City Schools

While other city high school principals excitedly read off the names of colleges and universities their students will disperse to at the end of the school year, Denise Gordon fanned through a stack of acceptance letters with less enthusiasm. "New Era, Dunbar, Ben Franklin, Carver, Edmondson, Digital, Mervo - a lot of New Era," she read. Gordon, who has spent her eight years as a principal at Southside Academy, which closed its doors for good Wednesday, never thought she'd be sending her students to different high schools, faced with the school system's decision that they'd be better served somewhere else.

Baltimore's Summer Curfew Center reopened Friday for the sixth season in an attempt to keep youths off the streets overnight, hold parents accountable and connect families to services, the mayor's office said. The center, at 200 East North Ave., will be open Fridays and Saturdays from 11:30 p.m. to 4 a.m. through Aug. 25. Youths on the street after the city's weekend curfew of midnight may be brought to the center by police. Parents or guardians are contacted to come for their children.

Middle school students at the Crossroads School near Fells Point were evaluated by teachers every single day last school year, with the results driving the next day's instruction. At East Baltimore's Fort Worthington Elementary, about a quarter of the school's parents turned out for MSA Family Fun Night and sampled questions from the Maryland School Assessments. Alexander Hamilton Elementary, situated in a West Baltimore neighborhood that the principal calls "gang-infested," started a gifted education program last year to challenge students to learn beyond their grade levels.

While other city high school principals excitedly read off the names of colleges and universities their students will disperse to at the end of the school year, Denise Gordon fanned through a stack of acceptance letters with less enthusiasm. "New Era, Dunbar, Ben Franklin, Carver, Edmondson, Digital, Mervo - a lot of New Era," she read. Gordon, who has spent her eight years as a principal at Southside Academy, which closed its doors for good Wednesday, never thought she'd be sending her students to different high schools, faced with the school system's decision that they'd be better served somewhere else.

The crabs are mostly gone. The artists, however, are getting steamed. A handful of artists who crafted the crustaceans that were displayed around Baltimore this year say city officials are reneging on a promise to pay them a cut of the sculptures' sale. More than 170 crabs, from the "Have a Nice Bay" crab to "The Crabby Raven," adorned public spaces to raise money for city schools as part of the Crabtown Project. Many will be sold at auction tomorrow night. Under their contract, artists whose crabs are auctioned are entitled to 10 percent of the highest bid. But the contract is silent on sculptures sold before auction - as about 30 have been - and the city says it isn't shelling out. Just this month, the Johns Hopkins University spent $30,000 to keep its crab, which is dressed as a lacrosse player.

Before Lauren Preston opened the cover of the book "Spring" to read to her pre-kindergarten class at Mary Ann Winterling Elementary School, her students excitedly told her why, and showed her how, the season was underway. Daffodils - not just "yellow flowers" - were appearing from beneath the soil, they said. Hyacinths were blooming, they demonstrated with the slow unfolding of their tiny fists. And butterflies were emerging, the students showed by flapping their curled arms. In pre-K classrooms around Baltimore's school system, subtle changes like interactive reading are having a substantial effect in helping prepare 4-year-olds for elementary school - addressing an achievement gap that city schools have faced for years.

Baltimore schools CEO Andrés Alonso tearfully announced his resignation Monday, ending a six-year tenure marked by bold yet often divisive reforms and casting uncertainty on the future of the long-troubled school system. Under Alonso's leadership, city schools saw growth in test scores, graduation rates and enrollment, but his administration was dogged by fiscal problems and cheating scandals. "I have enjoyed being the superintendent of the school system in ways that are so astonishing," Alonso said, choking back tears.

The article "Plan to revamp schools" (Nov. 17) provided a profile of not only the poor performance of many city schools but also insights into why some of the problems exist — namely, the plans to provide special programs for the "growing international population" and to strengthen English for Speakers of Other Languages programs. One of the poor performing schools cited, Patterson High, happens to be my alma mater. In the '60s when I attended, the community had its fair share of immigrants who did not arrive in the U.S. fluent in the English language.

I recently had the privilege of speaking to an enthusiastic and hopeful crowd gathered in Annapolis to urge lawmakers to pass a bill allowing the state of Maryland to renovate or rebuild Baltimore City's school buildings over the next 10 years through an innovative financing arrangement ("Thousands rally for city schools construction plan," Feb. 26). We are not asking for additional funds but a simply a long-term commitment of funds already allocated by the state so that the city's school buildings can be brought on a par with those in the counties and with charter schools.

Kudos to Erica Green for keeping on top of the Baltimore school finances ("Audit faults schools over federal funds," May 23). Many of the problems outlined in the most recent report can be traced to poor accounting procedures - including no documentation for time worked and inappropriate spending. There are systemic problems that have persisted over time and need to be addressed. The schools should be getting financial advice from the network of advisers set up to guide schools on business matters.

Brian T. Dale, a retired Baltimore public school educator, died Friday from lung disease at his Ridgely's Delight home. He was 65. The son of an aerospace engineer and homemaker, Brian Thomas Dale was born in St. Louis and moved with his family in 1960 to Cocoa Beach, Fla. After graduating in 1965 from Cocoa High School, he earned a bachelor's degree in social work in 1969 from Stetson University in DeLand, Fla. He enlisted in the Army...

The Baltimore City school board approved three new charter schools to open beginning in 2014, including two schools that will be subject to heightened scrutiny throughout their contracts. The Lillie May Carroll Jackson School, which will be operated by a nonprofit organization created by Roland Park Country School and educate girls in grades 5-8, won a smooth approval to open in 2014. But the Green Street Academy, which has been operating as a "transformation" school with an environmental theme for the past three years, "stretched certain standards," city schools CEO Andrés Alonso said in recommending to grant the school charter status.

When the Ravens visited the White House on Wednesday, four Baltimore City athletes went along for the ride. The Ravens invited city high school football players Steven Thomas (Poly) and David Owens (City), as well as girls basketball players A'Lexus Harrison (Digital Harbor) and Zyaire Lockley (Western), to join them in Washington, D.C., because President Barack Obama announced during the trip that the Ravens will be donating new uniforms for Baltimore City girls varsity basketball and varsity football teams.

We wholeheartedly agree with The Sun's recent editorial urging the Baltimore City school board to seek a superintendent whose strategy will take into account the "issues of poverty, violence and family instability" that affect student performance ("Whatever it takes," June 2). If children arrive at school hungry, needing eyeglasses, fearful of walking home or worried about family problems they cannot focus fully on learning. Indeed, if they miss school because of these or similar issues, their prospects of a bright future are dim. We know that these are the realities for far too many of Baltimore's students.

As the first heat wave hit the city mid-week, at least four schools ran out of drinking water, city school officials confirmed. The Sun received emails from around the city reporting that schools hadn't received deliveries from water companies--and for years, school water fountains have been off-limits due to contamination. City school officials confirmed that due to delivery back-ups, three schools contacted the district Thursday morning regarding their water supply: Mt. Royal Elementary/Middle, Arlington Elementary and Roland Park Elementary/Middle.

The Baltimore school system said Thursday that it will review all contracts awarded by a former chief information technology officer after school officials in Dallas said he could face a federal indictment stemming from his tenure in the Atlanta public school system. Jerome Oberlton was forced to resign as chief of staff in the Dallas Independent School District this week after informing Superintendent Mike Miles that he was the target of a federal investigation, according to a statement from the Dallas school district.

The latest statistics from the Maryland State Department of Education show Baltimore City making steady progress toward increasing the number of students who finish high school. Last year city schools awarded 149 more diplomas than in 2011, and the city's 3.3 percentage point decline in dropouts was the largest in the region. That's great news for all the teachers, principals and school staff who have worked so hard to get the city's schools back on track. Since his arrival in Baltimore six years ago, schools CEO Andrés Alonso has made boosting high school graduation rates a priority of his reform effort, and during that period the schools' dropout rate has declined by more than half.

City schools released the following congratulations this week: Ten Baltimore City public schools have been recognized by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) for the academic performance of their students, according to a release sent from city school system.  The schools were recognized by the state for either their performance on the 2011 Maryland School Assessment (MSA)--they had to have made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)-- or the High School Assessment (HSA)

Jerome Oberlton, the former chief information officer for the Baltimore City school system whose office renovation and credit card expenditures came under fire in the months before he left his post to work in the Dallas school district, is expected to face a federal indictment, according to the Dallas Morning News. The Morning News reported this week that Oberlton resigned as chief of staff for the Dallas Independent School District, telling the district's Superintendent Mike Miles that he expected to face a federal indictment for activity he conducted when he worked for the Atlanta Public Schools.

Kudos to Erica Green for keeping on top of the Baltimore school finances ("Audit faults schools over federal funds," May 23). Many of the problems outlined in the most recent report can be traced to poor accounting procedures - including no documentation for time worked and inappropriate spending. There are systemic problems that have persisted over time and need to be addressed. The schools should be getting financial advice from the network of advisers set up to guide schools on business matters.