Fighting for the schools our kids deserve.
Please read the final report on our Education Platform below:
In 2020 a coalition of students, parents and teachers formed the Baltimore City Table of the Alliance to Reclaim our Schools (AROS) to push decision-makers and candidates running for office to understand the concerns of those most affected by education policy decisions. We started by conducting 11 listening sessions with over 300 students, educators and families. People shared their thoughts about what is most needed to improve Baltimore City Schools. The outcome from those conversations were organized into a draft platform of 14 items. Then 1194 stakeholders met with us and voted on these items at our mobile voting station pop ups at schools and community venues. Of the 1194 participants, 747 were students, 123 were staff, 223 were parents, and 100 were community members. As a result of this voting process, we were able to pare down the issues to five highest priorities. Here is what the people of Baltimore want:
1. More resource classes, cultural experiences and field trips Though the state has a policy that dictates that all schools have arts education, it is currently an unfunded mandate. Similarly, whether a school can take field trips is too often contingent on whether families are resourced enough to pay fees for students to attend. Additionally, art, trips and cultural experiences are hampered by an emphasis on testing and a narrow and scripted curriculum that limits flexibility and innovation and discourages creativity in the classroom. We want our leaders to commit the resources to allow schools to comply with the state mandate on fine art, create equity of access to field trips and create the flexibility needed to educators to give students the experiences that make curriculum come to life. This includes limiting standardized testing which defines too much of what happens in the classroom.
2. Fully fund City Schools City Schools’ facilities have a 3 billion dollar backlog of essential maintenance work that we can’t afford to do because the state and City will not commit adequate funding. According to the state’s own definition of “adequate funding” for public schools, City Schools should have received over 3 billion dollars more between 1996-2016. This definition of adequacy was calculated by independent consultants, codified into law by the legislature, and repeatedly upheld by the courts. The recent legislative progress which tried to address this concern (the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future) is admirable and still insufficient to meet the needs of our students and to address the racist historical underfunding of the district. We need leaders who aren’t satisfied with incremental progress from the current inhumane status and are willing to progressively raise revenue to meet student needs.
3. Schools that are emotionally, physically, culturally and academically safe Many districts share a commitment to Restorative Practices and Social Emotional Learning but lack the funding and training to adequately implement it. We call for the presence of staff dedicated to the coordination of restorative practices and a commitment to embracing all cultures and communities— including Black, LGBTQ students, Muslim students, ELL students, etc. This means creating a pipeline for more Black and Brown educators as well as supporting a commission on multiculturalism to conduct curriculum reviews to identify and address gaps and errors that disadvantage, erase, demean, or otherwise harm Black, Brown, LGBTQ+ and other marginalized communities. We also need to see adequate training and support for this work.
4. Meet the needs of struggling and advanced students While the recent education funding bill—the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future does emphasize support for struggling students through supporting the needs of high poverty and SPED students, it is not yet clear if the amount allocated is enough to meet the needs that exist and there is no attention paid to advanced students. We need ongoing adequacy analysis in place to assess where the gaps are.
5. Classes no larger than 20 and more counselors/providers Maryland is one of only nine states where it is illegal for the union to even bring up class size at the bargaining table. Teachers Unions need the ability to bring this demand from the community to the table. In order to reduce class size, we also need more teachers. This means supporting and retaining who we have and doing more to recruit Black and Latinx teachers. Maryland lawmakers should also invest significantly more resources to improve the number of school psychologists, school social workers, counselors and nurses so schools are sufficiently staffed to address student needs. An analysis by Hopeful Futures found that Maryland schools do not have sufficient staff to ensure access to these valuable services.
1. More resource classes, cultural experiences and field trips Though the state has a policy that dictates that all schools have arts education, it is currently an unfunded mandate. Similarly, whether a school can take field trips is too often contingent on whether families are resourced enough to pay fees for students to attend. Additionally, art, trips and cultural experiences are hampered by an emphasis on testing and a narrow and scripted curriculum that limits flexibility and innovation and discourages creativity in the classroom. We want our leaders to commit the resources to allow schools to comply with the state mandate on fine art, create equity of access to field trips and create the flexibility needed to educators to give students the experiences that make curriculum come to life. This includes limiting standardized testing which defines too much of what happens in the classroom.
2. Fully fund City Schools City Schools’ facilities have a 3 billion dollar backlog of essential maintenance work that we can’t afford to do because the state and City will not commit adequate funding. According to the state’s own definition of “adequate funding” for public schools, City Schools should have received over 3 billion dollars more between 1996-2016. This definition of adequacy was calculated by independent consultants, codified into law by the legislature, and repeatedly upheld by the courts. The recent legislative progress which tried to address this concern (the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future) is admirable and still insufficient to meet the needs of our students and to address the racist historical underfunding of the district. We need leaders who aren’t satisfied with incremental progress from the current inhumane status and are willing to progressively raise revenue to meet student needs.
3. Schools that are emotionally, physically, culturally and academically safe Many districts share a commitment to Restorative Practices and Social Emotional Learning but lack the funding and training to adequately implement it. We call for the presence of staff dedicated to the coordination of restorative practices and a commitment to embracing all cultures and communities— including Black, LGBTQ students, Muslim students, ELL students, etc. This means creating a pipeline for more Black and Brown educators as well as supporting a commission on multiculturalism to conduct curriculum reviews to identify and address gaps and errors that disadvantage, erase, demean, or otherwise harm Black, Brown, LGBTQ+ and other marginalized communities. We also need to see adequate training and support for this work.
4. Meet the needs of struggling and advanced students While the recent education funding bill—the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future does emphasize support for struggling students through supporting the needs of high poverty and SPED students, it is not yet clear if the amount allocated is enough to meet the needs that exist and there is no attention paid to advanced students. We need ongoing adequacy analysis in place to assess where the gaps are.
5. Classes no larger than 20 and more counselors/providers Maryland is one of only nine states where it is illegal for the union to even bring up class size at the bargaining table. Teachers Unions need the ability to bring this demand from the community to the table. In order to reduce class size, we also need more teachers. This means supporting and retaining who we have and doing more to recruit Black and Latinx teachers. Maryland lawmakers should also invest significantly more resources to improve the number of school psychologists, school social workers, counselors and nurses so schools are sufficiently staffed to address student needs. An analysis by Hopeful Futures found that Maryland schools do not have sufficient staff to ensure access to these valuable services.
The Baltimore Alliance to Reclaim Our Schools wants your next governor to hear our priorities.
Complete the form above to be contacted by Communities United's Parent Organizer of the Baltimore AROS Table.
Meet Baltimore's AROS Table
The Baltimore AROS table includes 12 groups: Organizing Black, Baltimore Teachers Union, AFT-MD, Students Organizing for a Multicultural and Open Society (SOMOS), ACLU-MD, Baltimore Algebra Project, Communities United, Teachers Democracy Project (TDP), Good Kids MAAD City Baltimore, Baltimore Movement Of Rank and file Educators (BMORE), Palestinian Youth Movement DMV Chapter, and Baltimoreans for Educational Equity (BEE).
Are you a representative of an organization that would like a seat at the table? Contact Shawnice King.
Are you a representative of an organization that would like a seat at the table? Contact Shawnice King.
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Please welcome our new Parent Organizer!
LaToya NettlesLaToya Nettles, also known as “The Godsister”, is a Brooklyn, New York native. In New York, she supported working parents as a nanny and house manager. She realized that many parents needed training to advocate successfully so she developed a “Parent Academy”, to educate and empower them. She was asked to bring her expertise and enthusiasm to Baltimore in 2018. Here she worked in education administration, student support, tutoring, educational advocacy, community outreach, substance abuse prevention, behavioral health, and as a long-term substitute teaching during COVID.
As Communities United's newest staff member, LaToya is excited to continue her life’s work as Parent Organizer, providing and building leaders in our children's schools. |
