Posted on 02/06/25
| News Source: FOX45
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 6, 2025 - Despite a surge in funding, Baltimore City student test scores remain among the lowest in the nation, according to results released by the federal government. And these scores have renewed calls for City Schools’ CEO to be replaced.
Former Baltimore City Mayoral Candidate Shannon Wright is often skeptical of government press releases.
“People are going to tell you all the wonderful things that they want to hear. The best way they can spin it,” said Wright.
With that in mind, when Baltimore City Schools in late January posted a press release to its website summarizing 2024 federal test results known as NAEP, Wright wanted to know more.
“I rather look at numbers,” said Wright.
So, Project Baltimore did look at the numbers. We found the press release explains a lot, but it’s what City Schools does not tell the public that Wright believes is the real story.
“We have a broken system,” Wright told Fox45 News.
NAEP stands for the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Every two years, the federal government tests fourth and eighth graders, in math and reading, in all 50 states, and 26 large school systems – including Baltimore City.
In late January, NAEP released the 2024 results. Soon after, City Schools posted an article with this headline, “City Schools’ students make third largest gains in fourth-grade math on national school report card.” That statement is true. Baltimore City’s fourth grade math scores rose eight points since 2022 from 201 to 209.
City Schools CEO Dr. Sonja Santelises is quoted, “Our fourth-grade math performance is encouraging. We know our approaches are working.”
But what City Schools doesn’t mention in the article is that, even with those gains, Baltimore City recorded the fourth lowest score in the nation among the 26 districts tested, which is consistent with where the school system has historically ranked.
“The fact that we were the fourth worst is embarrassing. And it should be embarrassing to everyone that lives here in Baltimore,” stated Wright.
City Schools, in the release, mentions eighth grade math scores, “largely held steady since 2022.” In fact, they were unchanged at 245. But again, what North Avenue does not mention is that score also is the fourth lowest in the nation.
In reading, City Schools tells the public “performance holds steady”, which is true. Fourth grade reading scores rose one point since 2022, while eighth grade reading scores fell one point. But similar to math, those results place Baltimore City among the lowest performing districts in the country. City Schools ranks fourth lowest in fourth grade reading and fifth lowest in eighth grade reading – which is omitted from the press release.
Instead, City Schools writes, “The district’s focus and investment in high-quality curriculum and instruction contributed to noteworthy results.”
“I'm sorry, I got a little nauseous on that one. It's noteworthy, all right. It's noteworthy the fact that it's not working,” explained Wright.
Wright, in 2024, ran for Baltimore City mayor as the Republican nominee. She lost to incumbent Mayor Brandon Scott. But during the primary campaign, many Democratic candidates joined her, such as Bob Wallace and Sheila Dixon, in calling for City Schools CEO Dr. Sonja Santelises to resign largely over con
“There's a direct correlation between the poor performance of education and criminal justice with youth. If we do not fix our schools and our system, we will not fix youth juvenile justice,” Wright told Project Baltimore. “We have to fix this.”
Santelises became CEO in 2016. The following year in 2017, NAEP released results from the first assessment taken under her leadership. The 2024 scores have declined in every category compared to 2017. And Baltimore’s scores in three of the four categories declined by more than the national large city average during that same seven-year period.
“If we want our city to work. If we want our economy to grow in our city. We have to improve education,” said Wright. “And Dr. Santelises has shown she's not capable of doing the job.”
Keep in mind, the NAEP scores were released at a time when City Schools budget is skyrocketing. Last year, when the NAEP test was given, the district’s budget was $1.7 billion, up $400 million since 2020.