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Our History
The Baltimore Education Network (BEN) was established by parents and education advocates in 1997, during a time of historic change in Baltimore’s public school system. Too many of the 102,000 children then attending the public schools were falling far short of meeting Maryland and community standards for academic performance. A lawsuit settlement on their behalf was working its way through the state legislature, and BEN’s first mission was to keep the community informed about the lawsuit and its court-mandated school improvement activities. During that time, BEN (then called Baltimore Education Policy Network), its sponsoring organizations (Greater Baltimore Urban League, Baltimore City Council of PTAs, Citizens Planning and Housing Association, Fund for Educational Excellence and Maryland Education Coalition), and others on its steering committee laid the groundwork for BEN’s future work. These founders acted on the knowledge that parent and community involvement is integral to children’s achievement, and set a mission of mobilizing and supporting this kind of public engagement in the schools. Today, 89,000 students attend Baltimore’s public schools, and too many are still falling short of standards for academic performance. BEN continues to enable parents, young people, and community members to create the agenda for how their schools can improve.
Key Accomplishments
Since 1997, by modeling inclusive, collaborative relationships and seeking to institute such processes at the system and school-community levels, BEN has:
- Served the critical function of mobilizing and influencing how the school district partners with families. Specifically, BEN has influenced the three-reader process for new school system policies and the passage of the system’s Family and Community Engagement Policy, and identified and developed a cadre of BEN Contacts who share information with other school-community members and engage them in school activities.
- Built community and family capacity to be involved in education reform work. Specifically, BEN has trained more than 30 workshop facilitators, most of whom have increased their leadership role in the community; at least 10 have been hired on a contractual basis by other groups or by the school system to facilitate workshops or collaborative meetings.
- Kept the public informed on the progress of school reform and on opportunities to influence that process. Specifically, BEN sends a monthly newsletter to 5,500 readers that includes the most comprehensive education calendar in the city, and holds forums and workshops on emerging issues.
Recognition and Demand
Over the last eight years, BEN has achieved its mission as a change agent by nurturing relationships with parents, community members, organizations, and school system staff in Baltimore and across the country. BEN’s work has made, and continues to make, a difference on both the individual and the systemic levels, earning BEN a reputation as a successful and accomplished trainer, facilitator, and provider of information. The growing recognition of the work and commitment of BEN and its membership has resulted in a significant increase in the demand for our services in the areas of capacity-building workshops, facilitation and leadership development, information dissemination, and community engagement activities.
Meanwhile, the role of BEN within Baltimore’s reform environment has evolved from our starting position as the lone locally based, citywide education group in town. Serving as a conduit to introduce other organizations to local and national connections and resources (Cross City Campaign for Urban School Reform, Education Trust, Parent Power Works - link), we have stimulated these organizations’ own growth and collaborative work, thus broadening the field of local organizations involved in a variety of ways on education reform issues. Currently, BEN is focused on providing an environment and space for these multiple relationships and capacities to support the Baltimore community in continuing to strengthen its voice in improving our schools. Considering the critical need to address the student achievement deficit and the problem of too little sustained community engagement on education issues, BEN is now building on its experiences, successes, and relationships to enhance its impact by broadening the base of those engaged in public dialogue and collective action on school issues, thereby inspiring a climate of public accountability that supports school improvement over time.
To continue to meet increased and changing demand for our work strategically and thoughtfully, BEN is determining how best we can expand our organizational capacity in 2005 in ways that are consistent with BEN’s core values of inclusiveness and deep appreciation of all family, community, and school partners, and how best to move to the next level of influence on Baltimore’s schools and on the education reform process.
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