kids at midtownMidtown Academychild learning at Midtown

"Uniting Neighborhoods and Celebrating Achievement"

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is The Midtown Academy?
2. How is The Midtown Academy different from other Baltimore City public schools?
3. How does Midtown compare to other Baltimore City public schools on test scores?
4. Which standardized tests do Midtown students take?
5. What curriculum does Midtown follow?
6. What is the class size at Midtown?
7. What are the demographics of Midtown's student population?
8. Who is eligible to attend Midtown?
9. How does Midtown's lottery work?
10. If my child does not get in during the lottery, do I have to reapply for the following school year?
11. Does Midtown have a waiting list?
12. What calendar does the school follow?
13. How long is the school day?
14. Is there before- and after-care for Midtown students?
15. What meals are served during school hours?
16. Does Midtown have a uniform?
17. What is the application process?
18. What special or "resource" programs does Midtown's academic program include?
19. Does Midtown have tutoring and gifted-and-talented programs?
20. Does the school have after-school programs?
21. How does the volunteer program work?

  1. What is The Midtown Academy?

    The Midtown Academy is a Baltimore City public charter school. It was founded as part of the Baltimore City Public School System's (BCPSS) News Schools Initiative in 1997 by a grassroots coalition of parents and teachers in Reservoir Hill and Bolton Hill. In 2003 the state of Maryland passed charter school legislation; in 2005, Midtown converted to a charter school.

  2. How is The Midtown Academy different from other Baltimore City public schools?

    The Midtown Academy is one of 23 charter schools in Baltimore City. As a charter school, it receives a certain amount of flexibility-in such areas as school management and administration, educational programming, curriculum and instructional focus, and budget-in exchange for high academic performance. For more information on charter schools, see: http://www.marylandpublicschools.org/MSDE/programs/charter_schools/.

    Midtown is also smaller than the city's zoned schools, with 20 students per grade. It is located in the heart of the city's cultural arts district, and offers students a rich experience in both the language and fine arts. It is diverse by BCPSS standards, and closely reflects the population of Baltimore City: 76 percent of students are African American, 18 percent are white; 3 percent are Asian/Pacific Islander, and 3 percent are Hispanic.

    Finally, Midtown works hard to preserve a small, nurturing environment in which parents are active and engaged participants in their children's education. In order to achieve that, the school encourages all students' families to perform at least 75 hours of volunteer work each year.

    For more information on Midtown, please see the About Midtown page, where a school overview and its mission and history are presented in greater detail.

  3. How does Midtown compare to other Baltimore City public schools on test scores?

    Among city schools with similar student demographic profiles, none outperformed Midtown on the Maryland School Assessment in reading and math in 2006. All students in all grades exceeded state averages in reading and math, except for Midtown's 7th-graders who lagged the state average in math, and its 8th-graders, who equaled the state math average.

    For more-and-detailed information on Midtown's test scores, please see: http://mdreportcard.org/.

  4. Which standardized tests do Midtown students take?

    Midtown students are subject to the same assessment standards and requirements as all Baltimore City public school students. For more information on those assessments, and particularly standardized tests, please visit the Baltimore City Public School System web site to read about its Student Assessment Program.

  5. What curriculum does Midtown follow?

    Midtown teachers use Maryland’s Voluntary State Curriculum to guide instruction.  Midtown teachers use a variety of tools and practices to meet the needs of their students.

    For more detailed information on VSC, please visit http://www.mdk12.org/instruction/curriculum/index.html .

  6. What is the class size at Midtown?

    Midtown has one class per grade, kindergarten through 8th grade, and each class has 20 students.

  7. What are the demographics of Midtown's student population?

    Midtown students are: 
    76 percent African American
    18percent white
    3 percent Asian/Pacific Islander
    3 percent Hispanic
    44 percent are eligible for free or reduced lunch

  8. Who is eligible to attend Midtown?

    Midtown was originally founded to serve the communities of Reservoir Hill and Bolton Hill, and that continues to be its top priority. Over the years, however, its lottery process has allowed its reach to extend beyond those two neighborhoods, and today Midtown serves students and families from across Baltimore City.

    Students are admitted strictly on a lottery basis, and there are no admissions criteria-other than proof of residency within the school's target zone.

  9. How does Midtown's lottery work?

    The lottery, conducted each year in early spring, works like this: 10 slots each are set aside for Reservoir Hill and Bolton Hill. Because siblings of current students are grandfathered in and guaranteed admission to the school, some of these slots are typically taken by incoming siblings. All applicants' names are then put in a hat, and those whose names are drawn are granted the available slots. If either neighborhood fails to fill its slots, the lottery is then opened up to a wider catchment area-to include families with a parent working in one of the two neighborhoods, families living or working in the larger Midtown area and families citywide.

  10. If my child does not get in during the lottery, do I have to reapply for the following school year?

    Yes.

  11. Does Midtown have a waiting list?

    The Midtown Academy does have a waiting list for each current school year.  The waiting list is closed at the end of a school year.  Therefore families/students must reapply every year.

  12. What calendar does the school follow?

    For the most part, The Midtown Academy follows the Baltimore City Public School System (BCPSS) calendar , however, there are some differences.  For example, Midtown students are dismissed at 12:30 every Friday.  Teachers at Midtown participate in professional development every Friday.

  13. How long is the school day?

    Middle School students begin their school day at 8:15 AM and are dismissed at 3:30 PM
    Elementary students, K-5, begin their school day at 8:30 AM and are dismissed at 3:30 PM.  All students are dismissed at 12:30 on Fridays.

  14. Is there before- and after-care for Midtown students?

    Play Centers Inc. provides before- and after-care for Midtown students in the school building starting at 6:30 a.m. and up until 6 p.m. Play Centers operates independently of the school. For more information, call (410) 225-0142.

  15. What meals are served during school hours?

    Breakfast is served from 8 a.m. to 8:20 a.m., and is available-free of charge-to all students. Students can either purchase lunch through the Baltimore City Public School System or bring lunch from home. Primary students are also asked to bring a healthy snack to school each day.

    Midtown is a peanut-free environment.

  16. Does Midtown have a uniform?

    The Midtown Academy students follow a dress code every day.  To view the full dress code please see the Midtown Dress Code page.


  17. What is the application process?

    The application process is explained in more detail on the Application Process page.

  18. What special or "resource" programs does Midtown's academic program include?

    All Midtown Academy students participate in Art, Music, Martial Arts, and Spanish.  K-5 students participate in each related art, once a week.  Middle School students rotate their related arts classes on a quarterly basis.  This allows them to concentrate their studies in one related arts area for a 10 week period.

  19. Does Midtown have tutoring and gifted-and-talented programs?

    The Midtown Academy views the educational process as a ladder of learning.  Some students need extra supports to get where they are going and some students are ready to reach higher at newer concepts.  The Midtown Academy works hard to have instructional supports in place to help all students to continue to move up on the ladder of learning.
    The Midtown Academy also believes that parents and families play a huge role in supporting their children on this ladder of learning and teachers look forward to sharing with parents ways that they can support their students at home.

  20. Does the school have after-school programs?

    The Midtown Academy has a Chess Club and a Middle School Art Club.  Each year Midtown works with community partners to offer additional opportunities to our students.

  21. How does the volunteer program work?

    Our goal is to have all parents and family members volunteer to support our students and our school.  They play an intricate role in our school community.  We have a family engagement coordinator that works with families to coordinate volunteer opportunities throughout the school year.