Baltimore Schools Chief Asks Foundations for $25-Million

The head of Baltimore’s public schools has undertaken a campaign to raise $25-million from foundations to overhaul the city’s middle and high schools, reports The Sun, in Baltimore.

The newspaper obtained a copy of a confidential presentation to several private organizations that outlined the city’s needs and proposed solutions. Faced with a large number of dropouts and overage students, Andres Alonso, hired in July as Baltimore’s schools chief, hopes to create smaller schools that combine middle- and high-school facilities and offer college preparatory, vocational, and alternative programs.

Local grant makers like the Abell Foundation and the Open Society Institute’s Baltimore office say they would be willing to support the right project. Previous school-improvement efforts garnered $20.8-million in private support from donors, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Those efforts, limited to a handful of city schools, were highly successful but not far-reaching enough, says Mr. Alonso.

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