BCP Blog
BCP’s History with Direct Instruction and NIFDI
When I was a graduate student in Special Education and Rehabilitation at the University of Oregon, the direction of my life changed when I met Jerry Silbert, one of the leaders and program authors of the four-decade Direct Instruction (DI) movement with the National...
Deepening the Impact of Community Schools
There are 454 community schools in Maryland, located in every county with the highest concentration in Baltimore City. These community schools offer far more than a solid public school education. By their mission, these schools focus on the well-being of their...
Improving Math Proficiency and Success at Baltimore Curriculum Project Schools
Everybody can be good at math. I’m a former middle school math teacher and know that many people feel like they're not good at math. But if it’s taught well, everybody can be good at math. As a partner with Baltimore City Public Schools and as Maryland’s largest and...
Making Children’s Mental Health a Classroom Priority: A BCP Teacher’s Story
May is Children’s Mental Health Month. We asked Kat Locke-Jones,7th grade English Language Arts teacher at Hampstead Hill Academy, part of the Baltimore Curriculum Project’s (BCP) network of neighborhood conversion charter schools, to share her story as a mental...
How Assistant Principals Support and Sustain School Culture and Achievement
In early April, we celebrated National Assistant Principal Week. The Assistant Principals across our Baltimore Curriculum Project (BCP) network of neighborhood conversion charter schools are unsung heroes. Every day, these talented, seasoned school administrators play...
Muriel Berkeley, BCP Founder and Heroine
To celebrate Women’s History Month this March, we are going back to the beginning, to the visionary woman who co-founded the Baltimore Curriculum Project (BCP) in 1996: Dr. Muriel Berkeley. Today BCP is Maryland’s largest charter school operator and is recognized for...
Bernarda Kwaw, BCP Leader of Distinction
Bernarda Kwaw holds a unique record at Baltimore Curriculum Project (BCP). She has held every role, except student, within BCP. Over her 30 year career, she’s been a BCP classroom teacher, academic coach, parent of Hampstead Hill Academy student, BCP Board member,...
Student Mental Health and Social Media
“Every day, we see how social media is changing schools in the ways that we engage with students.” This opening comment by Harold S. Henry, Jr. Chief of Schools for Baltimore Curriculum Project’s (BCP) 2024 Leading Minds Conversation was hardly news to the several...
The Value of the Baltimore Curriculum Project Model for Families & Neighborhoods
Baltimore Curriculum Project (BCP) schools are neighborhood conversion charter public schools using the community school model. That’s a lot to say. What does it mean for our students, faculty and staff, and parents – and the Baltimore neighborhoods where our six BCP...
Student Mental Health and Social Media
The facts grow more alarming with each passing year. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data shows that children and teens who spend more than three hours a day on social media are two times at risk of mental health issues like depression and anxiety....
BCP Leaders on the National Stage
This fall, several Baltimore Curriculum Project (BCP) leaders attended national conferences of top educators across the country or led programs for emerging educational leaders. We asked them to summarize a few takeaways from their experiences. Harold S. Henry, Jr.,...
Reflections of a BCP Principal
I never wanted to be a principal. This is a common refrain from many school leaders, but it could not be more true for me. I resisted at every opportunity leading up to accepting the role at Frederick Elementary School (FES) in 2017, when FES became a Baltimore...