| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 26, 2012 |
Mayor Rawlings-Blake Signs Better Schools Act
Ceremony coincides with release of detailed report on school facilities.
Mayor and City Schools CEO Dr. Alonso call for further action to bring buildings up to 21st-century standards over the next 10 years.
Today, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake was joined by state and local elected officials, City Schools CEO Dr. Andres Alonso, school board members, education advocates, parents, and students for the signing into law of an important part of her plan to increase funding for school construction and renovation. The measure is part of a package that will more than double the City’s annual contribution to school construction and renovation.
“I want to thank my colleagues on the City Council who stood up to the special interests and took meaningful action on behalf of our students by supporting the largest investment in public education in Baltimore’s modern history,” said Mayor Rawlings-Blake. “Baltimore has the oldest school infrastructure in the state, and now we can begin to address our most challenging infrastructure issues and give our kids the modern schools they deserve.”
The mayor’s Better Schools Initiative, first announced in November, includes a variety of new revenue streams, including dedicating proceeds from the newly enacted 5-cent beverage container fee, 10% of City revenues from the proposed Video Lottery Terminal facility land lease, and by leveraging additional State funds from the City’s contribution to teacher-retiree healthcare benefits. The combined package could leverage as much as $300 million in bond funding for school construction and renovation or could be pumped into shovel-ready projects as early as next year.
“In the past few years, our students have made tremendous progress, despite the conditions of the schools: the graduation rate is up, and the dropout rate is half what it was in 2007. I am committed to keeping the momentum going in every community throughout Baltimore,” added Mayor Rawlings-Blake. “To grow this city by 10,000 families in 10 years, we need to demonstrate to current and future residents that we are committed to fighting the special interests and providing every child in Baltimore with quality educational opportunities.”
To learn more about the Mayor’s “Better Schools Initiative” visithttp://baltimorecity.gov/OfficeoftheMayor/NewsMedia/tabid/66/ID/1775/Mayor_Rawlings-Blake_Announces_Major_School_Construction_and_Renovation_Proposal.aspx.
The bill signing took place as Dr. Alonso released the first-ever comprehensive report on the physical condition of the district’s school buildings. The report asserts that City Schools buildings fall far below national standards and gives the district an overall rating of “very poor.”
District leaders hailed the report both for the story it tells of unacceptable learning conditions for City Schools students and for its critical role in advancing the transformation of City Schools and the revitalization of the city. It shows what it will take to provide better school buildings—better positioning students to achieve at the highest levels, bringing more families to the city, and by extension, more students to its schools.
City Schools commissioned the Jacobs report to fully understand the condition of its buildings and how they are being used. With this information, the district can begin to identify physical improvement needs and priorities and, by working closely with individual school communities, develop a 10-year plan for repairing, renovating, and replacing buildings to bring them up to 21st-century standards.
The report follows many months of close collaboration between the district, the Mayor’s Office, local and state lawmakers, and key community partners to lay the groundwork for achieving the same standard of school buildings in Baltimore City that students have access to across the country.
“We have known for years that our children are going to school each day in old, out-of-date buildings that don’t begin to meet their educational needs—let alone support the important progress they are making,” said Dr. Alonso. “The Jacobs report is huge because it tells this story in a clear and irrefutable way. It’s a story about unacceptable conditions for our kids. And it’s a story everybody with a stake in Baltimore should know and tell, not just because it is outrageous, but because it presents an unprecedented opportunity for our city. The Jacobs report gives us what we need to say, ‘No more’ to fifth-rate school buildings and to provide buildings that support the best possible education and, by extension, forward movement for our kids and our city.”
“To get Baltimore growing again, we need to step up our game and work together to improve our schools,” said Mayor Rawlings-Blake. “The release of the Jacobs report and the signing into law of the city’s first and only new funding source specifically dedicated to school construction mark an important milestone in this journey to improve our school buildings. These two documents represent a philosophy about what is needed to address decades of underfunding, neglect, and avoidance of hard decisions.”
The full Jacobs report and much more information on City Schools’ 21st-century buildings plan is available on the City Schools website atwww.baltimorecityschools.org/betterbuildings(External Link).
