials survey Not Effective 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, Effective Retention based on grade band 2.6 Student Extent to which the school has implemented effective attendance, chronic strategies that have kept student attendance high and Developing absences chronic absences low over the course of the contract Extent to which the school has implemented effective 2.7 Suspensions strategies that have kept suspensions low over the course of Developing the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities 2.8 Effective to students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming for decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Not Effective Students with climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and Disabilities has effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract

Overall climate rating: Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time 3.1 Audit each of the five previous years (or over the course of the Developing Submission previous contract) Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in 3.2 Audit Content, each of the years of the charter term; extent to which Not Effective Internal Controls statements of cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent financial 3.3 State/Federal Highly controls over state/federal grant monies, complied with all Grant Money Effective required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses

42 Baltimore City Public Schools

Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may be Developing Capacity considered includes compliance with state or federal reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Developing Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review)

Overall management rating: Developing

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 43

City Neighbors Hamilton #346

Operator: City Neighbors Foundation, Inc. Grade configuration: Elementary/middle (kindergarten to grade 7; adding grades) Type of school: Charter

Recommendation Three-year renewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Developing

Does the school have a strong school climate? Effective

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Highly and governance practices? Effective

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with City Neighbors Foundation, Inc., to operate City Neighbors Hamilton be renewed for three years.

The school has had mixed results, receiving ratings of Developing in academic performance, Effective in climate and Highly Effective in financial management and governance, as summarized above. The school was rated Highly Effective in student growth on the Maryland School Assessment (MSA) in reading for students in grades 3 to 5, placing in the 85th percentile of schools with 73.1 percent of its students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency; however, it was rated Not Effective for student growth on the MSA in math, placing in the 15th percentile of schools with 48.7 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency. Growth on the MSA, which is heavily weighted in the academic performance section of the rubric, measures the percentage of students who improved or maintained performance from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the operator’s contract.

The school was rated Effective in its absolute reading proficiency as shown on the MSA, placing in the71th percentile of schools with 76.9 percent of students proficient or advanced; however, it was rated Not Effective in MSA math proficiency, placing in the 32nd percentile of schools with 61.5 percent of students proficient or advanced.

With respect to the school’s fidelity to its charter, the school was rated Developing, in part based on achievement gaps between its African American (54.5 percent of the student population) and white students (35.7 percent of the student population). In 2013, white students scored 36.3 points higher (at 88 percent proficient or advanced) than African American students (at 51.7 percent proficient or advanced) on MSA math; in MSA reading, white students scored 31.7 points higher (at 100 percent proficient or advanced) than African American students (at 68.3 percent proficient or advanced).

44 Baltimore City Public Schools

The school was rated Highly Effective in student and teacher satisfaction as evidenced by responses on the 5 Essentials Survey and Highly Effective with respect to family and community engagement, as evidenced by the School Effectiveness Review.

Findings City Neighbors Hamilton School Number Grade Configuration School Type 346 Elementary/middle (kindergarten to grade 7; adding grades) Charter

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating

Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA math Not Effective 1.1 Absolute (grades 3-5) (2013) Student Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA reading Achievement Effective (grades 3-5) (2013) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Developing 1.2 Student MSA math (grades 3-5) (weighted) Achievement Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Trend Developing MSA reading (grades 3-5) (weighted) Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA math Not Effective from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term 1.3 Student of the contract (grades 3-5) Achievement and Growth Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA Highly Effective reading from one year to the next, averaged over the five- year term of the contract (grades 3-5) Extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality 1.4 Fidelity to programming for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to Charter assess its efficacy, and (4) effectively addressed any Developing Application challenges evident in the data, particularly in the areas of Overall subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Developing

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 45

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Effective Instruction Highly 2.2 Talented People See School Effectiveness Review Effective 2.3 Engaged Highly Families and See School Effectiveness Review Effective Community Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Developing responses) 2.4 Parent, Teacher Highly and Student Teachers: 5 Essentials survey Effective Satisfaction Students: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Highly responses) Effective 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, Developing Retention based on grade band 2.6 Student The extent to which the school has implemented effective Attendance, strategies that have kept student attendance high and Effective Chronic Absences chronic absences low over the course of the contract Extent to which the school has implemented effective Highly 2.7 Suspensions strategies that have kept suspensions low over the course of Effective the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities 2.8 Effective to students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming for decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Developing Students with climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and Disabilities has effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract

Overall climate rating: Effective

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time 3.1 Audit each of the five previous years (or over the course of the Effective Submission previous contract)

46 Baltimore City Public Schools

Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in 3.2 Audit Content, each of the years of the charter term; extent to which Effective Internal Controls statements of cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent financial 3.3 State/Federal Highly controls over state/federal grant monies, complied with all Grant Money Effective required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may be Highly Capacity considered includes compliance with state or federal Effective reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Highly Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Effective Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review) Overall management rating: Highly effective

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 47

Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology #339

Operator: Friendship Public Charter Schools, Inc. Grade configuration: Middle/high (grades 6 to 12) Type of school: Transformation

Recommendation Three-year renewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Developing

Does the school have a strong school climate? Effective

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Effective and governance practices?

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with Friendship Public Charter Schools, Inc., to operate Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology be renewed for three years.

The school has had mixed results, receiving a rating of Developing in academic performance and ratings of Effective in climate and financial management and governance, as summarized above. The school received a rating of Effective in college and career readiness, one of the most heavily weighted categories in the academic performance section of the Renewal Rubric. The school placed in the 71st percentile of schools in this category, with 68.4 percent of its students meeting the criteria, which consider the percent of students who took the ACT in 2012 or the SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an Advanced Placement (AP) exam in 2012 or 2013 or have taken at least three years of courses in a Career and Technology Education (CTE) pathway (thereby being designated “CTE concentrators).

However, the school received a Not Effective rating in student growth on the Maryland School Assessment (MSA) in math in grades 6 to 8, placing in the 19th percentile with 34.4 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency; it also received a Not Effective rating in growth on MSA reading, placing in the 32nd percentile of schools with 50.4 percent of its students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency. Growth on the MSA, which is another heavily weighted category in the academic performance section of the rubric, measures the percentage of students who improved or maintained performance from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the operator’s contract.

The school was rated Effective for its 4-year cohort graduation rate, placing in the 65th percentile of schools with 78.4 percent of students graduating high school in four years. The school was rated Effective in student and teacher satisfaction as evidenced by the 5 Essentials Survey and in engagement of families and community as evidenced by the School Effectiveness Review. 48 Baltimore City Public Schools

Findings Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology School Number Grade Configuration School Type 339 Middle/high (grades 6-12) Transformation

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating

Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA math Not Effective (grades 6-8) (2013) Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA reading Not Effective 1.1 Absolute (grades 6-8) (2013) Student Percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA – Algebra, Achievement Not Effective annual pass rates (grades 9-10) (2013) Percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA – English, Not Effective (grades 9-10) (annual pass rates; 2013) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA Not Effective math (grades 6-8) (weighted) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA 1.2 Student Not Effective reading (grades 6-8) (weighted) Achievement Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA – Trend Not Effective Algebra, annual pass rates (grades 9-10) (2009-13) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA – Not Effective English, annual pass rates (grades 9-10) (2009-13) Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA math from Not Effective one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the 1.3 Student contract (grades 6-8) Achievement Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA reading and Growth and Not Effective College and from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of Career Readiness the contract (grades 6-8) Percent of students active at the end of SY2012-13 who took an ACT in 2012 or an SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an AP exam in Effective 2012 or 2013 or were designated as CTE concentrators in 2012 Extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is 1.4 Fidelity to clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality programming Charter for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to assess its efficacy, Developing Application and (4) effectively addressed any challenges evident in the data, Overall particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand Overall academic performance rating: Developing

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 49

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Effective Instruction 2.2 Talented See School Effectiveness Review Effective People 2.3 Engaged Families and See School Effectiveness Review Effective Community 2.4 Parent, Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Not Effective Teacher and responses) Student Satisfaction Teachers and students: 5 Essentials survey Effective 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, based on Not Effective Retention grade band 2.6 Student Extent to which the school has implemented effective strategies Attendance, that have kept student attendance high and chronic absences low Not Effective Chronic over the course of the contract Absences Extent to which the school has implemented effective strategies 2.7 Suspensions Effective that have kept suspensions low over the course of the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities to 2.8 Effective students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Not Effective for Students climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and has with Disabilities effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract 2.9 Student Graduation Rate, Includes students who graduated from City Schools with a Effective Cohort regular Maryland High School Diploma Graduation Rate

Overall climate rating: Effective

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time 3.1 Audit each of the five previous years (or over the course of the Effective Submission previous contract)

50 Baltimore City Public Schools

Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management 3.2 Audit Content, points in each of the years of the charter term; extent to Effective Internal Controls which statements of cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent 3.3 State/Federal Highly financial controls over state/federal grant monies, Grant Money Effective complied with all required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern 3.4 Operator or Notices of Reprimand during the contract period Effective Capacity (evidence that may be considered includes compliance with state or federal reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Effective Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review)

Overall management rating: Effective

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 51

Friendship Academy of Science and Technology #338

Operator: Friendship Public Charter Schools, Inc. Grade configuration: Middle/high (grades 6 to 12) Type of school: Transformation

Recommendation Three-year renewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Developing

Does the school have a strong school climate? Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Effective and governance practices?

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with Friendship Public Charter Schools, Inc., to operate Friendship Academy of Science and Technology be renewed for three years.

The school has had mixed results, receiving a rating of Developing in two of the key areas— academic performance and climate—and a rating of Effective in financial management and governance. The school was rated Highly Effective in college and career readiness, one of the most heavily weighted categories in the academic performance section of the Renewal Rubric. The school placed in the 80th percentile of schools with 72.1 percent of students meeting the criteria, which consider the percent of students who took the ACT in 2012 or the SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an Advanced Placement (AP) exam in 2012 or 2013 or have taken at least three years of courses in a Career and Technology Education (CTE) pathway (thereby being designated “CTE concentrators).

However, the school was rated Not Effective in student growth on the Maryland School Assessment (MSA) in math for grades 6 to 8, placing in the 22nd percentile with 35.7 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency; it also received a Not Effective rating in growth in MSA reading, placing in the 23rd percentile of schools with 47.4 percent of its students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency. Growth on the MSA, which is another heavily weighted category in the academic performance section of the rubric, measures the percentage of students who improved or maintained performance from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the operator’s contract. The school was rated Effective with respect to family and community engagement, as evidenced by the School Effectiveness Review.

52 Baltimore City Public Schools

Findings

Friendship Academy of Science and Technology School Number Grade Configuration School Type 338 Middle/high (grades 6-12) Transformation

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating

Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA math Not Effective (grades 6-8) (2013) Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA reading Not Effective 1.1 Absolute (grades 6-8) (2013) Student Percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA – Achievement Not Effective Algebra, annual pass rates (grades 9-10) (2013) Percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA – Effective English, (grades 9-10) (annual pass rates; 2013) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective MSA math (grades 6-8) (weighted) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective 1.2 Student MSA reading (grades 6-8) (weighted) Achievement Trend Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective HSA – Algebra, annual pass rates (grades 9-10) (2009-13) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective HSA – English, annual pass rates (grades 9-10) (2009-13) Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA math Not Effective from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the contract (grades 6-8) 1.3 Student Percent of students who improved performance level or Achievement and maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA Growth and Not Effective reading from one year to the next, averaged over the five- College and Career year term of the contract (grades 6-8). Readiness Percent of students active at the end of SY2012-13 who took an ACT in 2012 or an SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an Highly AP exam in 2012 or 2013 or were designated as CTE Effective concentrators in 2012

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 53

Extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality 1.4 Fidelity to programming for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to Charter Application assess its efficacy, and (4) effectively addressed any Developing Overall challenges evident in the data, particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Developing

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Developing Instruction 2.2 Talented People See School Effectiveness Review Developing 2.3 Engaged Families and See School Effectiveness Review Effective Community Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive 2.4 Parent, Teacher Not Effective and Student responses) Satisfaction Teachers and students: 5 Essentials survey Not Effective 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, Not Effective Retention based on grade band 2.6 Student Extent to which the school has implemented effective Attendance, strategies that have kept student attendance high and Developing Chronic Absences chronic absences low over the course of the contract Extent to which the school has implemented effective 2.7 Suspensions strategies that have kept suspensions low over the course of Developing the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities 2.8 Effective to students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming for decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Not Effective Students with climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and Disabilities has effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract

54 Baltimore City Public Schools

2.9 Student Graduation Rate, Includes students who graduated from City Schools with a Not Effective Cohort Graduation regular Maryland High School Diploma Rate

Overall climate rating: Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time 3.1 Audit each of the five previous years (or over the course of the Effective Submission previous contract) Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in 3.2 Audit Content, each of the years of the charter term; extent to which Effective Internal Controls statements of cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent financial 3.3 State/Federal Highly controls over state/federal grant monies, complied with all Grant Money Effective required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may be Effective Capacity considered includes compliance with state or federal reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Developing Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review)

Overall management rating: Effective

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 55

The Green School of Baltimore (#332)

Operator: Experiential Environmental Education, Inc. Grade configuration: Elementary (kindergarten to grade 5) Type of school: Charter

Recommendation Five-year renewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Effective

Does the school have a strong school climate? Effective

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Effective and governance practices?

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with Experiential Environmental Education, Inc., to operate The Green School of Baltimore be renewed for five years.

The school was rated Effective in each of the three key areas—academic performance, climate, and financial management and governance—as summarized above. The school was rated Effective in student growth on the Maryland School Assessment (MSA) in math for students in grades 3 to 5, placing in the 67th percentile of schools with 62.2 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency, and Highly Effective for growth on MSA reading, placing in the 88th percentile of schools with 74.6 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency. MSA growth measures the percentage of students that have improved within or to a higher level of proficiency from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the contract. The school was rated Effective in absolute proficiency on MSA math (78th percentile of schools with 79.2 percent of students proficient or advanced) and Highly Effective in MSA reading proficiency (93rd percentile of schools with 88.9 percent of students proficient or advanced).

However, in the area of fidelity to its charter, the school was rated Developing in part based on achievement gaps between its African American (36 percent of school population) and white students (52.7 percent of school population). In 2013, white students scored 37.6 percentage points higher (at 97 percent proficient or advanced) than African American students (at 59.4 percent proficient or advanced) on the MSA in math; in reading, white students scored 18.9 percentage points higher (at 97 percent proficient or advanced) than African American students (at 78.1 percent proficient or advanced). The school was rated Highly Effective in teacher, student and parent satisfaction, as evidenced by the 5 Essentials and City Schools’ school surveys.

56 Baltimore City Public Schools

Findings The Green School School Number Grade Configuration School Type 332 Elementary (kindergarten to grade 5) Charter

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating

Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA math Effective 1.1 Absolute (grades 3-5) (2013) Student Achievement Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA reading Highly (grades 3-5) (2013) Effective 1.2 Student Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Effective Achievement Trend MSA math (grades 3-5) (weighted) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Effective MSA reading (grades 3-5) (weighted) Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA math Effective from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term 1.3 Student of the contract (grades 3-5) Achievement and Growth Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA Highly reading from one year to the next, averaged over the five- Effective year term of the contract (grades 3-5) Extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality 1.4 Fidelity to programming for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to Charter Application assess its efficacy, and (4) effectively addressed any Developing Overall challenges evident in the data, particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Effective

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Developing Instruction 2.2 Talented People See School Effectiveness Review Effective

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 57

2.3 Engaged Families and See School Effectiveness Review Developing Community Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Highly responses) Effective 2.4 Parent, Teacher Highly and Student Teachers: 5 Essentials survey Effective Satisfaction Students: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Highly responses) Effective 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, Highly Retention based on grade band Effective 2.6 Student Extent to which the school has implemented effective Attendance, strategies that have kept student attendance high and Effective Chronic Absences chronic absences low over the course of the contract Extent to which the school has implemented effective Highly 2.7 Suspensions strategies that have kept suspensions low over the course of Effective the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities 2.8 Effective to students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming for decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Effective Students with climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and Disabilities has effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract

Overall climate rating: Effective

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time 3.1 Audit each of the five previous years (or over the course of the Effective Submission previous contract) Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in 3.2 Audit Content, each of the years of the charter term; extent to which Effective Internal Controls statements of cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent financial 3.3 State/Federal controls over state/federal grant monies, complied with all Effective Grant Money required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses

58 Baltimore City Public Schools

Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may be Highly Capacity considered includes compliance with state or federal Effective reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Effective Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review)

Overall management rating: Effective

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 59

KIPP Harmony Academy #347

Operator: KIPP Baltimore, Inc. Grade configuration: Elementary/middle (pre-k to grade 4; adding grades) Type of School: Charter

Recommendation Five-year renewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Effective

Does the school have a strong school climate? Effective

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Highly and governance practices? Effective

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with KIPP Baltimore, Inc., to operate KIPP Harmony Academy be renewed for five years.

The school was rated Effective in academic performance and climate and Highly Effective in financial management and governance, as summarized above. The school was rated Highly Effective in the absolute measure for Stanford 10 math for students in grades 1 and 2, placing in the 87th percentile for 1st grade with 93.2 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced, and in the 80th percentile for 2nd grade, with 86.4 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced. KIPP Harmony was also rated Highly Effective for the absolute measure for Stanford 10 reading for grade 1, placing in the 85th percentile of schools with 89.2 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced; it was rated Effective for grade 2, placing in the 71st percentile with 83.2 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced.

The school received a rating of Highly Effective in the area of parent satisfaction as evidenced by City Schools’ annual school survey and Effective in family and community engagement as evidenced by the School Effectiveness Review.

60 Baltimore City Public Schools

Findings KIPP Harmony Academy School Grade Configuration School Type Number 347 Elementary/middle (pre-k to grade 4; adding grades) Charter

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating

Percent of students proficient or advanced on Stanford 10 math Highly (grade 1) (2013) Effective 1.1 Percent of students proficient or advanced on Stanford 10 reading Highly Absolute (grade 1) (2013) Effective Student Achieveme Percent of students proficient or advanced on Stanford 10 math Highly nt (grade 2) (2013) Effective Percent of students proficient or advanced on Stanford 10 reading Effective (grade 2) (2013) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Stanford 10 Effective math (grade 1; 2011-13) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Stanford 10 Not Effective 1.2 Student reading (grade 1; 2011-13) Achieveme Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Stanford 10 nt Trend Effective math (grade 2; 2012-13) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Stanford 10 Effective reading (grade 2; 2012-13) Annual growth, Northwest Evaluation Assessment (NWEA) math Developing (kindergarten to grade 1) (Spring 2012 to Spring 2013) Annual growth, NWEA reading (kindergarten to grade 1) (Spring Effective 2012 to Spring 2013) Annual growth, NWEA math (grades 1 to 2) (Spring 2012 to Spring 1.3 Student Not Effective Achieveme 2013) Annual growth, NWEA reading (grades 1 to 2) (Spring 2012 to nt and Not Effective Growth Spring 2013) Annual growth, NWEA math (grades 2-3) (Spring 2012 to Spring Not Effective 2013) Annual growth NWEA reading (grades 2-3) (Spring 2012 to Spring Not Effective 2013)

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 61

Extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality 1.4 Fidelity to programming for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to Charter Application assess its efficacy, and (4) effectively addressed any Effective Overall challenges evident in the data, particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Effective

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective Highly See School Effectiveness Review Instruction Effective Highly 2.2 Talented People See School Effectiveness Review Effective 2.3 Engaged Families and See School Effectiveness Review Effective Community Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Developing 2.4 Parent, Teacher responses) and Student Teachers: 5 Essentials survey Not Effective Satisfaction Students: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive n/a responses) 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, Highly Retention based on grade band Effective 2.6 Student Extent to which the school has implemented effective Highly Attendance, strategies that have kept student attendance high and Effective Chronic Absences chronic absences low over the course of the contract Extent to which the school has implemented effective 2.7 Suspensions strategies that have kept suspensions low over the course of Developing the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities 2.8 Effective to students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming for decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Not Effective Students with climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and Disabilities has effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract Overall climate rating: Effective

62 Baltimore City Public Schools

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time 3.1 Audit each of the five previous years (or over the course of the Effective Submission previous contract) Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in 3.2 Audit Content, each of the years of the charter term; extent to which Effective Internal Controls statements of cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent financial 3.3 State/Federal Highly controls over state/federal grant monies, complied with all Grant Money Effective required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may Highly Capacity be considered includes compliance with state or federal Effective reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Highly Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Effective Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review) Overall management rating: Highly effective

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 63

NACA Freedom and Democracy II #349

Operator: Northwood Appold Community Academy, Inc. Grade configuration: Middle/high (grades 6 to 10; adding grades) Type of school: Transformation

Recommendation Three-year renewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Developing

Does the school have a strong school climate? Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Developing and governance practices?

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with Northwood Appold Community Academy, Inc., to operate NACA Freedom and Democracy II be renewed for three years.

The school has had mixed results, receiving Developing ratings in each of the three key areas— academic performance, climate and financial management and governance—as summarized above. The school received a rating of Effective in student growth on the Maryland School Assessment (MSA) in reading for grades 6 to 8, placing in the 71st percentile of schools with 60 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency. However, the school received a rating of Developing for growth on the MSA in math, placing in the 63rd percentile of schools with 47.4 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency. Growth on the MSA, which is heavily weighted in the academic performance section of the rubric, measures the percentage of students who improved or maintained performance from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the operator’s contract.

The school received a rating of Effective in its absolute proficiency on the MSA in reading for grades 6 to 8, placing in the 68th percentile of schools with 73 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced. NACA II was rated Developing in proficiency as shown on the MSA in math, placing in the 50th percentile of schools with 46.5 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced.

The school received ratings of Effective in student and teacher satisfaction as evidenced by the 5 Essentials survey and Developing in family and community engagement as evidence by the School Effectiveness Review. Finally, the school received a rating of Not Effective in programming for students with disabilities, in part due to concerns related to providing necessary supports and interventions for these students.

64 Baltimore City Public Schools

Findings NACA Freedom and Democracy II School Number Grade Configuration School Type 349 Middle/high (6-10; adding grades) Transformation

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating

Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA math Developing 1.1 Absolute (grades 6-8) (2013) Student Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA reading Achievement Effective (grades 6-8) (2013) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Developing 1.2 Student MSA math (grades 6-8) (weighted) Achievement Trend Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Developing MSA reading (grades 6-8) (weighted) Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA math Developing from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term 1.3 Student of the contract (grades 6-8) Achievement and Growth Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA Effective reading from one year to the next, averaged over the five- year term of the contract (grades 6-8) Extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality 1.4 Fidelity to programming for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to Charter Application assess its efficacy, and (4) effectively addressed any Developing Overall challenges evident in the data, particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Developing

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Developing Instruction 2.2 Talented People See School Effectiveness Review Not Effective

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 65

2.3 Engaged Families and See School Effectiveness Review Developing Community Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive 2.4 Parent, Teacher Not Effective and Student responses) Satisfaction Teachers and students: 5 Essentials survey Effective 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, Developing Retention based on grade band 2.6 Student Extent to which the school has implemented effective Attendance, strategies that have kept student attendance high and Effective Chronic Absences chronic absences low over the course of the contract Extent to which the school has implemented effective 2.7 Suspensions strategies that have kept suspensions low over the course of Effective the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities 2.8 Effective to students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming for decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Not Effective Students with climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and Disabilities has effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract

Overall climate rating: Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time 3.1 Audit each of the five previous years (or over the course of the Effective Submission previous contract) Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in 3.2 Audit Content, each of the years of the charter term; extent to which Developing Internal Controls statements of cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent financial 3.3 State/Federal Highly controls over state/federal grant monies, complied with all Grant Money Effective required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses

66 Baltimore City Public Schools

Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may be Developing Capacity considered includes compliance with state or federal reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Developing Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review)

Overall management rating: Developing

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 67

New Era Academy #422

Operator: Replications, Inc. Grade configuration: Middle/high (grades 6 to 12) Type of school: Transformation

Recommendation Three-year renewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Developing

Does the school have a strong school climate? Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Developing and governance practices?

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with Replications, Inc., to operate New Era Academy be renewed for three years.

The school has had mixed results, receiving ratings of Developing in each of three key areas— academic performance, climate and financial management and governance—as summarized above. The school received a rating of Developing in college and career readiness, one of the most heavily weighted categories in the Renewal Rubric; it placed in the 64th percentile of schools with 66.3 percent of its students meeting the criteria, which consider the percent of students who took the ACT in 2012 or the SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an Advanced Placement (AP) exam in 2012 or 2013 or who have taken three years of courses within a Career and Technology Education (CTE) pathway (thereby being designated as “CTE concentrators”). The school was rated Highly Effective for its absolute 12th grade cumulative pass rates for the High School Assessment (HSA) in Algebra, placing in the 80th percentile with 76.9 percent of its students scoring proficient or advanced, and Effective in HSA English, placing in the 70th percentile of students with 65.4 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced. However, the school received a Not Effective rating in student growth on the Maryland School Assessment (MSA) in math in grades 6 to 8, placing in the 43rd percentile with 42.8 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency, and a Not Effective rating in growth on MSA reading, placing in the 28th percentile of schools with 49.1 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency. Growth on the MSA, which is another heavily weighted category in the academic performance section of the rubric, measures the percentage of students who improved or maintained performance from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the operator’s contract.

The school was rated Developing for its 4-year cohort graduation rate, placing in the 47th percentile of schools with 69.1 percent of students graduating. The school was rated Effective in family and community engagement as evidenced by the School Effectiveness Review.

68 Baltimore City Public Schools

Findings New Era Academy School Grade Configuration School Type Number 422 Middle/high (grades 6-12) Transformation

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating

Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA math Not Effective (grades 6-8) (2013) Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA reading Not Effective (grades 6-8) (2013) 1.1 Absolute Student Percent of 12th-grade students passing HSA at any point prior Achievement to graduating – Algebra (calculated only when schools have at Highly Effective least three years of data; 2013) Percent of 12th-grade students passing HSA at any point prior to graduating – English (calculated only where schools have at Effective least three years of data; 2013) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA Developing math (grades 6-8) (weighted) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA Not Effective 1.2 Student reading (grades 6-8) (weighted) Achievement Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA Trend Developing Algebra (grade 12; 2009-13) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA Effective English (grade 12; 2009-13) Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA math from Not Effective one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the 1.3 Student contract (grades 6-8) Achievement and Growth Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA reading and College Not Effective and Career from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of Readiness the contract (grades 6-8) Percent of students active at the end of SY2012-13 who took an ACT in 2012 or an SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an AP exam in Developing 2012 or 2013 or were designated as CTE concentrators in 2012

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 69

Extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is 1.4 Fidelity to clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality programming Charter for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to assess its efficacy, Developing Application and (4) effectively addressed any challenges evident in the data, Overall particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Developing

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Developing Instruction 2.2 Talented See School Effectiveness Review Developing People 2.3 Engaged Families and See School Effectiveness Review Effective Community 2.4 Parent, Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive responses) Not Effective Teacher and Student Teachers and students: 5 Essentials survey Not Effective Satisfaction 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, based on Not Effective Retention grade band 2.6 Student Extent to which the school has implemented effective strategies Attendance, that have kept student attendance high and chronic absences low Developing Chronic over the course of the contract Absences 2.7 Extent to which the school has implemented effective strategies Not Effective Suspensions that have kept suspensions low over the course of the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities to 2.8 Effective students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and for Students Not Effective climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and has with effectively and consistently implemented processes, Disabilities interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract

70 Baltimore City Public Schools

2.9 Student Graduation Rate, Includes students who graduated from City Schools with a Developing Cohort Graduation regular Maryland High School Diploma Rate

Overall climate rating: Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time 3.1 Audit Submission each of the five previous years (or over the course of the Effective previous contract) Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in 3.2 Audit Content, each of the years of the charter term; extent to which Not Effective Internal Controls statements of cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent financial 3.3 State/Federal controls over state/federal grant monies, complied with all Effective Grant Money required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may Effective Capacity be considered includes compliance with state or federal reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Developing Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review)

Overall management rating: Developing

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 71

The REACH! Partnership School #341

Operator: Civic Works, Inc. Grade configuration: Middle/high (grades 6 to 12) Type of school: Transformation

Recommendation Three-year renewal for the high school program only; phase out of the middle school program

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Developing

Does the school have a strong school climate? Developing

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Effective and governance practices?

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with Civic Works, Inc., to operate the REACH! Partnership School be renewed for three years, with a transition during the renewal period to serve high school grades (9 to 12) only. Under this recommendation, the school will phase out its middle grades over the next renewal contract, not accepting additional 6th-grade students in the 2014-15 school year and beyond and maintaining middle grades programming only until existing middle grade students enter high school.

The school has had mixed results, receiving Developing ratings in two of the key areas—academic performance and climate—and an Effective rating in financial management and governance. The school received a rating of Developing in college and career readiness, a heavily weighted category in the academic performance area of the Renewal Rubric. It placed in the 57th percentile of schools with 57 percent of students meeting the criteria, which consider the percent of students who took the ACT in 2012 or the SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an Advanced Placement (AP) exam in 2012 or 2013 or who have taken three years of courses within a Career and Technology Education (CTE) pathway (thereby being designated as “CTE concentrators”). The school received a Not Effective rating in student growth on the Maryland School Assessment (MSA) in Math for grades 6 to 8, placing in the 7th percentile with 30.3 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency; it received a Not Effective in growth on the MSA in reading, placing in the 12th percentile of schools with 41.9 percent of its students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency. Growth on the MSA, which is another heavily weighted category in the academic performance section of the rubric, measures the percentage of students who improved or maintained performance from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the operator’s contract.

However, the school was rated Effective in respect to fidelity to its charter/application, in part due to receiving certification for its healthcare CTE program from the Maryland Board of Nursing and certification for the construction CTE program from the National Center for Construction Education and Research, the addition of evening courses for students who fail three or four courses 72 Baltimore City Public Schools or are otherwise behind in credits and older than their grade-level peers, and the creation of a partnership with Baltimore City Community College to offer dual college enrollment to seniors. The school was rated Effective in its 4-year cohort graduation rate, placing in the 75th percentile of schools with 82.8 percent of students graduating. The school was rated Developing in student and teacher satisfaction as evidenced by the 5 Essentials survey and Effective in family and community engagement as evidenced by the School Effectiveness Review.

Findings The REACH! Partnership School School Number Grade Configuration School Type 341 Middle/high (grades 6-12) Transformation

Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating

Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA math Not Effective (grades 6-8) (2013) Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA reading Not Effective 1.1 Absolute (grades 6-8) (2013) Student Percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA Algebra Achievement Not Effective (grades 9-10) (annual pass rates; 2013) Percent of students proficient or advanced on HSA English Not Effective (grades 9-10) (annual pass rates; 2013) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective MSA math (grades 6-8) (weighted) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Developing 1.2 Student MSA reading (grades 6-8) (weighted) Achievement Trend Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective HSA – Algebra, annual pass rates (grades 9-10) (2009-13) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective HSA – English, annual pass rates (grades 9-10) (2009-13) Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA math Not Effective from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the contract (grades 6-8) 1.3 Student Achievement and Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA Growth and Not Effective College and Career reading from one year to the next, averaged over the five- Readiness year term of the contract (grades 6-8) Percent of students active at the end of SY2012-13 who took an ACT in 2012 or an SAT in 2012 or 2013, passed an Developing AP exam in 2012 or 2013 or were designated as CTE concentrators in 2012

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 73

Extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is clear to all stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality 1.4 Fidelity to programming for all student subgroups, (3) gathered data to Charter Application assess its efficacy, and (4) effectively addressed any Effective Overall challenges evident in the data, particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Developing

Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Developing Instruction 2.2 Talented People See School Effectiveness Review Not Effective 2.3 Engaged Families and See School Effectiveness Review Effective Community Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive 2.4 Parent, Teacher Not Effective and Student responses) Satisfaction Teachers and students: 5 Essentials survey Developing 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, Effective Retention based on grade band 2.6 Student Extent to which the school has implemented effective Attendance, strategies that have kept student attendance high and Developing Chronic Absences chronic absences low over the course of the contract Extent to which the school has implemented effective 2.7 Suspensions strategies that have kept suspensions low over the course of Developing the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities 2.8 Effective to students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming for decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Not Effective Students with climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and Disabilities has effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract 2.9 Student Graduation Rate, Includes students who graduated from City Schools with a Effective Cohort Graduation regular Maryland High School Diploma Rate Overall climate rating: Developing

74 Baltimore City Public Schools

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time 3.1 Audit each of the five previous years (or over the course of the Effective Submission previous contract) Extent to which the school’s independent auditor’s reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in 3.2 Audit Content, each of the years of the charter term; extent to which Effective Internal Controls statements of cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that in each year of the charter or contract term, it applied prudent financial 3.3 State/Federal Highly controls over state/federal grant monies, complied with all Grant Money Effective required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may be Effective Capacity considered includes compliance with state or federal reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) 3.5 Strategic Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance Leadership/ practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Effective Governance school’s effectiveness (see School Effectiveness Review)

Overall management rating: Effective

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 75

Rosemont Elementary/Middle School #63

Operator: Coppin State University Grade configuration: Elementary/middle (pre-k to grade 8) Type of school: Conversion charter

Recommendation Five-year renewal

Renewal Summary Finding Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Effective

Does the school have a strong school climate? Effective

Has the school followed sufficient financial management Effective and governance practices?

Discussion It is the recommendation of the New and Charter School Advisory Board that the contract with Coppin State University to operate Rosemont Elementary/Middle School be renewed for five years.

The school was rated Effective in each of the three key areas—academic performance, climate and financial management and governance—as summarized above. The school was rated Highly Effective for student growth on the Maryland School Assessment (MSA) for grades 3 to 5 (placing it in the 87th percentile of schools, with 68.1 percent of its students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency), Highly Effective for MSA math growth for grades 6 to 8 (80th percentile of schools, with 54.1 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency), Effective for MSA reading growth for students in grades 3 to 5 (77th percentile of schools, with 70.6 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency) and Effective for MSA reading growth for grades 6 to 8 (65th percentile of schools, with 58.7 percent of students maintaining or improving levels of proficiency). (MSA growth measures the percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on the MSA from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term of the contract.) The school was rated Effective in teacher and parent satisfaction and Highly Effective in student satisfaction, as evidenced by the 5 Essentials survey and City Schools’ school survey. Finally, the school was rated Highly Effective in engaging families and the community, as evidenced by the School Effectiveness Review.

Findings Rosemont Elementary/Middle School School Number Grade Configuration School Type Conversion 63 Elementary/middle (pre-k to grade 8) charter

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Is the school an academic success? (min. 50% weight) Renewal Metric Rating

Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA math Developing (grades 3-5) (2013) Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA reading Effective 1.1 Absolute (grades 3-5) (2013) Student Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA math Achievement Effective (grades 6-8) (2013) Percent of students proficient or advanced on MSA reading Not Effective (grades 6-8) (2013) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective MSA math (grades 3-5) (2009 to 2013) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective 1.2 Student MSA reading (grades 3-5) (2009 to 2013) Achievement Trend Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective MSA math (grades 6-8) (2009 to 2013) Change in percent of students proficient or advanced on Not Effective MSA reading (grades 6-8) (2009 to 2013) Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA math Highly from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term Effective of the contract (grades 3-5) Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA Effective reading from one year to the next, averaged over the five- 1.3 Student year term of the contract (grades 3-5) Achievement and Percent of students who improved performance level or Growth maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA math Highly from one year to the next, averaged over the five-year term Effective of the contract (grades 6-8) Percent of students who improved performance level or maintained a level of proficient or advanced on MSA Effective reading from one year to the next, averaged over the five- year term of the contract (grades 6-8) Extent to which the school has (1) fully implemented the mission expressed in its charter application and this mission is clear to all 1.4 Fidelity to stakeholders, (2) delivered high-quality programming for all student Charter/ subgroups, (3) gathered data to assess its efficacy, and (4) effectively Effective Application Overall addressed any challenges evident from the data, particularly in the areas of subgroup performance, enrollment, student attendance, dropout rates, attrition and student choice data/school demand

Overall academic performance rating: Effective

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Does the school have a strong climate? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

2.1 Highly Effective See School Effectiveness Review Effective Instruction Highly 2.2 Talented People See School Effectiveness Review Effective 2.3 Engaged Highly Families and See School Effectiveness Review Effective Community Parents: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Effective 2.4 Parent, Teacher responses) and Student Teachers and students: 5 Essentials survey Effective Satisfaction Students: School survey overall satisfaction (% positive Highly responses) Effective 2.5 Cohort School’s student cohort retention two years after entry, Developing Retention based on grade band 2.6 Student Extent to which the school has implemented effective Attendance, strategies that have kept student attendance high and Effective Chronic Absences chronic absences low over the course of the contract Extent to which the school has implemented effective 2.7 Suspensions strategies that have kept suspensions low over the course of Effective the contract Extent to which the school has a demonstrated a strong trajectory of growth, is aware of its data and responsibilities 2.8 Effective to students with disabilities, does not have any gaps or has Programming for decreased gaps in the data as they relate to performance and Developing Students with climate metrics for students with disabilities over time, and Disabilities has effectively and consistently implemented processes, interventions and strategies to support student outcomes over the course of the contract

Overall climate rating: Effective

Has the school followed sufficient financial management and governance practices? (min. 25%) Renewal Metric Rating

Extent to which the school submitted its audits on time 3.1 Audit each of the five previous years (or over the course of the Effective Submission previous contract)

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Extent to which the school’s Independent Auditor’s Reports offer unqualified opinions and no management points in 3.2 Audit Content, each of the years of the charter term; the extent to which Effective Internal Controls statements of cash flow and ratio of assets to liabilities indicate that the operator has strong performance on its short-term liquidity measure Extent to which the school demonstrated that, in each year of the charter or contract term, it has applied prudent 3.3 State/Federal Highly financial controls over state/federal grant monies, complied Grant Money Effective with all required reporting and actively ensured that such funds were restricted to acceptable uses Extent to which the school has operated effectively and the operator has consistently met all state and federal reporting requirements and critical district or federal obligations and has not received any Notices of Concern or Notices of 3.4 Operator Reprimand during the contract period (evidence that may be Developing Capacity considered includes compliance with state or federal reporting requirements, budget submissions and monitoring reports, quarterly reports, and the relative number, frequency and severity of Notices of Concern or Notices of Reprimand) Extent to which the school’s leadership and governance 3.5 Strategic practices have had a demonstrably positive impact on the Leadership/ Effective school’s effectiveness, as evidenced on the School Governance Effectiveness Review

Overall management rating: Effective

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Appendix B: School Closure Recommendation Reports

Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School #366 (Fairmount-Harford Building) 2555 Harford Road Baltimore 21218 Summary School Data SY2009- SY2010- SY2011- SY2012- 10 11 12 13 Student achievement: • English HSA* n/a 64.7 34.9 36.5 • Algebra HSA* n/a 70.6 31.4 27.9 4-year cohort graduation rate 0.0 10.1 26.7 available Jan. 2014 Student attendance rate (%) 61.5 48.0 44.9 46.4 School climate (as indicated by % positive student 62.7 65.5 63.3 67.1 responses on annual school climate survey) *12th-grade cumulative pass rate on the Maryland High School Assessment, as a percentage

• Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School (Antioch) is an alternative options transformation high school serving students who are older than their grade-level peers and behind in credits. The program is operated under contract by Third Sector New England, Inc., and Diploma Plus, Inc. As described in the report resulting from the district’s renewal process for charter and operator-run schools, the New and Charter School Advisory Board has recommended that the contract to operate the school not be renewed. • As described in the renewal report, the school received an overall rating of Not Effective in the area of student academic achievement. • With respect to High School Assessment (HSA) results, Antioch’s cumulative 12th-grade pass rate on the Algebra HSA has declined over the past three years and the English pass rate has remained low, as noted in the table above. Further, on the renewal rubric, the school received a rating of Not Effective for HSA Algebra and HSA English among 9th- and 10th-grade students, with only 12.7 percent and 18.2 percent, respectively, passing or improving.

Enrollment History Grade SY SY SY SY SY 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14** 9 153 175 178 112 10 17 146 155 131 11 n/a 22 63 94 12 n/a 2 42 26 Total 172* 345 438 363 388 *In 2009-10, Antioch also had two students in 8th grade. ** Preliminary data, pending confirmation by the Maryland State Department of Education as official enrollment 80 Baltimore City Public Schools

• Total enrollment at Antioch has fluctuated over the past three years, but it remains low. • Because resources are allocated based on student enrollment, low enrollment—seen particularly in the upper grades—makes it difficult for the school to sustain quality programming. • Antioch is located in the Fairmount-Harford building, where it shares space with Achievement Academy. Recommendations • Close the Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School program. • If the Antioch program closes, proceed with the 21st-Century Buildings Plan recommendation to move Achievement Academy to a new location and vacate the Fairmount-Harford building. • Support students’ and families’ participation in the high school choice process to identify better school options appropriate for each student.

Opportunities • Immediately improve Antioch students’ chances for success by enabling them to choose among stronger options for the 2014-15 school year, including schools and programs that offer credit recovery and acceleration for over-age, under-credited students. • Reduce excess district building capacity at the secondary level, thereby increasing the districtwide utilization rate and lowering maintenance costs.

Reasons for Closure

• City Schools recommends closing Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School due to poor academic performance, the recommended nonrenewal of the operator and the better options available for students within the current school portfolio.

Educational Programs Affected

• Of the 38 staff members at Antioch, 16 are in positions for delivery of instruction. • There are 91 students with disabilities at Antioch; 1 student receives 60 percent of her/his education with a special educator, outside of the general education classroom.

Instruction • Instruction in English, math, science and social studies meets the Maryland state curriculum assessment standards. • As at schools across the district, implementation of the Common Core State Standards is being woven into instruction and teachers are attending systemic professional development. • To serve its over-age, under-credited students, an accelerated credit-acquisition program is provided. • Advanced Placement courses in English Language and U.S. Government and Politics, Career Research and Development and internship programming are offered.

Extracurricular Activities/Student Supports • Antioch students can participate in student government. • Students have access to extended-day programming, HSA prep, academic counseling.

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• Antioch has partnerships with PNC Bank, Healthy Start, TIME Organization and Wells Fargo. There is an on-site food pantry.

Student Relocation

Under the City Schools recommendation to close Antioch, students will have a range of school options with available seats to choose from, including transformation schools, high schools that offer a range of academic and career preparation programs, and high schools and programs with credit recovery and acceleration options for over-age, under-credited students. Entrance criteria will be applied for students interested in transferring to schools with eligibility restrictions.

Available Receiving School Options for Antioch Students Min. Available Seats* Academy for College and Career Exploration 100 Achievement Academy at Harbor City High School 75 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 100 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 100 Digital Harbor High School 100 Edmondson-Westside High School 100 Excel Academy at Francis M. Wood High School 100 Forest Park High School 50 Frederick Douglass High School 100 Friendship Academy of Engineering and 100 Technology Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 50 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 100 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 100 NACA Freedom and Democracy II 100 National Academy Foundation 100 New Era Academy 100 Patterson High School 100 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 100 The REACH! Partnership School 100 Reginald F. Lewis High School 100 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 10 * Only schools with 10 or more available seats are listed. All seat counts are estimates.

Racial Composition There are no significant racial or ethnic differences among students at Antioch and at the proposed receiving schools. Absorbing students from Antioch should not substantially affect the racial composition of the receiving schools.

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% % % % % African White Hispanic Asian/ American American Pacific Indian Islander Baltimore Antioch Diploma Plus High School 98.3 0.8 0.8 0.0 0.0 Academy for College and Career Exploration 91.3 7.3 0.8 0.3 0.2 Achievement Academy at Harbor City High School 98.9 0.5 0.0 0.5 0.0 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 58.0 30.7 10.1 0.9 0.0 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 98.2 0.7 0.9 0.1 0.1 Digital Harbor High School 73.4 14.8 9.3 1.8 0.4 Edmondson-Westside High School 98.5 1.0 0.2 0.0 0.1 Excel Academy at Francis M. Wood High School 98.8 1.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 Forest Park High School 98.2 0.0 1.8 0.0 0.0 Frederick Douglass High School 97.6 0.9 0.7 0.4 0.4 Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology 96.9 1.5 0.7 0.3 0.5 Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 81.5 8.0 8.3 0.3 0.9 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 92.2 4.8 1.1 1.3 0.2 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 95.2 3.4 1.2 0.0 0.1 NACA Freedom and Democracy II 98.9 0.4 0.4 0.0 0.4 National Academy Foundation 87.7 6.1 1.9 2.0 0.1 New Era Academy 90.4 2.0 6.5 0.6 0.3 Patterson High School 67.6 10.7 14.0 6.3 0.8 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 96.7 1.4 1.1 0.7 0.1 The REACH! Partnership School 95.9 2.9 0.2 0.8 0.2 Reginald F. Lewis High School 96.3 2.4 0.7 0.0 0.2 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 93.0 6.0 0.6 0.2 0.2

Student Transportation Considerations

• City Schools provides transportation assistance for secondary students who live more than 1.5 miles from their school. Transportation assistance for secondary students is in the form of Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) student swipe passes. Other transportation alternatives, such as yellow buses, are sometimes provided to students with disabilities and in other circumstances. • Students affected by the closure of Antioch will be provided MTA student swipe passes to the various schools they attend, if those schools are 1.5 miles or more from their homes. • Because City Schools’ students are able to choose where they go to high school, closure of Antioch may result in some additional students needing MTA services. However, the cost to the district of MTA transportation is not expected to change substantially as a result of the closure. • Students with disabilities will receive transportation services as required by their Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).

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Distribution of Antioch Students

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Facility Data

Antioch shares space in the Fairmount-Harford Building with Achievement Academy. Preliminary data for the 2013-14 school year show enrollment for Antioch at 388; enrollment at the alternative options program offered at Achievement Academy changes over the course of the year, with students remaining on the rosters of their home schools.

Type: Alternative options high school State-rated capacity: 742 Grades served: 9-12 Building utilization rate (2012-13): 98.4% Address: 2555 Harford Road Facility Condition Index*: 84.7% Baltimore, MD 21218 Planning area: East Educational Adequacy Score*: 50.3 Date constructed: 1924 Site size: 3.9 acres Building area: 159,587 sq. ft. * These two measures are reported in the 2012 State of School Facilities report commissioned from Jacobs Project Management. The Facility Condition Index is an indicator of the building’s condition derived by comparing the cost of renovating the existing building and the cost of constructing a new building of the same size; generally, a figure higher than 75% suggests new construction should be considered. An Educational Adequacy Score below 80 indicates that a building does not meet the standard for supporting excellent teaching and learning.

Financial Considerations

• Based on the State of School Facilities report, a savings of $31,459,576 in maintenance and repair costs is anticipated over the next 10 years with the closure of the Fairmount-Harford building. • The Antioch budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year is just under $3.5 million in grants and general fund dollars. Dollars linked to students through Fair Student Funding will follow students to the schools they select for the 2014-15 school year.

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Baltimore Civitas Middle/High School #343 (Walbrook Building) 2000 Edgewood Street Baltimore 21216 Summary School Data SY2009-10 SY2010-11 SY2011-12 SY2012-13 Student achievement: • Reading MSA* 69.0 56.4 38.8 44.9 • Math MSA* 30.2 25.4 20.7 15.5 • English HSA** n/a n/a 52.8 51.4 • Algebra HSA** n/a n/a 43.4 29.7 4-year cohort graduation n/a 0.0 91.2 available rate Jan. 2014 Student attendance rate (%) 92.3 94.0 87.2 86.3 School climate (as indicated n/a 62.8 47.0 49.4 by % positive student responses on annual school climate survey) * Percentage of students scoring proficient or advanced on the Maryland School Assessment ** 12th-grade cumulative pass rate on the Maryland High School Assessment, as a percentage

• Baltimore Civitas Middle/High School (Civitas) is a transformation school serving grades 6 to 12. Until June 2013, it was operated under contract by the Center for Social Organization of Schools at Johns Hopkins University; in February 2013, the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners (Board) voted not to renew this operator contract beyond the 2012-13 school year, and in the current 2013-14 school year, Civitas has been run by the district. • Civitas is one of the lowest performing schools in the state, with an MSA proficient/advanced rate in the 2012-13 school year of 44.9 percent in reading and 15.5 percent in math and an HSA pass rate of 51.4 percent in English and 29.7 percent in algebra. Both MSA reading and math scores have declined since four years ago, as noted in the chart above. • The school survey data indicate that Civitas students are not satisfied with their school; the percentage of positive responses at Civitas has declined since 2010-11.

Enrollment History Grade SY SY SY SY SY 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14* 6 44 70 63 53 7 75 69 76 51 8 84 73 60 9 77 58 108 52 10 67 73 35 44 11 56 61 27 12 53 43 Total 263 410 469 330 344 * Preliminary data, pending confirmation by the Maryland State Department of Education as official enrollment

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• Enrollment in 2012-13 is 30 percent below what it was in the 2011-12 school year, the only other year when students were enrolled in all grades. • Resources are allocated based on student enrollment. Because of the small number of students in each grade at Civitas, the school has limited resources, such that it is difficult for the school to sustain quality programming at each grade level. • Civitas is located in the Walbrook building, where Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West (BDJ West) is also located. As of September 30, 2013, Civitas had 344 students enrolled; when combined with 541 at BDJ West, building utilization remains below 50 percent. Recommendations • Close the Baltimore Civitas Middle/High School program. • Vacate the Walbrook building if both schools in the building close. • Support students’ and families’ participation in the middle and high school choice process to identify better school options appropriate for each student.

Opportunities • Improve Civitas students’ chances for success by enabling them to attend stronger schools for the 2014-15 school year. • Reduce excess district building capacity at the secondary level, thereby increasing the districtwide utilization rate and lowering maintenance costs.

Reasons for Closure

• City Schools recommends closing Civitas due to poor academic performance among students and low enrollment. • The Walbrook building is under-utilized, and there are seats in other middle and high schools that are available to Civitas students. • At the time of the Board vote in February 2012 not to renew the contract of the school’s operator for a subsequent term, district staff recommended closure of Civitas at the end of the 2013-14 school year.

Educational Programs Affected

• Of the 50 staff members at Civitas, 19 are in positions that deliver instruction. • There are 100 students with disabilities at Civitas; 34 students receive 60 percent of their education with a special educator, outside of the general education classroom. (Of these 34 students, 18 participate in the citywide PAL program.)

Instruction • Instruction in English, math, science and social studies meets the Maryland state curriculum assessment standards. • As at schools across the district, implementation of the Common Core State Standards is being woven into instruction and teachers are attending systemic professional development. • Programming includes a focus on citizenship and experiential learning.

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Extracurricular Activities/Student Supports • Choir, dance, chess/tea club, middle school basketball and varsity football are offered as extracurricular activities. • Students have access to summer programming and academic counseling. • Partners include Sinai Hospital and the Maryland General Hospital. On-site health services are available.

Student Relocation

Under the City Schools recommendation to close Civitas, students will have a range of school options with available seats, including transformation schools, middle schools and high schools. In addition to options available through the middle school choice process, middle grades students who live in a neighborhood with a “zoned” elementary/middle school or an elementary school that feeds another school for middle grades can attend that school. Entrance criteria will be applied for students interested in transferring to schools with eligibility restrictions.

Available Receiving School Options for Civitas Middle School Students Min. Available Seats* Academy for College and Career Exploration 10 Baltimore I.T. Academy 100 Booker T. Washington Middle School 100 Friendship Academy of Engineering and 75 Technology Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 10 Green Street Academy 100 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 100 NACA Freedom and Democracy Academy II 100 National Academy Foundation 100 New Era Academy 20 Stadium School 20 Vanguard Collegiate Middle School 325 * Only schools with 10 or more available seats are listed. All seat counts are estimates.

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Available Receiving School Options for Civitas High School Students Min. Available Seats* Academy for College and Career Exploration 100 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 100 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 100 Digital Harbor High School 100 Edmondson-Westside High School 100 Forest Park High School 50 Frederick Douglass High 100 Friendship Academy of Engineering and 100 Technology Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 50 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 100 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 100 NACA Freedom and Democracy II 100 National Academy Foundation 100 New Era Academy High School 100 Patterson High School 100 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 100 The REACH! Partnership School 100 Reginald F. Lewis High School 100 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 10 * Only schools with 10 or more available seats are listed. All seat counts are estimates.

Racial Composition There are no significant racial or ethnic differences among students at Civitas and at the proposed receiving schools. Absorbing students from Civitas should not substantially affect the racial composition of the receiving schools.

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School Name % % % % % African White Hispanic Asian/ American American Pacific Indian Islander Baltimore Civitas Middle/High School 98.2 0.9 0.6 0.3 0.0 Academy for College and Career Exploration 91.3 7.3 0.8 0.3 0.2 Baltimore I.T. Academy 96.9 2.5 0.3 0.0 0.3 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 58.0 30.7 10.1 0.9 0.0 Booker T. Washington Middle School 97.8 1.4 0.6 0.0 0.3 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 98.2 0.7 0.9 0.1 0.1 Digital Harbor High School 73.4 14.8 9.3 1.8 0.4 Edmondson-Westside High School 98.5 1.0 0.2 0.0 0.1 Forest Park High School 98.2 0.0 1.8 0.0 0.0 Frederick Douglass High School 97.6 0.9 0.7 0.4 0.4 Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology 96.9 1.5 0.7 0.3 0.5 Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 81.5 8.0 8.3 0.3 0.9 Green Street Academy 96.5 2.9 0.3 0.0 0.3 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 92.2 4.8 1.1 1.3 0.2 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 95.2 3.4 1.2 0.0 0.1 NACA Freedom and Democracy Academy II 98.9 0.4 0.4 0.0 0.4 National Academy Foundation 87.7 6.1 1.9 2.0 0.1 New Era Academy 90.4 2.0 6.5 0.6 0.3 Patterson High School 67.6 10.7 14.0 6.3 0.8 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 96.7 1.4 1.1 0.7 0.1 Reginald F. Lewis High School 96.3 2.4 0.7 0.0 0.2 Stadium School 99.3 0.0 0.4 0.4 0.0 The REACH! Partnership School 95.9 2.9 0.2 0.8 0.2 Vanguard Collegiate Middle School 98.5 0.0 0.6 0.6 0.3 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 93.0 6.0 0.6 0.2 0.2

Student Transportation Considerations

• City Schools provides transportation assistance for secondary students who live more than 1.5 miles from their school. Transportation assistance for secondary students is in the form of Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) student swipe passes. Other transportation alternatives, such as yellow buses, are sometimes provided to students with disabilities and in other circumstances. • Students affected by the closure of Civitas will be provided MTA student swipe passes to the various schools they attend, if those schools are 1.5 miles or more from their homes. • Because City Schools’ students are able to choose where they go to high school, closure of Civitas may result in some additional students needing MTA services. However, the cost to the district of MTA transportation is not expected to change substantially as a result of the closure. • Students with disabilities will receive transportation services as required by their Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).

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Distribution of Civitas Middle School Students

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 91

Distribution of Civitas High School Students

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Facility Data

Civitas shares space in the Walbrook Building with Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West. Preliminary data for the 2013-14 school year show enrollment for the two schools at 344 and 541, respectively.

Type: Transformation school State-rated capacity: 1,829 Grades served: 6-12 Building utilization rate (2012-13): 48.1% Address: 2000 Edgewood Street Facility Condition Index*: 29.3% Baltimore, MD 21216 Planning area: West Educational Adequacy Score*: 56.4 Date constructed: 1971 Site size: 13.6 acres Building area: 258,850 sq. ft.

* These two measures are reported in the 2012 State of School Facilities report commissioned from Jacobs Project Management. The Facility Condition Index is an indicator of the building’s condition derived by comparing the cost of renovating the existing building and the cost of constructing a new building of the same size; generally a figure higher than 75% suggests new construction should be considered. An Educational Adequacy Score below 80 indicates that a building does not meet the standard for supporting excellent teaching and learning.

Financial Considerations

• Based on the State of School Facilities report, a savings of $17,640,310 in maintenance and repair costs is anticipated over the next 10 years with the closure of the Walbrook building. • The Civitas budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year is just over $3.5 million in grants and general fund dollars. Dollars linked to students under City Schools’ Fair Student Funding model will follow students to the schools they attend in the 2014-15 school year.

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Baltimore Community High School #367 (Southeast Building) 6820 Fait Avenue Baltimore 21224 Summary School Data SY2009-10 SY2010-11 SY2011-12 SY2012-13 Student achievement: • Reading MSA* 40.8 27.0 20.0 37.0 • Math MSA* 0.0 2.9 4.2 17.4 • English HSA** n/a 47.5 52.4 34.4 • Algebra HSA** n/a 36.1 42.9 21.9 4-year cohort graduation n/a 36.8 32.7 available rate Jan. 2014 Student attendance rate (%) 80.4 70.0 55.7 66.3 School climate (as indicated 59.7 57.4 54.7 69.8 by % positive student responses on annual school climate survey) * Percentage of students scoring proficient or advanced on the Maryland School Assessment ** 12th-grade cumulative pass rate on the Maryland High School Assessment, as a percentage

• Baltimore Community High School (Baltimore Community) is a transformation school serving grades 6 to 12, with programming for students who are older than their grade-level peers and behind in credits. Until June 30, 2013, the school was operated by One Bright Ray Inc., which decided in spring 2013 not to seek a renewal of its contract. Beginning on July 1, 2013, Baltimore Community has been operated by the district. • Baltimore Community is one of the lowest performing middle/high schools in the city. As shown in the table above, the percentage of middle school students scoring proficient or advanced on the most recent MSA was 37 percent in reading and 17.4 percent in math, while among high school students, the 2012-13 pass rate for the HSA was 34.4 percent in English and 21.9 percent in Algebra. • For the 2012-13 school year, student attendance dropped by 14 percentage points over the 80 percent high of three years earlier. Enrollment History Grade SY SY SY SY SY 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14* 6 0 2 0 8 7 9 14 9 17 8 68 30 17 24 9 77 120 84 119 10 5 65 79 75 11 61 47 61 12 3 25 27 Total 159 295 261 331 421 * Preliminary data, pending confirmation by the Maryland State Department of Education as official enrollment

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• Despite increasing enrollment, the Southeast building where Baltimore Community is located remains significantly under-utilized. Recommendations • Close the Baltimore Community High School program and vacate the Southeast building. • Support students’ and families’ participation in the middle and high school choice process to identify better school options appropriate for each student, including options that provide programming for over-age, under-credited students.

Opportunities • Improve Baltimore Community students’ chances for success by enabling them to attend stronger schools for the 2014-15 school year. • Provide programs for students who are over age and under credited in a more central geographic location. • Reduce excess district building capacity at the secondary level, thereby increasing the districtwide utilization rate and lowering maintenance costs.

Reasons for Closure

• City Schools recommends closing Baltimore Community due to poor academic performance among students and low enrollment. • The Southeast building is under-utilized, and there are seats available in other programs for middle and high school students, including stronger programs for those who are over age and under credited.

Educational Programs Affected

• Of the 42 staff members at Baltimore Community, 17 are in positions that deliver instruction. • There are 55 students with disabilities at Baltimore Community; 1 student receives 60 percent of her/his education from a special educator, outside of the general education classroom.

Instruction • Instruction in English, math, science and social studies meets the Maryland state curriculum assessment standards. • As at schools across the district, implementation of the Common Core State Standards is being woven into instruction and teachers are attending systemic professional development. • To serve its over-age, under-credited students, an accelerated credit acquisition program is provided. • Career Research and Development (high school) and Gateway to Technology: Project Lead the Way (middle school) are offered. • Baltimore Community is an ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) site.

Extracurricular Activities/Student Supports • Baltimore Community students can participate in student government, chess, yearbook, robotics, environment/greening/recycling, step, baseball, basketball and volleyball.

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• Students have access to summer and Saturday programming, along with tutoring and academic counseling. • Partnerships exist with the U.S. Coast Guard and Morgan State University. There is an on-site food pantry.

Student Relocation

Under the City Schools recommendation to close Baltimore Community, students will have a range of school options with available seats to choose from, including transformation schools, high schools that offer a range of academic and career preparation programs, and schools and programs with credit recovery and acceleration options for over-age, under-credited students. Entrance criteria will be applied for students interested in transferring to schools with eligibility restrictions.

Available Receiving School Options for Baltimore Community Students* Min. Available Seats Academy for College and Career Exploration 100 Achievement Academy at Harbor City High School 75 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 100 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 100 Digital Harbor High School 100 Edmondson-Westside High School 100 Excel Academy at Francis M. Wood High School 100 Forest Park High School 50 Frederick Douglass High School 100 Friendship Academy of Engineering and 100 Technology Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 50 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 100 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 100 NACA Freedom and Democracy II 100 National Academy Foundation 100 New Era Academy 100 Patterson High School 100 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 100 The REACH! Partnership School 100 Reginald F. Lewis High School 100 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 10 * Baltimore Community students now enrolled at the middle school level are of high school age; hence, options listed here reflect age-appropriate schools and programs. Only schools with 10 or more available seats are listed. All seat counts are estimates.

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Racial Composition

There are no significant racial or ethnic differences between students at Baltimore Community and the proposed receiving schools. Absorbing students from Baltimore Community should not substantially affect the racial composition of the receiving schools.

School Name % % % % Asian/ % African White Hispanic Pacific Islander American American Indian Baltimore Community High School 81.0 6.3 11.5 0.9 0.3 Academy for College and Career Exploration 91.3 7.3 0.8 0.3 0.2 Achievement Academy at Harbor City High School 98.9 0.5 0.0 0.5 0.0 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 58.0 30.7 10.1 0.9 0.0 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 98.2 0.7 0.9 0.1 0.1 Digital Harbor High School 73.4 14.8 9.3 1.8 0.4 Edmondson-Westside High School 98.5 1.0 0.2 0.0 0.1 Excel Academy at Francis M. Wood High School 98.8 1.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 Forest Park High School 98.2 0.0 1.8 0.0 0.0 Frederick Douglass High School 97.6 0.9 0.7 0.4 0.4 Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology 96.9 1.5 0.7 0.3 0.5 Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 81.5 8.0 8.3 0.3 0.9 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 92.2 4.8 1.1 1.3 0.2 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 95.2 3.4 1.2 0.0 0.1 NACA Freedom and Democracy II 98.9 0.4 0.4 0.0 0.4 National Academy Foundation 87.7 6.1 1.9 2.0 0.1 New Era Academy 90.4 2.0 6.5 0.6 0.3 Patterson High School 67.6 10.7 14.0 6.3 0.8 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 96.7 1.4 1.1 0.7 0.1 The REACH! Partnership School 95.9 2.9 0.2 0.8 0.2 Reginald F. Lewis High School 96.3 2.4 0.7 0.0 0.2 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 93.0 6.0 0.6 0.2 0.2

Student Transportation Considerations

• City Schools provides transportation assistance for secondary students who live more than 1.5 miles from their school. Transportation assistance for secondary students is in the form of Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) student swipe passes. Other transportation alternatives, such as yellow buses, are sometimes provided to students with disabilities and in other circumstances. • Students affected by the closure of Baltimore Community will be provided MTA student swipe passes to the various schools they attend, if those schools are 1.5 miles or more from their homes. • Because City Schools’ students are able to choose where they go to high school, closure of Baltimore Community may result in some additional students needing MTA services. However,

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 97

the cost to the district of MTA transportation is not expected to change substantially as a result of the closure. • Students with disabilities will receive transportation services as required by their Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).

Distribution of Baltimore Community Students

98 Baltimore City Public Schools

Facility Data

Type: Transformation school State-rated capacity: 552 Grades served: 6-12 Building utilization rate (2012-13): 59.9% Address: 6820 Fait Avenue Facilities Condition Index*: 39.5% Baltimore, MD 21224 Planning area: Southeast Educational Adequacy Score*: 56.6 Date constructed: 1976 Site size: 0.9 acres Building area: 95,681 sq. ft.

* These two measures are reported in the 2012 State of School Facilities report commissioned from Jacobs Project Management. The Facility Condition Index is an indicator of the building’s condition derived by comparing the cost of renovating the existing building and the cost of constructing a new building of the same size; generally a figure higher than 75% suggests new construction should be considered. An Educational Adequacy Score below 80 indicates that a building does not meet the standard for supporting excellent teaching and learning.

Financial Considerations

• Based on the State of School Facilities report, a savings of $8,801,426 in maintenance and repair costs is anticipated over the next 10 years with the closure of the Baltimore Community program and vacating of the Southeast building. • Baltimore Community’s budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year is just over $3.6 million in grants and general fund dollars. Dollars linked to students through Fair Student Funding will follow students to the schools they select for the 2014-15 school year.

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 99

Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School #365 (William H. Lemmel Building) 2801 N. Dukeland Street Baltimore 21216

Summary School Data SY2009-10 SY2010-11 SY2011-12 SY2012-13 Student achievement: • English HSA* n/a 40.0 33.3 25.0 • Algebra HSA* n/a 40.0 31.7 27.9 4-year cohort graduation n/a 5.2 11.0 available rate Jan. 2014 Student attendance rate (%) 54.4 46.6 37.9 58.7 School climate (as indicated 54.4 n/a 61.7 66.7 by % positive student responses on annual school climate survey) *12th-grade cumulative pass rate on the Maryland High School Assessment, as a percentage

• Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School (Liberation) is an alternative options transformation high school serving students who are older than their grade-level peers and behind in credits. The program is operated under contract by Third Sector New England, Inc., and Diploma Plus, Inc. As described in the report resulting from the district’s renewal process for charter and operator-run schools, the New and Charter School Advisory Board has recommended that the contract to operate the school not be renewed. • As described in the renewal report, the school received an overall rating of Not Effective in the area of student achievement. • With respect to High School Assessment (HSA) results, Liberation’s cumulative 12th-grade pass rates on both the Algebra and English HSAs have declined over the past three years. Further, on the renewal rubric, the school received a rating of Not Effective for HSA Algebra and HSA English among 9th- and 10th-grade students, with only 14.3 percent and 11.1 percent, respectively, passing or improving.

Enrollment History

Grade SY SY SY SY SY 2009-10* 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14** 9 133 175 206 222 10 27 101 119 138 11 7 32 62 85 12 1 1 11 46 Total 169 309 398 491 491 *In 2009-10, Liberation also had one student in 8th grade. ** Preliminary data, pending confirmation by the Maryland State Department of Education as official enrollment

100 Baltimore City Public Schools

• Liberation is located in the William H. Lemmel building, where ConneXions and the Maryland Academy of Technology and Health Sciences are also located.

Recommendations • Close the Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School program. • Support students’ and families’ participation in the high school choice process to identify better school options appropriate for each student.

Opportunities • Immediately improve Liberation students’ chances for success by allowing them to choose among stronger options for the 2014-15 school year, including schools and programs that offer credit recovery and acceleration for over-age, under-credited students.

Reasons for Closure

• City Schools recommends closing Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School due to poor academic performance, the recommended nonrenewal of the operator and the better options available for students within the current school portfolio.

Educational Programs Affected

• Of the 35 staff members at Liberation, 15 are in positions for delivery of instruction. • There are 100 students with disabilities at Liberation; no students receive 60 percent of their education with a special educator, outside of the general education classroom.

Instruction • Instruction in English, math, science and social studies meets the Maryland state curriculum assessment standards. • As at schools across the district, implementation of the Common Core State Standards is being woven into instruction and teachers are attending systemic professional development. • To serve its over-age, under-credited students, an accelerated credit acquisition program is provided. • Career Research and Development, work-study and internship programming are offered.

Extracurricular Activities/Student Supports • Student government, chess, literature, yearbook and environment/greening/recycling extracurricular clubs and programs are offered; eligible students can participate in sports with students at ConneXions. • Students have access to HSA prep and academic counseling.

Student Relocation

Under the City Schools recommendation to close Liberation, students will have a range of school options with available seats to choose from, including transformation schools, high schools that offer a range of academic and career preparation programs, and high schools and programs with

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 101 credit recovery and acceleration options for over-age, under-credited students. Entrance criteria will be applied for students interested in transferring to schools with eligibility restrictions.

Available Receiving School Options for Liberation Students

Min. Available Seats* Academy for College and Career Exploration 100 Achievement Academy at Harbor City High School 75 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 100 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 100 Digital Harbor High School 100 Edmondson-Westside High School 100 Excel Academy at Francis M. Wood High School 100 Forest Park High School 50 Frederick Douglass High School 100 Friendship Academy of Engineering and 100 Technology Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 50 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 100 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 100 NACA Freedom and Democracy II 100 National Academy Foundation 100 New Era Academy 100 Patterson High School 100 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 100 The REACH! Partnership School 100 Reginald F. Lewis High School 100 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 10 * Only schools with 10 or more available seats are listed. All seat counts are estimates.

Racial Composition There are no significant racial or ethnic differences among students at Liberation and at the proposed receiving schools. Absorbing students from Liberation should not substantially affect the racial composition of the receiving schools.

102 Baltimore City Public Schools

School Name % % % % Asian/ % African White Hispanic Pacific Islander American American Indian Baltimore Liberation Diploma Plus High School 98.6 1.0 0.2 0.0 0.2 Academy for College and Career Exploration 91.3 7.3 0.8 0.3 0.2 Achievement Academy at Harbor City High School 98.9 0.5 0.0 0.5 0.0 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 58.0 30.7 10.1 0.9 0.0 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 98.2 0.7 0.9 0.1 0.1 Digital Harbor High School 73.4 14.8 9.3 1.8 0.4 Edmondson-Westside High School 98.5 1.0 0.2 0.0 0.1 Excel Academy at Francis M. Wood High School 98.8 1.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 Forest Park High School 98.2 0.0 1.8 0.0 0.0 Frederick Douglass High School 97.6 0.9 0.7 0.4 0.4 Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology 96.9 1.5 0.7 0.3 0.5 Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 81.5 8.0 8.3 0.3 0.9 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 92.2 4.8 1.1 1.3 0.2 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 95.2 3.4 1.2 0.0 0.1 NACA Freedom and Democracy II 98.9 0.4 0.4 0.0 0.4 National Academy Foundation 87.7 6.1 1.9 2.0 0.1 New Era Academy 90.4 2.0 6.5 0.6 0.3 Patterson High School 67.6 10.7 14.0 6.3 0.8 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 96.7 1.4 1.1 0.7 0.1 The REACH! Partnership School 95.9 2.9 0.2 0.8 0.2 Reginald F. Lewis High School 96.3 2.4 0.7 0.0 0.2 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 93.0 6.0 0.6 0.2 0.2

Student Transportation Considerations

• City Schools provides transportation assistance for secondary students who live more than 1.5 miles from their school. Transportation assistance for secondary students is in the form of Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) student swipe passes. Other transportation alternatives, such as yellow buses, are sometimes provided to students with disabilities and in other circumstances. • Students affected by the closure of Liberation will be provided MTA student swipe passes to the various schools they attend, if those schools are 1.5 miles or more from their homes. • Because City Schools’ students are able to choose where they go to high school, closure of Liberation may result in some additional students needing MTA services. However, the cost to the district of MTA transportation is not expected to change substantially as a result of the closure. • Students with disabilities will receive transportation services as required by their Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 103

Distribution of Liberation Students

104 Baltimore City Public Schools

Facility Data

Liberation shares space in the William H. Lemmel Building with ConneXions and the Maryland Academy of Technology and Health Sciences. Preliminary data for the 2013-14 school year show enrollment for the three schools at 491, 359 and 378, respectively.

Type: Alternative options high school State-rated capacity: 1,540 Grades served: 9-12 Building utilization rate (2012-13): 78.6% Address: 2801 N. Dukeland Street Facility Condition Index*: 36.2% Baltimore, MD 21216 Planning area: West Educational Adequacy Score*: 62.8 Date constructed: 1958 Site size: 12.5 acres Building area: 233,336 sq. ft.

* These two measures are reported in the 2012 State of School Facilities report commissioned from Jacobs Project Management. The Facility Condition Index is an indicator of the building’s condition derived by comparing the cost of renovating the existing building and the cost of constructing a new building of the same size; generally a figure higher than 75% suggests new construction should be considered. An Educational Adequacy Score below 80 indicates that a building does not meet the standard for supporting excellent teaching and learning.

Financial Considerations

• The Liberation budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year is over $ 4 million in grants and general fund dollars. Dollars linked to students through Fair Student Funding will follow students to the schools they select for the 2014-15 school year.

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 105

Baltimore Talent Development High School #428 (Harlem Park Building) 1500 Harlem Avenue Baltimore 21217

Summary School Data SY2009-10 SY2010-11 SY2011-12 SY2012-13 Student achievement: • English HSA* 55.2 52.5 53.1 45.1 • Algebra HSA* 64.4 64.4 40.8 33.0 4-year cohort graduation 68.1 73.6 76.6 available rate Jan. 2014 Student attendance rate (%) 87.6 82.5 80.7 87.3 School climate (as indicated 63.0 62.3 61.9 59.5 by % positive student responses on annual school climate survey) * 12th-grade cumulative pass rate on the Maryland High School Assessment, as a percentage

• Baltimore Talent Development High School (Baltimore Talent Development) is an innovation high school operated under contract by the Center for the Social Organization of Schools of the Johns Hopkins University. As described in the report resulting from the district’s renewal process for charter and operator-run schools, the New and Charter School Advisory Board has recommended that the contract to operate the school not be renewed. • As described in the renewal report, the school received an overall rating of Not Effective in the area of student achievement. • Baltimore Talent Development is a low-performing high school, with a 2012-13 HSA pass rate of 45.1 percent in English and 33 percent in algebra. Both the English and algebra pass rates have declined.

Enrollment History

Grade SY SY SY SY SY 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14* 9 132 149 175 205 10 121 141 124 113 11 127 109 108 84 12 110 94 92 106 Total 490 493 499 508 394 * Preliminary data, pending confirmation by the Maryland State Department of Education as official enrollment

• Baltimore Talent Development is located in the Harlem Park building, where Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts is also located. Last year’s enrollment of 508 at Baltimore Talent Development, combined with the 426 students enrolled at Augusta Fells Savage Institute, results in a utilization rate of only 59.2 percent for the Harlem Park building.

106 Baltimore City Public Schools

Recommendations • Close the Baltimore Talent Development High School program. • Support students’ and families’ participation in the high school choice process to identify better school options appropriate for each student.

Opportunities • Immediately improve Baltimore Talent Development students’ chances for success by enabling them to choose among stronger schools for the 2014-15 school year. • Increase the districtwide utilization rate and lower maintenance costs through possible renovation and reduction of the Harlem Park building, along with other renovations and possible vacating of buildings in other areas.

Reasons for Closure

• City Schools recommends closing Baltimore Talent Development High School due to poor academic performance, the recommended nonrenewal of the operator and the better options available for students within the current school portfolio.

Educational Programs Affected

• Of the 66 staff members at Baltimore Talent Development, 31 are in positions for delivery of instruction. • There are 101 students with disabilities at Baltimore Talent Development; 28 students receive 60 percent of their education from a special educator, outside of the general education classroom. (Among these 28 students, 21 participate in the citywide PAL program.)

Instruction • Instruction in English, math, science and social studies meets the Maryland state curriculum assessment standards. • As at schools across the district, implementation of the Common Core State Standards is being woven into instruction and teachers are attending systemic professional development. • Career and Technology Education programs are offered in Arts, Media and Communication (interactive media production); Construction and Development (computer-aided drafting and design); and Information Technology (IT networking).

Extracurricular Activities/Student Supports • Baltimore Talent Development students can participate in student government, National Honor Society, chess, debate, yearbook, media club, science club, technology club, robotics, environment/greening/recycling, choir, performing arts/drama/dance, visual arts and cheerleading. • Students have access to summer programming, HSA prep and academic counseling. • Partnerships exist with Center Stage, Afrikan Youth Alchemy, Griot's Eye, Digit All and the Princeton Center for Leadership Training. On-site health services are available.

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 107

Student Relocation

Under the City Schools recommendation to close Baltimore Talent Development, students will have a range of school options with available seats, including transformation schools, middle schools and high schools. Entrance criteria will be applied for students interested in transferring to schools with eligibility restrictions.

Available Receiving School Options for Baltimore Talent Development Students

Min. Available Seats* Academy for College and Career Exploration 100 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 100 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 100 Digital Harbor High School 100 Edmondson-Westside High School 100 Forest Park High School 50 Frederick Douglass High School 100 Friendship Academy of Engineering and 100 Technology Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 50 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 100 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 100 NACA Freedom and Democracy II 100 National Academy Foundation 100 New Era Academy 100 Patterson High School 100 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 100 The REACH! Partnership School 100 Reginald F. Lewis High School 100 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 10 * Only schools with 10 or more available seats are listed. All seat counts are estimates.

Racial Composition There are no significant racial or ethnic differences between students at Baltimore Talent Development and the proposed receiving schools. Absorbing students from Baltimore Talent Development should not substantially affect the racial composition of the receiving schools.

108 Baltimore City Public Schools

School Name % % % % Asian/ % African White Hispanic Pacific Islander American American Indian Baltimore Talent Development High School 98.2 1.0 0.4 0.0 0.2 Academy for College and Career Exploration 91.3 7.3 0.8 0.3 0.2 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 58.0 30.7 10.1 0.9 0.0 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 98.2 0.7 0.9 0.1 0.1 Digital Harbor High School 73.4 14.8 9.3 1.8 0.4 Edmondson-Westside High School 98.5 1.0 0.2 0.0 0.1 Forest Park High School 98.2 0.0 1.8 0.0 0.0 Frederick Douglass High School 97.6 0.9 0.7 0.4 0.4 Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology 96.9 1.5 0.7 0.3 0.5 Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 81.5 8.0 8.3 0.3 0.9 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 92.2 4.8 1.1 1.3 0.2 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 95.2 3.4 1.2 0.0 0.1 NACA Freedom and Democracy II 98.9 0.4 0.4 0.0 0.4 National Academy Foundation 87.7 6.1 1.9 2.0 0.1 New Era Academy 90.4 2.0 6.5 0.6 0.3 Patterson High School 67.6 10.7 14.0 6.3 0.8 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 96.7 1.4 1.1 0.7 0.1 The REACH! Partnership School 95.9 2.9 0.2 0.8 0.2 Reginald F. Lewis High School 96.3 2.4 0.7 0.0 0.2 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 93.0 6.0 0.6 0.2 0.2

Student Transportation Considerations

• City Schools provides transportation assistance for secondary students who live more than 1.5 miles from their school. Transportation assistance for secondary students is in the form of Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) student swipe passes. Other transportation alternatives, such as yellow buses, are sometimes provided to students with disabilities and in other circumstances. • Students affected by the closure of Baltimore Talent Development will be provided MTA student swipe passes to the various schools they attend, if those schools are 1.5 miles or more from their homes. • Because City Schools’ students are able to choose where they go to high school, closure of Baltimore Talent Development may result in some additional students needing MTA services. However, the cost to the district of MTA transportation is not expected to change substantially as a result of the closure. • Students with disabilities will receive transportation services as required by their Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 109

Distribution of Baltimore Talent Development Students

110 Baltimore City Public Schools

Facility Data

Baltimore Talent Development shares space in the Harlem Park Building with Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts. Preliminary data for the 2013-14 school year show enrollment for the two schools at 394 and 386, respectively.

Type: High school State-rated capacity: 1,578 Grades served: 9-12 Building utilization rate (2012-13): 59.2% Address: 1500 Harlem Avenue Facility Condition Index*: 57.5% Baltimore, MD 21217 Planning area: West Educational Adequacy Score*: 55.6 Date constructed: 1963 Site size: 11.9 acres Building area: 306,842 sq. ft. * These two measures are reported in the 2012 State of School Facilities report commissioned from Jacobs Project Management. The Facility Condition Index is an indicator of the building’s condition derived by comparing the cost of renovating the existing building and the cost of constructing a new building of the same size; generally, a figure higher than 75% suggests new construction should be considered. An Educational Adequacy Score below 80 indicates that a building does not meet the standard for supporting excellent teaching and learning.

Financial Considerations

• The Baltimore Talent Development budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year is just under $4.3 million in grants and general fund dollars. Dollars linked to students through Fair Student Funding will follow students to the schools they select for the 2014-15 school year.

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 111

Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy Middle #334 (Rented building not in the district’s portfolio) 1130 N. Caroline Street Baltimore 21213

Summary School Data SY2009-10 SY2010-11 SY2011-12 SY2012-13 Student achievement: • Reading MSA* 67.2 58.1 60.6 51.8 • Math MSA* 54.9 38.3 46.2 40.2 Student attendance rate (%) 95.7 97.3 97.6 97.8 School climate (as indicated 66.3 68.3 71.0 64.9 by % positive student responses on annual school climate survey) * Percentage of students scoring proficient or advanced on the Maryland School Assessment

• Until June 2013, Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy Middle (BDJ Middle) was operated under contract by Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy Inc.; in February 2013, the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners voted not to renew this operator contract beyond the 2012-13 school year, and in the current 2013-14 school year, BDJ Middle has been run by the district. • BDJ Middle is a low-performing school, with 51.8 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced in reading on the 2012-13 MSA and 40.2 percent doing so in math. Both reading and math scores have declined since four years ago, as noted in the chart above, including declines following the nonrenewal of the operator’s contract.

Enrollment History

Grade SY SY SY SY SY 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14* 6 108 126 94 113 7 134 104 106 91 8 123 128 100 105 Total 365 358 300 309 260 * Preliminary data, pending confirmation by the Maryland State Department of Education as official enrollment

• Since 2009-10, enrollment has declined by 15 percent; at present in the current school year, enrollment is below projections. • Resources are allocated based on student enrollment. Because of the decreasing number of students in each grade at BDJ Middle, the school has limited resources, such that it is difficult for the school to sustain quality programming at each grade level.

Recommendations • Close the Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy Middle program. • Vacate the building in which BDJ Middle is located, for which the district currently pays rent.

112 Baltimore City Public Schools

• Support students’ and families’ participation in the middle school choice process to identify better school options appropriate for each student.

Opportunities • Improve BDJ Middle students’ chances for success by enabling them to attend stronger schools for the 2014-15 school year. • Vacate a city-owned building for which City Schools is paying rent.

Reasons for Closure

• City Schools recommends closing BDJ Middle due to poor academic performance. • At the time of the Board vote in February 2013 not to renew the contract of the school’s operator for a subsequent term, district staff recommended closure of BDJ Middle at the end of the 2013-14 school year.

Educational Programs Affected

• Of the 35 staff members at BDJ Middle, 20 are in positions that deliver instruction. • There are 47 students with disabilities at BDJ Middle; 4 students receive 60 percent of their education from a special educator, outside of the general education classroom. • BDJ Middle serves an all-male student population.

Instruction • Instruction in English, math, science and social studies meets the Maryland state curriculum assessment standards. • As at schools across the district, implementation of the Common Core State Standards is being woven into instruction and teachers are attending systemic professional development. • Honors classes are offered in all grades, in partnership with the Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth (CTY). • Gateway to Technology: Project Lead the Way is offered.

Extracurricular Activities/Student Supports • BDJ Middle students can participate in student government, National Junior Honor Society, National Junior Society of Black Engineers, chess, debate, newspaper/journalism club, entrepreneurship/business, science club, technology club, robotics, choir and instrumental music • Baseball, basketball, lacrosse, tennis and outdoor track teams are available. • Students have access to extended-day and summer programming. • Partnerships exist with Morgan State University, Coppin State University, Johns Hopkins University, Oliver Community Center and Northrop Grumman. An on-site food pantry and health services are available.

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 113

Student Relocation

Under the City Schools recommendation to close BDJ Middle, students will have a range of school options with available seats, including transformation schools, elementary/middle schools and middle schools. In addition to options available through the middle school choice process, students who live in a neighborhood with a “zoned” elementary/middle school or an elementary school that feeds another school for middle grades can attend that school. Entrance criteria will be applied for students interested in transferring to schools with eligibility restrictions.

Available Receiving School Options for BDJ Middle Students

Min. Available Seats* Academy for College and Career Exploration 10 Baltimore I.T. Academy 100 Booker T. Washington Middle School 100 Friendship Academy of Engineering and 75 Technology Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 10 Green Street Academy 100 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 100 NACA Freedom and Democracy Academy II 100 National Academy Foundation 100 New Era Academy 20 Stadium School 20 Vanguard Collegiate Middle School 325 * Only schools with 10 or more available seats are listed. All seat counts are estimates.

Racial Composition There are no significant racial or ethnic differences between students at BDJ Middle and the proposed receiving schools. Absorbing students from BDJ Middle should not substantially affect the racial composition of the receiving schools.

114 Baltimore City Public Schools

School Name % African % % % Asian/ % American White Hispanic Pacific American Islander Indian

Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy Middle 99.4 0.3 0.3 0.0 0.0 Academy for College and Career Exploration 91.3 7.3 0.8 0.3 0.2 Baltimore I.T. Academy 96.9 2.5 0.3 0.0 0.3 Booker T. Washington Middle School 97.8 1.4 0.6 0.0 0.3 Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology 96.9 1.5 0.7 0.3 0.5 Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 81.5 8.0 8.3 0.3 0.9 Green Street Academy 96.5 2.9 0.3 0.0 0.3 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 92.2 4.8 1.1 1.3 0.2 NACA Freedom and Democracy Academy II 98.9 0.4 0.4 0.0 0.4 National Academy Foundation 87.7 6.1 1.9 2.0 0.1 New Era Academy 90.4 2.0 6.5 0.6 0.3 Stadium School 99.3 0.0 0.4 0.4 0.0 Vanguard Collegiate Middle School 98.5 0.0 0.6 0.6 0.3

Student Transportation Considerations

• City Schools provides transportation assistance for secondary students who live more than 1.5 miles from their school. Transportation assistance for secondary students is in the form of Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) student swipe passes. Other transportation alternatives, such as yellow buses, are sometimes provided to students with disabilities and in other circumstances. • Students affected by the closure of BDJ Middle will be provided MTA student swipe passes to the various schools they attend, if those schools are 1.5 miles or more from their homes. • Because City Schools’ students are able to choose where they go to high school, closure of BDJ Middle may result in some additional students needing MTA services. However, the cost to the district of MTA transportation is not expected to change substantially as a result of the closure. • Students with disabilities will receive transportation services as required by their Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 115

Distribution of BDJ Middle Students

116 Baltimore City Public Schools

Facility Data

BDJ Middle is in a city-owned building not in the district’s buildings portfolio.

Type: Middle school Grades served: 6-8 Address: 1130 N. Caroline Street Baltimore, MD 21213 Planning area: East

Financial Considerations

• A savings of roughly $50,000 in annual rent is anticipated with the closure of BDJ Middle. • The BDJ Middle budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year is just over $2 million in grants and general fund dollars. Dollars linked to students under City Schools’ Fair Student Funding model will follow students to the schools they attend in the 2013-14 school year.

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 117

Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West #364 (Walbrook Building) 2000 Edgewood Street Baltimore 21216

Summary School Data* SY2009-10 SY2010-11 SY2011-12 SY2012-13 Student achievement: • Reading MSA** n/a n/a 47.0 46.3 • Math MSA** n/a n/a 34.6 34.8 Student attendance rate (%) 97.1 94.8 94.2 94.8 School climate (as indicated 74.1 68.0 60.8 46.1 by % positive student responses on annual school climate survey) * HSA and graduation data not available for this school, which has its first 12th-grade class in 2013-14. ** Percentage of students scoring proficient or advanced on the Maryland School Assessment

• Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West (BDJ West) is a transformation school operated by Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy, Inc. As described in the report resulting from the district’s renewal process for charter and operator-run schools, the New and Charter School Advisory Board has recommended that the contract to operate the school not be renewed. • BDJ West is a low-performing school, with 46.3 percent of students scoring proficient or advanced in reading on the 2012-13 MSA and 34.8 percent doing so in math. (HSA data are not available, since BDJ West began adding high school grades only in 2010-11.) In the renewal report, BDJ West received an overall rating of Not Effective in the area of student academic achievement.

Enrollment History

Grade SY SY SY SY SY 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14* 6 82 160 126 114 7 n/a 101 149 93 8 n/a n/a 102 125 9 n/a 94 100 84 10 n/a n/a 92 72 11 n/a n/a n/a 61 12 n/a n/a n/a n/a Total 82 355 569 549 541 * Preliminary data, pending confirmation by the Maryland State Department of Education as official enrollment

• BDJ West is located in the Walbrook building, where Baltimore Civitas Middle/High School is also located. Last year’s enrollment of 549 at BDJ West, combined with the 330 students at Civitas, results in a utilization rate of only 48.1 percent for the Walbrook building.

118 Baltimore City Public Schools

Recommendations • Close the Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West program. • Vacate the Walbrook building if both schools in the building close. • Support students’ and families’ participation in the middle and high school choice process to identify better school options appropriate for each student.

Opportunities • Improve BDJ West students’ chances for success by enabling them to choose among stronger schools for the 2014-15 school year. • Reduce excess district building capacity at the secondary level, thereby increasing the districtwide utilization rate and lowering maintenance costs.

Reasons for Closure

• City Schools recommends closing BDJ West due to poor academic performance, the recommended nonrenewal of the operator and the better options available for students within the current school portfolio.

Educational Programs Affected

• Of the 66 staff members at BDJ West, 34 are in positions for delivery of instruction. • There are 121 students with disabilities at BDJ West; 27 students receive 60 percent of their education from a special educator, outside of the general education classroom. • BDJ West serves an all-male student population.

Instruction • Instruction in English, math, science and social studies meets Maryland’s Voluntary State Curriculum assessment standards. • As at schools across the district, implementation of the Common Core State Standards is being woven into instruction and teachers are attending systemic professional development. • Gateway to Technology: Project Lead the Way (middle school) as well as high school Career and Technology Education programs in Health and Biosciences: Biomedical sciences; Information Technology: IT networking; and Manufacturing, Engineering and Technology: Pre-engineering are offered.

Extracurricular Activities/Student Supports • Students can participate in student government, National Honor Society, chess, debate, robotics, foreign language and visual arts. • Varsity baseball, basketball, lacrosse, tennis, cross-country, soccer, swimming, football and outdoor track teams are available. • Students have access to summer and extended-day programming and to academic counseling. • Partners include Morgan State University, Coppin State University and Goddard Space Flight Center.

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Student Relocation

Under the City Schools recommendation to close BDJ West, students will have a range of school options with available seats, including transformation schools, middle schools and high schools. In addition to options available through the middle school choice process, middle grades students who live in a neighborhood with a “zoned” elementary/middle school or an elementary school that feeds another school for middle grades can attend that school. Entrance criteria will be applied for students interested in transferring to schools with eligibility restrictions.

Available Receiving School Options for BDJ West Middle School Students

Min. Available Seats* Academy for College and Career Exploration 10 Baltimore I.T. Academy 100 Booker T. Washington Middle School 100 Friendship Academy of Engineering and 75 Technology Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 10 Green Street Academy 100 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 100 NACA Freedom and Democracy Academy II 100 National Academy Foundation 100 New Era Academy 20 Stadium School 20 Vanguard Collegiate Middle School 325 * Only schools with 10 or more available seats are listed. All seat counts are estimates.

120 Baltimore City Public Schools

Available Receiving School Options for BDJ West High School Students

Min. Available Seats* Academy for College and Career Exploration 100 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 100 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 100 Digital Harbor High School 100 Edmondson-Westside High School 100 Forest Park High School 50 Frederick Douglass High 100 Friendship Academy of Engineering and 100 Technology Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 50 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 100 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 100 NACA Freedom and Democracy II 100 National Academy Foundation 100 New Era Academy High School 100 Patterson High School 100 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 100 The REACH! Partnership School 100 Reginald F. Lewis High School 100 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 10 * Only schools with 10 or more available seats are listed. All seat counts are estimates.

Racial Composition

There are no significant racial or ethnic differences between students at BDJ West and the proposed receiving schools. Absorbing students from BDJ West should not substantially affect the racial composition of the receiving schools.

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School Name % % % % Asian/ % African White Hispanic Pacific American American Islander Indian Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West 99.5 0.2 0.2 0.0 0.0 Academy for College and Career Exploration 91.3 7.3 0.8 0.3 0.2 Baltimore I.T. Academy 96.9 2.5 0.3 0.0 0.3 Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove 58.0 30.7 10.1 0.9 0.0 Booker T. Washington Middle School 97.8 1.4 0.6 0.0 0.3 Carver Vocational-Technical High School 98.2 0.7 0.9 0.1 0.1 Digital Harbor High School 73.4 14.8 9.3 1.8 0.4 Edmondson-Westside High School 98.5 1.0 0.2 0.0 0.1 Forest Park High School 98.2 0.0 1.8 0.0 0.0 Frederick Douglass High School 97.6 0.9 0.7 0.4 0.4 Friendship Academy of Engineering and Technology 96.9 1.5 0.7 0.3 0.5 Friendship Academy of Science and Technology 81.5 8.0 8.3 0.3 0.9 Green Street Academy 96.5 2.9 0.3 0.0 0.3 KASA (Knowledge and Success Academy) 92.2 4.8 1.1 1.3 0.2 Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School 95.2 3.4 1.2 0.0 0.1 NACA Freedom and Democracy Academy II 98.9 0.4 0.4 0.0 0.4 National Academy Foundation 87.7 6.1 1.9 2.0 0.1 New Era Academy 90.4 2.0 6.5 0.6 0.3 Patterson High School 67.6 10.7 14.0 6.3 0.8 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School 96.7 1.4 1.1 0.7 0.1 Reginald F. Lewis High School 96.3 2.4 0.7 0.0 0.2 Stadium School 99.3 0.0 0.4 0.4 0.0 The REACH! Partnership School 95.9 2.9 0.2 0.8 0.2 Vanguard Collegiate Middle School 98.5 0.0 0.6 0.6 0.3 Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy 93.0 6.0 0.6 0.2 0.2

Student Transportation Considerations

• City Schools provides transportation assistance for secondary students who live more than 1.5 miles from their school. Transportation assistance for secondary students is in the form of Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) student swipe passes. Other transportation alternatives, such as yellow buses, are sometimes provided to students with disabilities and in other circumstances. • Students affected by the closure of BDJ West will be provided MTA student swipe passes to the various schools they attend, if those schools are 1.5 miles or more from their homes. • Because City Schools’ students are able to choose where they go to high school, closure of BDJ West may result in some additional students needing MTA services. However, the cost to the district of MTA transportation is not expected to change substantially as a result of the closure. • Students with disabilities will receive transportation services as required by their Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).

122 Baltimore City Public Schools

Distribution of BDJ West Middle School Students

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 123

Distribution of BDJ West High School Students

124 Baltimore City Public Schools

Facility Data

BDJ West shares space in the Walbrook Building with Baltimore Civitas Middle/High School. Preliminary data for the 2013-14 school year show enrollment for the two schools at 541 and 344, respectively.

Type: Middle/high school State-rated capacity: 1,829 Grades served: 6-12 Building utilization rate (2012-13): 48.1% Address: 2000 Edgewood Street Facility Condition Index*: 29.3% Baltimore, MD 21216 Planning area: West Educational Adequacy Score*: 56.4 Date constructed: 1971 Site size: 13.6 acres Building area: 258,850 sq. ft.

* These two measures are reported in the 2012 State of School Facilities report commissioned from Jacobs Project Management. The Facility Condition Index is an indicator of the building’s condition derived by comparing the cost of renovating the existing building and the cost of constructing a new building of the same size; generally a figure higher than 75% suggests new construction should be considered. An Educational Adequacy Score below 80 indicates that a building does not meet the standard for supporting excellent teaching and learning.

Financial Considerations

• Based on the State of School Facilities report, a savings of $17,640,310 in maintenance and repair costs is anticipated over the next 10 years with the closure of the Walbrook building. • The Bluford West budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year is just over $5 million in grants and general fund dollars. Dollars linked to students under City Schools’ Fair Student Funding model will follow students to the schools they attend in the 2014-15 school year.

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Programs, Services and Facilities at Proposed Receiving Schools

Academy for College Achievement Academy Baltimore I.T. Benjamin Franklin High and Career Exploration at Harbor City High Academy #378 School at Masonville Cove #427 School #413 #239 Instructional Programs Art Yes Yes Yes Yes Physical Education Yes Yes Yes Yes Fine Arts Yes Yes Yes Yes Music - Instrumental No No No No Music - Vocal No No No No Dance No No No No Drama No No No Yes Gifted and Talented AP courses No Yes (in STEM subjects) Honors and AP courses CTE Programs Gateway to Technology: Career research and Gateway to Technology: Curriculum for Agricultural Project Lead the Way; IT development Project Lead the Way Science Education; Career Networking Academy Research and Development (Cisco) Twilight No No No No English as a Second No No No Yes Language World Language Spanish Spanish Spanish Spanish Math Program Materials Agile Mind Agile Mind Digits, Study Island, IXL Agile Mind Math Intervention No No Study Island, IXL No Materials Reading Program LDC LDC Writing Coach, Pearson LDC Materials Reading Intervention No No Study Island SRI, CEI Materials Before/After-School Programs Before/After Care n/a n/a Yes n/a Sports Baseball, basketball, Basketball, flag football, Baseball, basketball, Badminton, baseball, cross-country, soccer, lacrosse football, volleyball basketball, bocce, cross- softball, squash, track, country, dance, football, volleyball soccer, softball, tennis, track, volleyball, wrestling Academy for College Achievement Academy Baltimore I.T. Benjamin Franklin High and Career Exploration at Harbor City High Academy #378 School at Masonville Cove #427 School #413 #239 Tutoring Yes Yes Yes Yes Community School No No No Yes Title I Program No No Yes No Personnel Assistant Principal 1 1 1 2 Academic Dean No No No No

Student Support Dean No No No No IST Educational associate Educational associate 1 1 RIS No No No No Nurse/ Nurse's Aid No No 2 2 Social Worker 2 2 1 1 Guidance Counselor 1 1 0.5 1 School Psychologist 1.2 1 0.8 0.5 Parent Liaison No No 1 No Speech and Language 0.4 No 0.8 No Therapist Library Media Specialist 1 0.5 No 1 Facilities Gymnasium Yes Yes Yes Yes Auditorium / Yes Yes Yes Yes Multipurpose room Library Media Center Yes Yes Yes Yes Labs Designated Computer 1 1 3 2 Lab Portable Computer Lab No No 1 1 Science Lab No 1 2 4 Other School-Based Health No Yes No Yes Center Active Mayor’s Office of St. Paul Community Towson University, Johns University of Maryland Community/Business Employment Head Start, University of Hopkins University, School of Social Work, Partnerships Development, Johns Maryland Medical Huber Memorial Church, University of Maryland Hopkins Institute for Center, Verizon, Morgan Boy Scouts, Chinquapin Baltimore County, Policy Studies, Baltimore State University, Job Park Improvement Pricewaterhouse Coopers,

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 127

Academy for College Achievement Academy Baltimore I.T. Benjamin Franklin High and Career Exploration at Harbor City High Academy #378 School at Masonville Cove #427 School #413 #239 City Foundation, Corps Association Pathway Church of God, Agritopia CSX Other Programs/Offices Will share space with Building recommended No No in the School Building Independence School to be vacated Local I Citywide Special PRIDE No PRIDE No Education Programs

Information provided by individual schools and by City Schools Academics Office

128 Baltimore City Public Schools

Booker T. Washington Middle Carver Vocational-Technical Digital Harbor High Edmondson-Westside School #130 High School #454 School #416 High School #400 Instructional Programs Art Yes Enrichment Yes Yes Physical Education Yes Yes Yes Yes Fine Arts Yes Yes Yes No Music - Instrumental Yes Yes No Yes Music - Vocal Yes Yes No No Dance Yes No No No Drama No No No No Gifted and Talented No AP courses AP courses AP courses CTE Programs No Graphic communications, Interactive media Graphic business administrative services, production, homeland communications, business management, finance and security and emergency interactive media accounting, marketing, CADD, preparedness, computer production, business construction maintenance science, information administrative services, (HVAC), carpentry, electrical, support and services, IT business management, masonry, plumbing, cosmetology, networking (Cisco), finance and accounting, food and beverage management, database academy CADD, carpentry, childcare and early childhood (Oracle) cosmetology, culinary education, Teacher Academy of arts, food and beverage Maryland, IT networking (Cisco), management, nursing National Institute of assistant, surgical Metalworking technician, childcare and early childhood education, IT networking (Cisco), pre- engineering, automotive technician Twilight No Yes Yes Yes English as a Second No No Yes No Language World Language Spanish Spanish, French, Chinese Spanish, French Spanish Math Program Agile Mind Yes Agile Mind Agile Mind Materials Math Intervention Voyager Yes MAPS testing algebra No Materials readiness enrichment, algebra bridge strategic

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 129

Booker T. Washington Middle Carver Vocational-Technical Digital Harbor High Edmondson-Westside School #130 High School #454 School #416 High School #400 reading, algebra mastery Reading Program LDC, 100 Book Challenge Yes MAPS No Materials Reading Intervention Classroom library sets and other Yes Saturday school, HSA No Materials supplemental materials prep Before/After-School Before/After Care No n/a n/a On-site daycare Programs Sports Baseball, basketball, lacrosse, Baseball, basketball, cross- Badminton, baseball, Badminton, baseball, track, volleyball, wrestling country, football, lacrosse, basketball, cross- basketball, cross- softball, swimming, track, country, dance, football, country, dance, football, volleyball, wrestling lacrosse, soccer, lacrosse, soccer, swimming, tennis, track, swimming, tennis, track, volleyball, wrestling volleyball, wrestling Tutoring After school Yes Yes Yes Community School Yes No No No Title I Program Schoolwide No No No Personnel Assistant Principal 2 4 4 3 Academic Dean No No No No Student Support Dean 1 1 No No IST No 1 6 5 RIS No No No No Nurse/ Nurse's Aid 2 2 1 2 Social Worker 1.5 1.5 3 1 Guidance Counselor 0.5 3 4 3 School Psychologist 1 1 1 1 Parent Liaison No 1 1 1 Speech and Language 0.5 1 0.2 No Therapist Library Media 0.5 1 1 1 Specialist Facilities Gymnasium Yes Yes Yes Yes Auditorium / Yes Yes Yes Yes Multipurpose room Library Media Center Yes Yes Yes Yes

130 Baltimore City Public Schools

Booker T. Washington Middle Carver Vocational-Technical Digital Harbor High Edmondson-Westside School #130 High School #454 School #416 High School #400 Labs Designated Computer 2 1 20 5 Lab Portable Computer 1 1 3 4 Lab Science Lab No 1 6 2 Other School-Based Health Yes Yes Yes No Center Active BELL, Union Baptist Church, Yes University of Maryland Upland Community, 100 Community/Business Douglass Memorial, University of Baltimore County, Black Men, My Partnerships Maryland, Young Audiences DHHS Alliance, Brother’s Keeper, Baltimore Inner City Northwest Baltimore Outings, Accenture, Youth Services, Litecast MTA/Red Line Other Share building with Renaissance No Addictions counseling, ITC Programs/Offices in Academy University of Maryland the School Building Mental Health, dental health program Citywide Special PRIDE Life Skills PRIDE Life Skills Education Programs

Information provided by individual schools and by City Schools Academics Office

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 131

Excel Academy at Francis Forest Park High School Frederick Douglass High Friendship Academy M. Wood High School #178 #406 School of Engineering and Technology #339 Instructional Programs Art No Yes Yes No Physical Education Yes Yes Yes Yes Fine Arts No No Yes Enrichment Music - Instrumental No No Yes No Music - Vocal Yes No Yes Enrichment Dance No No Enrichment No Drama No No Yes Enrichment Gifted and Talented No AP courses No AP courses CTE Programs Career research and Business management, Interactive media production, fire Interactive media development finance and accounting, food rescue, law and leadership production, Gateway to and beverage management Technology, homeland security and emergency preparedness, Pre- engineering: Project Lead the Way Twilight No Yes Yes No English as a Second No No No No Language World Language French Spanish Spanish French Math Program Agile Mind Agile Mind Agile Mind Agile Mind Materials Math Intervention Compass Learning No HSA Blitz, pull-outs, college entry Study Island Materials prep, Study Island Reading Program LDC No Internally developed tool kits Yes Materials Reading Intervention No No Accelerated Reader, Star Reader, Study Island Materials Study Island Before/After-School Before/After Care n/a n/a n/a n/a Programs Sports No Badminton, baseball, Badminton, baseball, basketball, Baseball, basketball, basketball, cross-country, cross-country, football, lacrosse, football, softball, track, football, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track, volleyball softball, swimming, tennis, volleyball, wrestling track, volleyball, wrestling Tutoring Yes Yes Yes Yes

132 Baltimore City Public Schools

Excel Academy at Francis Forest Park High School Frederick Douglass High Friendship Academy M. Wood High School #178 #406 School of Engineering and Technology #339 Community School No No Yes No Title I Program No No No Targeted assistance Personnel Assistant Principal 1 2 3 No Academic Dean No No No Yes

Student Support Dean No No No Yes IST Educational associate No No No RIS No No No No

Nurse/ Nurse's Aid No 1 1 Yes Social Worker 1 2 3 Yes Guidance Counselor 1 1 3 Yes School Psychologist 0.6 1 1.5 Yes Parent Liaison No 1 1 No Speech and Language No 1 1 Yes Therapist Library Media 0.6 1 1 Yes Specialist Facilities Gymnasium Yes Yes Yes Yes Auditorium / Yes Yes Yes Yes Multipurpose room Library Media Center Yes Yes Yes Yes Labs Designated Computer 1 1 3 4 Lab Portable Computer No 1 3 2 Lab Science Lab 1 3 8 4 Other School-Based Health No Yes No No Center Active No Wells Fargo, the National Druid Heights Community Morgan State Community/Business Aquarium, the United Way, Development Corporation, University, Coppin State Partnerships College Board Family League, Baltimore City University, Enoch Pratt Community College, Coppin Free Library, Home State University Depot, ShopRite

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 133

Excel Academy at Francis Forest Park High School Frederick Douglass High Friendship Academy M. Wood High School #178 #406 School of Engineering and Technology #339 Other No No Fast Track Shares space with Programs/Offices in NACA Freedom and the School Building Democracy II Citywide Special No PRIDE PRIDE Ed Pride Education Programs

Information provided by individual schools and by City Schools Academics Office

134 Baltimore City Public Schools

Friendship Academy Green Street KASA (Knowledge and Mergenthaler of Science and Academy #377 Success Academy) #342 Vocational-Technical Technology #338 High School #410 Instructional Programs Art Yes Yes Yes Yes Physical Education Yes Yes Yes Yes Fine Arts No Yes Yes Yes Music - Instrumental Yes No No Yes Music - Vocal Yes No No No Dance Enrichment No Enrichment No Drama No No No No Gifted and Talented AP courses No Honors program AP courses CTE Programs Biomedical sciences, IT No Teacher Academy of Graphic communications, networking (Cisco) Maryland business management, finance and accounting, CADD, welding, carpentry, electrical, masonry, plumbing, cosmetology, culinary arts, food and beverage management, nursing assistant, pharmacy technician, surgical technician, childcare and early childhood education, law and leadership, Teacher Academy of Maryland, IT networking (Cisco), Pre-engineering, autobody/collision repair technician, automotive technician Twilight No No Yes Yes English as a Second Yes No No No Language World Language Spanish No Spanish Spanish, French Math Program Agile Mind Instructional materials Agile Mind Agile Mind Materials

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 135

Friendship Academy Green Street KASA (Knowledge and Mergenthaler of Science and Academy #377 Success Academy) #342 Vocational-Technical Technology #338 High School #410 Math Intervention Agile Mind, TAI for Saturday school Agile Mind No Materials middle school Reading Program No Instructional materials Achieve 3000, Verticy, No Materials Corrective Reading, Reading Advisory, Study Island Reading Intervention No 100 Book Challenge Achieve 3000, Verticy, No Materials Corrective Reading, Advisory, Study Island Before/After-School Programs Before/After Care n/a No n/a On-site daycare Sports Badminton, baseball, Badminton, basketball, Badminton, baseball, Badminton, baseball, basketball, soccer, cross-country, soccer, basketball, cross-country, basketball, cross-country, track, volleyball softball, track, dance, soccer, softball, football, lacrosse, soccer, volleyball, wrestling tennis, track, volleyball softball, swimming, tennis, track, volleyball, wrestling Tutoring Yes Yes Yes Yes Community School No No No No Title I Program Targeted assistance Targeted assistance No No Personnel Assistant Principal 1 1 2 6 Academic Dean 1 No No No Student Support Dean 1 2 1 No IST No No 1 No RIS 1 No 1 No Nurse/ Nurse's Aid 2 1 1 1 Social Worker 1 1 1 3 Guidance Counselor 2 1 1 4 School Psychologist 1 1 1 1.5 Parent Liaison 1 1 1 No Speech and Language 1 Yes 1 1 Therapist Library Media 1 No 1 1 Specialist Facilities Gymnasium Yes Yes Yes Yes

136 Baltimore City Public Schools

Friendship Academy Green Street KASA (Knowledge and Mergenthaler of Science and Academy #377 Success Academy) #342 Vocational-Technical Technology #338 High School #410 Auditorium / No Yes Yes Yes Multipurpose room Library Media Center Yes Yes Yes Yes Labs Designated Computer 1 2 2 3 Lab Portable Computer No 2 2 4 Lab Science Lab 4 1 3 3 Other School-Based Health Yes No Yes No Center Active Johns Hopkins Center for Urban Miracle Temple Church, No Community/Business Bayview Medical Families, Chesapeake Mario’s Do Right Partnerships Center, Walden Bay Foundation, Foundation, Girl Scouts, University, George Constellation Shriver Center at UMBC Washington University, Energy/Exelon/BGE, University of Maryland, Loyola University Girl Scouts Maryland, Microsoft Other Mental health services Shares building with Shares building with Green No Programs/Offices in from Johns Hopkins, KASA Street Academy the School Building College Bound, substance abuse program Citywide Special Impaired hearing PAL Life Skills Vision, hearing, Life Skills Education Programs

Information provided by individual schools and by City Schools Academics Office

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 137

NACA Freedom and National Academy New Era Academy Patterson High Democracy II #349 Foundation #421 #422 School #405 Instructional Programs Art No Yes Yes Yes Physical Education Yes Yes Yes Yes Fine Arts No Yes No Yes Music - Instrumental No Yes, enrichment only No Yes Music - Vocal No Yes, enrichment only No Yes Dance Yes No No No Drama No Yes, enrichment only No Yes Gifted and Talented No No AP courses Honors and AP courses CTE Programs No Finance and accounting, Gateway to Graphic Academy of Hospitality and Technology, IT communication, Tourism, food and beverage networking (Cisco) business management, lodging administrative management, Gateway to services, finance and Technology, law and accounting, CADD, leadership, IT networking nail technician, (Cisco), pre-engineering nursing assistant, pharmacy technician, emergency medical technician, childcare and early childhood education, homeland security and emergency preparedness, Teacher Academy of Maryland, pre- engineering Twilight No No No Yes English as a Second No Yes Yes Yes Language World Language Spanish Yes Spanish Spanish, French Math Program Agile Mind Yes Agile Mind Agile Mind Materials

138 Baltimore City Public Schools

Math Intervention No Yes Agile Mind No Materials Reading Program LDC Yes Achieve 3000 LDC Materials Reading Intervention No Yes Achieve 3000 No Materials Before/After-School Programs Before/After Care n/a n/a n/a n/a Sports Basketball, dance, lacrosse Badminton, baseball, Baseball, basketball, Baseball, basketball, basketball, bocce, cross- cross-country, bocce, cross-country, country, dance, football, football, lacrosse, football, golf, lacrosse, softball, tennis, track, soccer, volleyball lacrosse, soccer, volleyball, wrestling softball, swimming tennis, track, volleyball, wrestling Tutoring Yes Yes Yes Yes Community School No No No Yes Title I Program No Targeted assistance No No Personnel Assistant Principal 1 1 1 4 Academic Dean No No No No Student Support Dean No No 1 No IST No No Yes 8 RIS No No Yes No Nurse/ Nurse's Aid No 2 3 3 Social Worker 0.4 1 2 3 Guidance Counselor No 1 1 4 School Psychologist 0.3 No 1 2 Parent Liaison No No 1 1 Speech and Language 0.2 1 1 1 Therapist Library Media 0.5 1 1 0.5 Specialist Facilities Gymnasium Yes Yes Yes Yes Auditorium / Yes Yes Yes Yes Multipurpose room Library Media Center Yes Yes Yes Yes

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 139

Labs Designated Computer 1 3 2 2 Lab Portable Computer No 2 4 5 Lab Science Lab 1 5 2 6 Other School-Based Health No No Yes Yes Center Active Morgan State University, Johns Hopkins University, Safe Streets, Legg Mason, YMCA Community/Business Towson University, MedStar Northrop Grumman, Hilton Baltimore City of Baltimore, Partnerships Good Samaritan Hospital, Hotel, State’s Attorney’s Community College, Johnathan Ogden Northwood-Appold United Office, Miles and Stockbridge Coppin State Foundation, Methodist Church, Grace University, University HealthCorps, United Methodist Church of Maryland Mental Holistic Life Health Outreach, Annie Mack Financial Planning Other Shares building with No GBWBEC No Programs/Offices in Friendship Academy of the School Building Engineering and Technology Citywide Special No Special Olympics No Life Skills Education Programs

Information provided by individual schools and by City Schools Academics Office

140 Baltimore City Public Schools

Paul Laurence Dunbar High Reginald F. Lewis High School Stadium School #15 School #414 #419 Instructional Programs Art Yes No Yes Physical Education Yes Yes Yes Fine Arts Yes Yes No Music - Instrumental Yes Yes No Music - Vocal Yes No No Dance Enrichment Yes No Drama Enrichment Yes No Gifted and Talented AP courses AP courses Yes CTE Programs Biomedical sciences, emergency Business management, finance and No medical technician accounting, marketing, law and leadership Twilight No Yes No English as a Second No No No Language World Language Spanish Yes Spanish Math Program Materials Agile Mind Agile Mind, algebra, statistics, geometry Yes Math Intervention No Khan Academy, Apex Yes Materials Reading Program No Literacy program Yes Materials Reading Intervention No Yes Yes Materials Before/After-School Programs Before/After Care n/a n/a n/a Sports Badminton, baseball, basketball, Badminton, baseball, basketball, cross- Basketball, lacrosse, cross-country, football, lacrosse, country, dance, football, softball, tennis, volleyball soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track, volleyball track, unified sports, volleyball, wrestling Tutoring Yes Yes Yes Community School No Yes No Title I Program No No Targeted assistance Personnel Assistant Principal 1 2 No Academic Dean No No No

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 141

Paul Laurence Dunbar High Reginald F. Lewis High School Stadium School #15 School #414 #419 Student Support Dean 1 No No IST 1 1 No

RIS No No No Nurse/ Nurse's Aid 3 1 1 Social Worker 3 2 1 Guidance Counselor 2 1 No School Psychologist 1 1 1 Parent Liaison No 1 1 Speech and Language 0.5 1 Yes Therapist Library Media Specialist 1 1 Yes Facilities Gymnasium Yes Yes Yes Auditorium / No Yes Yes Multipurpose room Library Media Center Yes Yes Yes Labs Designated Computer 2 3 No Lab Portable Computer Lab 2 5 1 Science Lab 14 4 1 Other School-Based Health Yes Yes No Center Active Johns Hopkins University, Morgan University of Baltimore, Community Morgan State University Community/Business State University, Under Armour, Law in Action, Verizon Wireless, Partnerships Northrop Grumman, Links Future Works, National Foundation for Organization Teaching Entrepreneurship Other Programs/Offices No Shared campus with W.E.B. DuBois No in the School Building High School Citywide Special PRIDE Life Skills No Education Programs

142 Baltimore City Public Schools

The REACH! Partnership Vanguard Collegiate Middle School Vivien T. Thomas School #341 #374 Medical Arts Academy Instructional Programs Art Yes Yes Yes Physical Education Yes Yes Yes Fine Arts Yes Yes No Music - Instrumental No No No Music - Vocal No No No Dance No No No Drama No No No Gifted and Talented No Yes (reading and math) AP courses CTE Programs Construction maintenance No Allied health, dental (HVAC), carpentry, electrical, assistant, nursing assistant, nursing assistant, pharmacy pharmacy technician, technician surgical technician, biomedical sciences, emergency medical technician Twilight No No Yes English as a Second No Yes No Language World Language Spanish Spanish French Math Program Materials Agile Mind Agile Mind Agile Mind Math Intervention Math First TAI First in Math First in Math Materials Reading Program Readers Journey, Pearson Literacy Modules LDC Materials Reading Intervention Scientific Learning Read 180 No No Materials Before/After-School Programs Before/After Care n/a After school n/a Sports Badminton, baseball, basketball, Basketball, track, volleyball Badminton, baseball, bocce, cross-country, dance, basketball, cross-country, football, lacrosse, softball, tennis, football, lacrosse, softball, track, volleyball, wrestling swimming, tennis, track, volleyball, wrestling Tutoring Yes Yes Yes Community School No No No

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 143

The REACH! Partnership Vanguard Collegiate Middle School Vivien T. Thomas School #341 #374 Medical Arts Academy Title I Program Schoolwide Targeted assistance No Personnel Assistant Principal 2 No 2 Academic Dean No No No

Student Support Dean No No No IST 1 No No RIS No No No Nurse/ Nurse's Aid 1 1 1 Social Worker 1 1 0.6 Guidance Counselor 1 1 No School Psychologist 1 0.3 0.4 Parent Liaison 1 1 No Speech and Language 1 0.3 No Therapist Library Media Specialist 1 0.5 1 Facilities Gymnasium Yes Yes Yes Auditorium / Yes Yes No Multipurpose room Library Media Center Yes Yes Yes Labs Designated Computer 3 1 1 Lab Portable Computer Lab 3 1 9 Science Lab 4 1 3 Other School-Based Health Yes Yes No Center Active Baltimore City Community Borden and Associates, Inner Court Medstar Health Systems, Community/Business College, Johns Hopkins Medical Ministries, New Genesis Total Praise University of Maryland, Partnerships System, Harkins Builders and Center University of Maryland Contractors, YouthBuild USA, BioPark, Christata Cares, Whiting-Turner Construction Urban Business Center Other Programs/Offices Shares campus with the Claremont Shares building with Maritime No in the School Building School; administrative offices Industries Academy Bayview mental health and drug and alcohol counseling

144 Baltimore City Public Schools

The REACH! Partnership Vanguard Collegiate Middle School Vivien T. Thomas School #341 #374 Medical Arts Academy Citywide Special Life Skills No No Education Programs

Information provided by individual schools and by City Schools Academics Office

School Portfolio Review Recommendations 2013-14 145

Baltimore City Public Schools 200 E. North Avenue Baltimore, Maryland 21202 www.baltimorecityschools.org