After last month’s “die-in” at the Baltimore City School Board meeting to protest controversial school closures, North Avenue officials are now meeting regularly with Heritage High School students and Lake Clifton stakeholders.

According to Jamal Jones, co-director of the Baltimore Algebra Project, which coordinated the protest, city schools CEO Gregory E. Thornton is holding bi-weekly meetings with the student-led educational advocacy group and Heritage High students.

The conversations haven’t changed administrators’ plan to close the school, Jones said, but they’ve gotten the system engaged with the community and empowered the students by giving them a role in the process.

“The meetings are open to the public,” said Jones, speaking at a screening event at the Real News Network last night about “School’s Out,” a film by New Lens examining the school closure issue in Baltimore City.

Jones says the students and their advocates are meeting with Thornton and the city schools chief academic officer, Linda Chen, as well as the school’s Office of Engagement to help plan for Heritage students’ future.

Heritage is one of the city’s smaller high schools, located at the Lake Clifton Complex in northeast Baltimore. It was one of six schools the school board voted to close this summer.

The group, Jones says, has five committees, including a transition committee to assist students in finding another high school, and a diploma committee, so that “students can graduate with a diploma from Heritage High – if that’s what they want.”

Declining Enrollment

The school administration has characterized Heritage, in its portfolio review as “low performing.” The school also suffers from declining enrollment.

As of September 30, the facility had 459 students, a decline of 44% (360 students) over the past five years.

One Heritage faculty member who gave testimony at school board meetings acknowledged the school’s challenges, but noted that the principal didn’t turn students away and emphasized that students who have struggled elsewhere have found success there.

Heritage’s closure was previously recommended for June 2016, but was moved up a year because of further enrollment declines.

The meetings are open to the public and currently being held at city schools headquarters. “The meeting locations will rotate,” says Jones. “Some will be held at Heritage or other locations.”

Jones encouraged anyone interested in city school closures to attend the meetings. He says the next one will be February 9 at 5 p.m. at City Schools headquarters.

