Today, we released a report on the conditions of Baltimore City Public School facilities, based on the first independent analysis of a statewide survey of every K-12 school in Maryland.
Why is this important to investigate? 1/
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Poor facility conditions are associated with absenteeism and drop-out, lower test scores, lower student achievement, asthma attacks and other health outcomes, and less retention of teachers.
So what did we find? 2/
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We found ... Baltimore City Public School facilities have the oldest components in the state.
This figure shows the replacement value of components more than 30 years past their expected lifespan. 3/
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We found ... More Baltimore City Public School facilities are "worn" or "shabby"
The state says that users consider a building "worn and/or shabby" and "suffering from major functionality issues" when its "FCI Score" is above 60%. 4/
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We found ... Baltimore CIty Public Schools have the largest "replacement value gap" in HVAC equipment
What's a "replacement value gap"? It measures the difference in the cost to replace different HVAC systems, which can range from modern/centralized to cheap/portable. 6/
Sep 20, 2022 · 3:41 PM UTC
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What do Baltimore City Public School students say about the conditions of their schools? Thanks to the Nobody Asked Me campaign (nobodyaskedmebalt.org) – we know the answer.
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What explains the poor conditions of Baltimore City Schools?
The major factor: years and years of underfunding. In Maryland, major school systems typically receive similar amounts from the state, but wealthier counties spend hundreds of millions more on their schools. 8/
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In 2013, Baltimore City Public Schools, the City of Baltimore, and Maryland launched the 21st Century School Buildings Plan to replace or renovate 28 schools. But only about 1 in 4 city schoolchildren will attend new schools by the time all of this work is done. 9/
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Enormous gaps in school facilities across Maryland remain – gaps that are unacceptable, and, the @NAACPMD believes, unconstitutional.
[Note: To share this very work, I became an unpaid expert witness for the plaintiffs.] 10/
naacpldf.org/case-issue/brad…
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Some good news: Maryland is establishing a new process to allocate funds for school construction, focusing on the areas of highest need.
The findings from this work should be taken into account … and schools in Baltimore City should be appropriately prioritized. 11/
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Our report released today is online at bit.ly/schoolconditionsbalti…
Check it out for all this and more information. 12/
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Thanks to @afronews for covering the report and writing about the importance of school conditions this morning.
afro.com/new-report-highligh… 13/
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Thanks to @lillianereed @baltimoresun for today's great coverage of school conditions in Baltimore and how they affect children.
baltimoresun.com/education/b… 14/
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Interested in learning more? The report and many other related topics are on the agenda at the Enoch Pratt Free Library, Pennsylvania Avenue Branch tonight at 5:30 pm.
eventbrite.com/e/amplified-v…
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