I don't buy the argument that somehow Western's admissions requirements will suffer simply because the building is housing a charter school? If anyone begins to start tinkering with those requirements, then the alum should raise a stink, but until then, it seems like they would want to embrace providing a quality school experience for more girls in the city. It makes me sad to think that some Western alum seem not to be able to look at this bigger picture.

Part of the issue is that some would like to see the inclusion of a 7th-8th program folded within Western: an Upper-Lower School thing, which would allow a more intense preparation of the middle school grade levels prior to coming to a rigorous college prep program. The question is: would Alonso seriously entertain a proposal for this??

I cannot imagine anyone, espeically not the people who have proposed the new school, wanting to fold their program into Western. Not a knock against Western.

On a side note, if Western could bolster its enrollment, the school wouldn't be 1/2 full:-)

As a Western Alum (admittedly not active), I've got to say I'm disappointed by this attitude. If you're having trouble attracting students to an all-girl high school, maybe the best idea is a feeder school. And why assume the graduates won't be qualified to get into Western? With a little mentoring and support they should be able to make it - especially if they get good grades through middle school. It seems more like an opportunity than a problem to me.

What I'd really like to know is how and why Western's enrollment is that far down. I teach in a citywide school and every class is crowded. 60% capacity seems criminal; capable students all over the city in zoned schools should be falling over themselves trying to fill those slots. What's going on?

Maybe the problem is that charter schools are approved with no real purpose and plan. The charter law stated that charters are to public schools open to all students. How can they justify an all boys or all girl charter.

MD Code Ann, Education S. 9-101

(a) There is a Maryland Public Charter School Program.

(b) The general purpose of the Program is to establish an alternative means within the existing public school system in order to provide innovative learning opportunities and creative educational approaches to improve the education of students.

I'd contend that the general purpose of Charter schools is to improve opportunity - this goal being more important and more in line with the purpose of Charter school creation.

Bill,

Read On:

9–102.
IN THIS TITLE, “PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL” MEANS A PUBLIC SCHOOL THAT:
(1) IS NONSECTARIAN IN ALL ITS PROGRAMS, POLICIES, AND
OPERATIONS;
(2) IS A SCHOOL TO WHICH PARENTS CHOOSE TO SEND THEIR
CHILDREN;
(3) IS OPEN TO ALL STUDENTS ON A SPACE–AVAILABLE BASIS AND
ADMITS STUDENTS ON A LOTTERY BASIS IF MORE STUDENTS APPLY THAN CAN BE
ACCOMMODATED;
(4) IS A NEW PUBLIC SCHOOL OR A CONVERSION OF AN EXISTING
PUBLIC SCHOOL;
(5) PROVIDES A PROGRAM OF ELEMENTARY OR SECONDARY
EDUCATION OR BOTH;
(6) OPERATES IN PURSUIT OF A SPECIFIC SET OF EDUCATIONAL
OBJECTIVES;
(7) IS TUITION–FREE;
(8) IS SUBJECT TO FEDERAL AND STATE LAWS PROHIBITING
DISCRIMINATION;
(9) IS IN COMPLIANCE WITH ALL APPLICABLE HEALTH AND SAFETY
LAWS; AND
(10) IS IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE INDIVIDUALS
WITH DISABILITIES ACT, 20 U.S.C. 1400 ET SEQ. § 9–107 OF THIS TITLE;
(11) OPERATES UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF THE PUBLIC CHARTERING
AUTHORITY FROM WHICH ITS CHARTER IS GRANTED AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH ITS
SENATE BILL 75 3

Some have opened in closed church schools

Few if any of the charters are truly open to all.

Few if any of Baltimore's charters have a special education population that reflects are the overall special ed population of the city.

I am a Western Alum that is against the idea that a charter school being "temporarily" placed in the school. What does really concern me is how low the enrollment is. The question that is raises to me is "why is it low"? Is it low because Baltimore City middle schools are not doing enough for young girls to be admitted in Western? Is it lack of parent and community involvement that makes it hard for the girls to succeed and stay in Western if they are accepted? Is it a cultural and society issue that makes young girls value social interaction (mainly with boys) over better education? Is there something that Western could do better to promote the school to middle school girls? I think these are some questions that need to be addressed. Although these questions need to be answered, the fact that Western has a superior educational track record cannot be questioned and should not be made to house a charter school.

What Western lacks is an academic program that attracts the upper echelon of female students. Poly has Ingenuity, City has the IB program and the School of the Arts is obvious. What does Western offer...Teachers Academy???? Based on data from the MSDE website Western also had the highest percentage of graduates in 2005 and 2006 (of the big three) that went community colleges. Some would say thats okay but is that the schools mission?

On the issue of charters, my experience would be that they are totally in compliance with the regulations that OTT quotes. Why would being in a no longer used church school building be an issue? The schools we looked at all had lotteries and were open to any one who filled out a lottery application. As far as special needs go, I've got a special needs kid in a charter school after looking at how awful our zoned school's services would have been. I'll take fewer service hours given by people who actually want to have my kid in their school over tons of hours in depressingly poor pull-out services any day.

On the subject of why Western's enrollment is so low, I think there needs to be some soul-searching on the part of Western's administration. When I enrolled at Western it was pretty much the only all-city school for girls. There were about 10 girls at Poly and City was a zoned school (and a pretty poor one at that). While Poly and City have changed a lot and have offerings to draw in lots of applicants, what has Western done to be competitive? If you're a girl who wants to be a teacher, it's pretty attractive, but if not? Where's the PR talking about how being in an all-girls school develops leaders or makes it a safer school or draws more colleges trying to recruit girls? There wasn't anything like that when my middle-schoolers went to the high school fair. Maybe if the alumnae would spend some energy and money on PR about the successes of Western rather than trashing a start-up charter school, enrollment would go up.

Over the top:

On what facts are you basing your statements on? Which Charter school isn't "really opened to all"? What numbers are you using for your statement about SPED? And finally, as A Parent asks, what's the issue with opening in a closed church school, gas station, strip mall or yurt? 2 of my kids go to a school that is in an old church school building and there is NOTHING that contradicts the spirit or letter of the law you quote.And as a bit of a 1st amendment nut, I wouldn't stand for it if there was.

I am frankly sick and tired of hearing people spout unsupported opinions as if they are fact - back up your statements with facts. You are smarter than that and you also know that statements like the ones you make don't actually move things forward since they aren't based in reality. Would you accept these types of arguments from students? I hope not.

On another note, I am glad to see some of the posts here from Western Alumna. I am also glad to see that the tone of those is one of reflection - clearly a sign of what an excellent education they have received. I love the comments about mentoring and looking at this as a chance to bring in new students.

Western has done a lot to recruit. There is some truth to the comment of soul searching-- we've been on the mission of College Prep for a while, and do a pretty decent job. That said, we've also been talking about defining ourselves differently for some time and have taken steps.

One issue that comes up is the dilution of the student pool with all of the new and different high schools. We simply don't get enough, and when schools like Poly relax their standards as they seem to be doing (their enrollment is up in a big way, and the discipline/behavior issues are on the rise), we don't get a crack as second choice?

I don't know-- I can't claim detailed stats-- this is just what I hear. I do know that we don't have the space they say we have. Our classes are just as crowded over the ideal number, and we have a large number of computer labs that used to be traditional classroom space.

If "Western has done a lot to recruit", it's not showing up at the high school fair or in the general discussions of kids in middle school that I know. I've gone to a lot of events encouraging middle school girls to go into science (UMBC, JHU, Towson, Space Telescope Institute) and I've never heard anything about Western as an option for girls who want an excellent high school with a girls-only approach. I'm not saying it has to be about science/tech, that's just what I've seen. Maybe Western could hand out fliers at these events or even host some Saturday programs in other areas for middle school girls. Get them excited about going to Western as their first choice.

Your complaint about Poly (and City since both have the same entrance requirements) lowering their standards sounds more like whining than constructive criticism to me. Got any facts to back it up? And even if it's true do you really want to fill up with 2nd choice selections? By definition you won't be on the same level as Poly and City then. I don’t think this is a problem for an individual teacher to solve, but I do think that if the alums, the administration and the PTA get together, they could change the tide.

I think the WTeacher has hit the nail on the head.

I.O. - Doesn't take a lot of research. Just review the minutes from the November School Board Mtg and the discussion about the new/expanding charter schools . One existing school stated they recruit by going door to door in THEIR neighborhood. Another new submitted a proposal because the church school they work in is being closed and they want to open in the same building with the same principles as the existing school(done before). Another existing school was called out by a commisioner for not meeting AYP and they laid the blame on their special ed students.

I know just your response is that was just four schools but two of four are "stars" of the systems.

OTT:

1) recruiting in "their" neighborhood means just that, it does not mean that they don't accept kids from other neighborhoods.

2) If a school proposal has a religious bent I am sure it would show in their application and would be rejected. Yes, sure of it. Do you have evidence that their school plan included non-secular stuff? Or just that they wanted to be in a building?

3) Reviewing AYP information for a number of schools would reveal that SPED is a place where not many have figured out how to do things well. I am not sure that I read the same "blaming" and am totally sure that even if they "blamed" SPED that doesn't mean they don't serve them - that's a leap that I am not willing to take. I think some more digging in to how SPED looks at the schools - for example, how many students with IEP's have had their placement reduced (b to a and so on), how many kids have been dismissed (remember that's the D in the old ARD) and not simply a % of SPED from total population.

I hope that my response surprises you since I didn't say what you "just know":-) And as I read it,, even if that were to be my response, what I might have said is that this represents just 3 (not 4) of the schools and if any of them are playing fast and loose with SPED they need to cut it out.

So, am I going to get a resume from you or not? :-)

It is my understanding that charters are frustrated about SPED because it is the one area that the system still controls (send teachers and other SPED staff), but that the schools are held accountable for. So SPED MSA scores count against a charter, even though the principal didn't make the hiring choice of the SPED teacher - the system did.

If you want to hold charters accountable for SPED let them hire their own SPED teachers. Until then, the charters will always have an excuse when it comes to SPED students.