She describes a bleak public school infrastructure. “The buildings are 40 to 50 years old, but the only funding put into them has been piecemeal–fixing a boiler here, windows there–again this reflects the lack of investment. In 2013, BEC, working with our city legislators, partners, such as BUILD, and the school system, was able to win $1 billion for school construction.†But she’s hopeful that more than just the buildings will change: “This is a pivotal moment. I would hate to look back, and we just made more of the same–that we have shiny new walls and new windows but didn’t drastically change the education that’s happening within the building.†Siciliano says there is “conversation†occurring, but did not elaborate on concrete measures being taken to ensure a new direction in the schools’ educational approach.
Both Huber and Siciliano say that the $1 billion BEC had won has been reduced. “The bond market has changed,†says Huber, “so we have $977 million. The plan was to renovate or build new schools for a total of 50 new or renovated schools. Because of the shift in the bond market, we’re looking at five new school buildings and 28 renovated, so some schools need to be closed. We’re in that process now.â€
Huber describes the school closing process as “messy,†and says there is a hint of truth to the argument that schools in poor, black neighborhoods are being closed as opposed to those in middle class neighborhoods.
But she also says that every school doesn’t need to stay open. “BCPS chose schools that didn’t have enough students in them, or that were just beyond repair, so they looked at what buildings could take the extra students as the most cost-effective thing to do.†Huber also said, however, that in general, classrooms already have too many children in them at 30 to 35 students each. She expressed concern that, with the state cuts of $60,000 and the schools operating at a deficit of $90,000 to $100,000, terminating teachers may be a solution that will make classroom sizes even larger. “The CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools, Gregory Thornton, is trying to figure that out now,†Huber says.
Hunt noted that 98% of teachers in well-served communities are certified to teach their subject area. “In underserved areas, teacher certification is around 55%, so there’s a gap in the quality of education based on the qualification of the teachers,†he says.
Yet, Hunt’s church offers scouting programs to boys and girls, and says most of the scouts “end up going to college.†In 50 years of scouting, the program has produced 47 Eagle scouts–a notable accomplishment anywhere but especially in an underresourced community. The poverty rate in Baltimore is 23.8%, 8.4 points above the national rate, according to the New York Times. The median household income in the city is $41,385, below the national income level of $53,046.
Yet, Siciliano remains hopeful. “The city of Baltimore is working alongside the school design process. It’s taking a quarter-mile radius around the school and talking with the community about the infrastructure of the streets, housing issues, recreation, and traffic concerns. They’re also trying to deploy city resources to align with the school designs so that the neighborhood is also seeing improvement. We’re in the beginning stages. The first set of schools are set to open in the fall of 2018, so this is a long process and there are a lot of moving parts, but there’s potential and there’s hope and there’s a chance for Baltimore and for the state to get it right.â€
Siciliano does not blame the city’s education system for the anger and unrest that erupted in April; she casts a wider net: “In no way can you say that education and the schools are the reason. It goes hand in hand with the policies, the justice system, the lack of investment in housing, in jobs, in neighborhoods. So I refuse to say it’s the schools. I think everyone needs to take ownership over the disinvestment and the injustice that’s happened in this city.â€
Optimistic about the future of the city, she interprets this juncture as an opportunity for Baltimore: “This gives our city a great opportunity to look at what’s going right and to do more of those things and to invest in them that a number of individuals and organizations are doing. And there has been a focus and a commitment even at the state level to start investing more in city schools, and that needs to continue.â€