Grand Prize Winner of the Green Roof Give Away Competition presented by Cole Roofing!

Just before the winter break, BLSYW received some very exciting news. BLSYW was selected as the grand prize winner of the Green Roof Give Away Competition presented by Cole Roofing! http://greenroofgiveaway.com

A group of girls from BLSYW will have a unique opportunity to learn about rising sea levels and the environment of the Chesapeake

Bay through photography during a National Geographic Photo Camp on Smith Island, Md. From May 19 - 22, 12 seventh-graders from the Baltimore Leadership School for Young Women and four high school girls from the Refugee Youth Project (RYP) will have the opportunity to tell the story of Smith Island from their own perspectives using the tools of photojournalism. Click this link to read the full press release

Just before the winter break, BLSYW received some very exciting news. BLSYW was selected as the grand prize winner of the Green Roof Give Away Competition presented by Cole Roofing!

Many of you saw our school's wonderful video submission featuring two of our 6th grade students. These two young ladies researched what an actual "green roof" is and articulated the importance of BLSYW obtaining a green roof for our school.

“It was clear that the energy of the students, the time they put into learning about sustainable roofing options, the mission of the school and its very real need for roof repair made BLSYW the perfect choice” said Cole Roofing’s Vice President, Bill Cole, who made the surprise announcement to our entire student body at its annual holiday assembly on December 22nd.

BLSYW will receive a $30,000 credit toward green roof improvements and will work closely with Cole Roofing, the facilities committee of our Board, and BCPSS to design a green roof that will fit within this budget and help to extend the life of our roof.

To see our winning green roof video, click here: http://greenroofgiveaway.com

BLSYW is truly committed to nourishing, developing and supporting the WHOLE student, and Student Led Conferences (SLCs) are right at the forefront of this effort. Three times a year, every student at BLSYW is

mandated to lead their own personal SLC where they stand in front of a panel - made up of teachers, parents, and community leaders - and present their academic portfolio. This portfolio (also created and maintained by the student) consists of examples of their classwork and learning goals, as well as achievements and challenges the student faced in each class they took during the preceeding academic quarter.

BLSYW is truly committed to nourishing, developing and supporting the WHOLE student, and Student Led Conferences (SLCs) are right at the forefront of this effort. Three times a year, every student at BLSYW is mandated to lead their own personal SLC where they stand in front of a panel - made up of teachers, parents, and community leaders - and present their academic portfolio. This portfolio (also created and maintained by the student) consists of examples of their classwork and learning goals, as well as achievements and challenges the student faced in each class they took during the preceeding academic quarter.

SLCs encourage students to own their work, develops students' interpersonal skills, builds self-confidence, utilizes and showcases students' strengths and interests, while simultaneously providing an avenue for identifying areas of need and support. SLCs encourage students to communicate openly as equal partners in their learning journey using open, honest dialogue to foster personal reflection and accountability.

And just how effective are SLCs?! We are extremely proud to report that our students have experienced phenomenal academic successes. More specifically, 88.1% of our students scored proficient or advanced in reading (which is higher than the city average) and a whopping 96.6% of our students scored proficient or advanced in math (with is higher than both the city and state average)! Check out the MD Report Card link for more information: http://www.mdreportcard.org/Assessments.aspx?K=300348&WDATA=School . Additionally, parents are bragging about how their child - who once hated homework - is now motivated to spend more hours studying in eager anticipating of their SLCs, our SLC attendance is 100%, and our students' confidence levels are soaring through the roof!