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The Fund has joined with the City Schools and the Open Society Institute-Baltimore (OSI) to launch the creation of new Accelerator Schools, an initiative that has the potential to dramatically reframe education in Baltimore City. By moving away from a "one size fits all" approach, Baltimore will offer young people a range of high-quality options for successfully completing high school on their own timeline, and not just the traditional four year programs currently available. OSI will be underwriting these efforts with a three-year grant to the Fund to help City Schools identify successful models, solicit proposals from potential operators, and provide start-up funding for up to six new Secondary Transformation Schools with an accelerator program focus.
The Fund, City Schools and OSI all recognize that many of our students cannot afford to spend up to four years in high school due to family or job responsibilities. In some cases, these students may be older than their peers, or have fallen behind in the number of credits needed to graduate. To meet these students’ needs, the new accelerator schools will offer:
• Accelerated course and credit recovery;
• Guidance and career counseling services;
• Internship and apprentice opportunities; and
• Transition support for students moving to the next stage of their careers.
The OSI grant provides a unique opportunity for the Fund and City Schools to design and execute a long-term strategy for meeting the needs of vulnerable youth who require alternative pathways to graduation. City Schools and the Fund have already completed and distributed a new Request for Information to potential school operators/partners to learn more about best practices for accelerator schools (e.g. size, scope and programming) and to attract experienced accelerator school operators to the city. We will also be working together to build a community of support among all of Baltimore’s accelerator schools to share lessons learned and support each other’s efforts.
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