Baltimore Collegiate School for Boys closes after charter renewal denial

Baltimore Collegiate School for Boys spent its final days with students and families trying to celebrate graduation and brace for what comes next. The 11-year-old charter school for boys in grades 4 through 8 was set to close after Baltimore City Public Schools declined to renew its charter, leaving parents, staff and students facing a scramble before the next school year.

City Schools said the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners voted 6-4 on January 14, 2026, to approve the nonrenewal of Five Smooth Stones Foundation, Inc.’s contract and close the school in June 2026. The district’s review process for charter operators generally runs in three-, five- or eight-year terms, with final-year evaluations weighing academics, financial and operational compliance, family and community engagement and progress on charter goals. Baltimore Collegiate’s annual review hearing for the 2025 recommendations was held December 11, 2025, at 200 E. North Avenue.

The closure hit especially hard because Baltimore Collegiate was Maryland’s only all-boys charter school and Baltimore City’s first all-boys charter school. Opened in 2015, the school had become a rare option for Black boys in the city, and supporters argued its record was stronger than the nonrenewal decision suggested. They pointed to four graduating classes that moved on to college, alumni who attended Delaware State University and Rutgers University, and graduates who later landed internships in local government.

The strongest argument from supporters was the numbers. Baltimore Collegiate posted an 86% on-time graduation rate in 2025, compared with a Baltimore City system rate just under 72%. Local profiles also said boys at the school had consistently outscored Baltimore City students on state tests before the pandemic, a record supporters said should have carried more weight in the renewal process. One member of the school’s first graduating class said the school taught him how to present himself at his best.

Edwin Avent, the school’s CEO, appealed the nonrenewal decision, but he said reopening would be difficult after enrollment losses and financial strain had already taken hold. A petition to save the school drew more than 1,600 signatures, and supporters planned a Stop the Close rally at City Hall at 5 p.m. Thursday, urging Mayor Brandon Scott and the City Council to reverse course.

The school’s case also echoed earlier state-level charter proceedings. The Maryland State Board of Education’s charter decisions list includes In the Matter of Baltimore Collegiate School for Boys OR20-14, underscoring how long the school’s status had been under review. Its closing now stands as a test of how Baltimore weighs charter accountability against the loss of a specialized school that many families believed was changing lives.