Our hopes, goals and rationale

What we want: A thriving City College, a school that is a model around the country of what a large urban public high school can be. And not just in name only, like the Newsweek article, in which we were honored because of advanced classes. Instead, we want a school that is truly a great school for all students. We want a school that has a strong academic reputation and enviornment, and prepares all students for the best colleges in the country.

Do not mistake our dissent for dislike or hidden agendas. We are here because we love the school, and we feel it to be our right - and our responsibility - to speak up about the state of Baltimore City College. We just want City to be the best it can be. It's not even close right now, and in fact has degenerated markedly in the last two years - and the current administration has shown no indication that it has the skills, tenacity, or planning necessary to right its course.

Our goals:

1. To draw attention to the bullying culture that BCC teachers and students operate under.

2. To draw attention to the negligent and ineffective current administration.

3. To draw attention to and discover more information about administrative missteps and blunders.

4. To draw attention to the need for independent oversight of BCC, as both North Avenue and the current BCC Alumni group are preoccupied with other issues.

5. To draw attention to the dearth of BCC alumni participation.

6. To draw attention to the need for a new school website for various reasons.

7. To draw attention to a growing lack of discipline among BCC students.

8. To draw attention to the seeming lack of power among class administrations and the SGA.

Rationale: With the growing heap of [at least] stories coming out of City, it's good enough cause to call for oversight of the school by an independent, stakeholder board with some teeth (and we'd still like to see more alumni participation, and if it means an organization other than the current Alumni Association being on the forefront, we're all for it). We think it's good for students who want to roam the halls and curse. We think it's good for a negligent administration that can't decide whether Senior Farewell should happen as planned (or was it even planned? That we have to ask that question shows how pathetic the situation is). We think it's just good all around. We think it can happen by having attention called to this environment and culture of fear.

Baltimore City College has been lauded nationally. Out of over 20,000+ public high schools, City is at the pinnacle. But yet, when we hear stories like the one about the student whose teacher-parent won't allow his sibling to attend, we have to take pause and say "why the heck is this?" A BCPSS teacher not wanting his or her child to attend City College? That's just not supposed to be said, let alone even contemplated. So, we want to know why. And we want others to know why. We want powerful alumni to know why. If necessary, we want the media to know why.

We will do whatever we can with this website to help City College thrive and be the school we know it can be.

(Special thanks to Anonymous City Alum for much of the mission statement above.