About Us
Always Learning More

Baltimore County

From the Chesapeake Bay to the Maryland–Pennsylvania Line, Baltimore County wraps around but does not include Baltimore City. With more than 800,000 residents, Baltimore County is diverse with residents living in suburban, rural, and urban neighborhoods, reflecting the nation's blend of cultures and backgrounds. In serving this community, Baltimore County Public Schools offers students a wide range of academic and enrichment opportunities.

An overview of Baltimore County Public Schools

26th largest school system in the U.S., 3rd largest in Maryland

$1.5 billion budget, FY 2013

107,033 students (as of 9/28/12)

  • 55.6% minority enrollment (9/28/12)
  • 4.2% English language learner enrollment (10/31/12)
  • 45.9% eligible for free/reduced price meals (10/31/12, unofficial)

174 schools, programs, and centers

18,783 employees, including 8,792 classroom teachers

7,300 graduates annually

  • 87.5% of graduates immediately pursue higher education
  • $103.7 million in scholarships reported by 2012 graduates

International Baccalaureate at two high schools

Average of 17 Advanced Placement courses at each high school; one-third of all high
schools offer 20 or more AP courses

70,224 bus riders daily (10/26/12)

  • 17,615 school bus stops (5/12)
  • 14.5 million miles logged each year (5/12)

12.2 million nutritious meals served during the 2011-2012 school year

  • 3,573,239 breakfast meals served
  • 8,634,061 lunch meals served

About UsAccomplishments and Accolades

Academic
  • More than half of all BCPS traditional and magnet high schools have been named among the nation's top high schools.
    • 13 schools were named among the top nine percent of high schools in the nation by The Washington Post (April 2013).
    • 11 schools placed among the 2,000 on the "America's Best High Schools" list created by The Daily Beast/Newsweek magazine (May 2013).
    • 10 schools listed on U.S. News & World Report's "Best High Schools" list, including five ranking among the 500 best high schools in the nation (April 2013).
  • Recognized by Education Week for having the second highest graduation rate among the nation's largest school districts (June 2013).
  • Recognized by the Schott Foundation for having the fourth highest graduation rate for African American males among the nation's large school districts (September 2012).
  • Fourteen schools named National No Child Left Behind Blue Ribbon Schools, 19 schools recognized as Maryland Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence.
  • Led all Maryland school systems in earning the lion’s share of the national 2013 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, among the most prestigious high school arts recognition programs in the nation. In all, 162 BCPS students earned awards in the program out of 410 statewide. County students also took home about 46 percent of the total number of awards – 368 of the 803 presented statewide.
  • Recognized by the NAMM Foundation as one of the "Best Communities for Music Education in America (2006-2013).

Technology

  • Recognized in 2009 by EducationWeek, the International Society for Technology in Education, National Public Radio, and others for development of a groundbreaking partnership among Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, The Johns Hopkins University, area software developers, and others. Launched first-of-its-kind virtual learning environment as a result of partnership.

Innovation/Educational Leadership

  • Accepted into the prestigious 32-member League of Innovative Schools, a national Digital Promise initiative that connects member school districts and schools with top universities and entrepreneurs to accelerate the pace of change in public education. (February 2013)

Management

  • ISO 9001 international certification for management (of Curriculum and Instruction, Fiscal Services-Purchasing, Technology, and Human Resources) – BCPS is the only school system in Maryland to achieve this designation
  • National Mentorship Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools program (2010).
  • The Achievement of Excellence in Procurement award from the National Purchasing Institute (2005-2010)
  • The Meritorious Budget Award from the Association of School Business Officials International (for every budget since FY 2005).
  • Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting from the Association of School Business Officials International (every year since 1996).
  • The Government Finance Officers Association’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Award (for every budget since FY 2005).
  • The Government Finance Officers Association’s Award of Financial Reporting Achievement (every year since 1996).

About UsStudent Achievement Highlights
(2011-2012 results)

Elementary reading and mathematics Maryland School Assessment (MSA) scores and middle school mathematics scores have risen to their highest levels in five years.

The percentage of English language learners achieving proficiency on the 2012 reading and mathematics MSA was 69% and 77% respectively. This represents an 11 percentage point gain in reading since 2008 and a 12 percentage point gain in mathematics since 2008. Students who received ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) services for one to three years are included.

By the end of Grade 12, 89% of all students passed the high school assessment in Algebra/Data Analysis, 85% in Biology, and 87% in English.

Advanced Placement (AP) participation has continued to increase from 13% in 2008 to 18% in 2012, the highest level in five years.

In 2012, 92% of BCPS high schools participated in Advanced Placement (AP) examinations compared with 67% in 2008.

The percentage of highly qualified teachers increased from 96% in 2008 to 98% in 2012, and the percentage of highly qualified paraprofessionals increased from 95% in 2008 to 98% in 2012.

The percentage of highly-qualified middle school mathematics teachers was sustained at 99% from 2009 to 2012.

The percentage of newly-hired highly-qualified teachers in Title I schools was sustained at 100% from 2009 to 2012.

The systemwide four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate increased from 78.97% in 2009 to 81.81% in 2011.
In 2012, 100% of schools received school-level data and communicated student-level achievement results to the community.

In 2012, teachers, administrators, and clerical staff had access to at least one computer; and the ratio of students to computers was 3 to 1.

The student enrollment projections for September 2011 continued to be 100% accurate.

Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID), a college preparatory program for students in the "academic middle," was implemented effectively in 22 high schools and 8 middle schools.