3 Baltimore schools, including 2 charters, recommended to be closed

BALTIMORE -- Baltimore City Public Schools is recommending that three schools be shut down, and students be shuffled to attend other schools starting in the fall.

Parents addressed their concerns Thursday during a virtual public meeting on the possible closures of Edgewood Elementary School, Creative City Public Charter and Southwest Baltimore Charter.

A second public meeting will be on January 9. A final decision on the school closures is expected on January 14.

Southwest Baltimore Charter School  

According to our media partner at The Baltimore Banner, Southwest Baltimore Charter School, Inc. Executive Director Timothy Smith said the board's recommendation was "incredibly disappointing," especially given the school is celebrating its 20th anniversary. 

Smith also told the Banner that while the school is concerned about the "disadvantages of the current charter system," its No. 1 priority is maintaining equity for the Southwest Baltimore community by keeping the school open.

"Closing schools destabilizes communities," Smith said. "It disenfranchises the very people that need them the most."

According to the Banner, CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools Sonja Santelises wrote in a letter to the Southwest Baltimore Charter School community that the recommendation that the school close after this school year was based on the "not effective" rating of the school's overall academic performance and the school's history of three-year charter renewals. The three-year renewal, as opposed to five- or eight-year terms, is extended to schools that are making progress but still need to improve, the Banner reports.

Creative City Public Charter School  

The recommendation to close Creative City Public Charter School was also based on low ratings, a lack of consistent improvement in academics and a lack of progress towards the prior conditions of the charter renewal, according to the Banner. 

The school has also struggled to effectively care for its students with disabilities, according to the district, the Banner reported.

Edgewood Elementary School  

Edgewood Elementary is also on the potential chopping block and would send students to Gwynns Falls Elementary School and Windsor Hills Elementary/Middle.

Edgewood is the smallest elementary school in Baltimore by enrollment, with fewer than 300 students.

According to the Banner, in its recommendations, the school system said Edgewood "has been the smallest school serving students in grades pre-kindergarten through 5 in City Schools for many years" with continued declining enrollment. Still, the recommendation acknowledged that the school performed well on recent state testing.