Govans is one of more than two dozen schools being renovated or replaced under the 21st Century School Buildings Plan, an unprecedented $1 billion commitment to upgrade city schools, which are the oldest and most deteriorated in Maryland. Strong City Baltimore was an influential force in securing this funding, through its work with the Baltimore Education Coalition, the leading advocacy group for the city’s public school families. Strong City is a founder, organizer, and fiscal sponsor of the Coalition, and Strong City staff have held leadership positions in the organization.
Strong City’s Community School Coordinator for Govans Elementary is Sandi McFadden, herself a resident of the Mid-Govans community the school serves. Ms. Sandi worked closely with former Govans Principal Linda Taylor, and now with Principal Kwaw, to increase family engagement, build partnerships, and assess the needs of the school community. (The school has particularly strong relationships with local churches, including Church of the Redeemer, Huber Memorial, and Front Porch.) Such community-based work is even more important now, given the dramatic transition the school is going through.
Govans experienced improvement under former Principal Taylor, who arrived when the school was in danger of being taken over by the state and led Govans for 12 years after serving as assistant principal at Roland Park Elementary/Middle School under Dr. Mariale Hardiman. Former Principal Taylor focused on increasing parent involvement, cultivating partnerships, and raising attendance rates and test scores. Three years ago, Govans became a charter school as part of the Baltimore Curriculum Project, which introduced progressive concepts such as the use of restorative practices to solve conflicts, the Direct Instruction reading program, and tailoring professional development sessions to fit the school’s specific needs. In 2016, Sandi McFadden became the community school liaison, as Govans embarked on the process of becoming a community school with the support of the Family League of Baltimore, the Goldseker Foundation, and Strong City. “We’re seen as being a pretty good school, but we want to be a great school,” former Principal Taylor said.
Its many efforts to improve are starting to pay off for Govans. The recently released PARCC scores showed that students in grades three to five scored 13.4 percentage points higher in English/Language Arts this year compared with 2016; fourth-grade scores increased by 31.3 points. In math, those same students had a 5 percentage point increase, with fourth-graders’ scores rising 15.5 points. Higher levels of performance, combined with its innovative charter model and anticipation about the new building, add up to a big boost for Govans – and people are taking notice. As a neighborhood charter, Govans is obligated to accept in-zone children first, but parents from other areas of the city also want to send their kids there. Officials see Govans as a school that will grow; current enrollment is just over 400 students, but the new building will have room for 600.