Empowerment Academy, Baltimore MD

Original Research by School Decision on Empowerment Academy

Empowerment Academy is a public charter school in Baltimore serving pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. It sits in the 21216 ZIP code, a residential section of the city’s west side. A parent considering this school is looking at a small PK-8 environment – large enough to run multiple classes per grade, but small enough that most families will know the staff. Because it is a charter school within Baltimore City Public Schools, admission is open to city residents via the district’s choice process, which means it draws from across the city rather than a single neighborhood attendance zone.

The student body is almost entirely Black, with a modest share of Hispanic and white students. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, a measure that places the school in a high-poverty bracket. For a family, this peer environment means the school is serving a population that, across the city, often faces significant systemic barriers. The school has not posted its special education or English learner counts, so a parent whose child needs those supports should ask the school directly what services are available.

Academically, the school’s state test results show a clear pattern. In English language arts, across third through eighth grade, roughly one in three students scored proficient or above on the Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program. One grade – seventh – produced a noticeably stronger result that the state reported as a range rather than a single figure; even at the low end of that range, it was the school’s strongest showing. In math, the picture is markedly different. Across those same grades, proficiency rates fell well below the English results, with several grades recording no proficient students at all and none rising above a very modest share. Science and social studies results were similarly low. The school’s overall proficiency index, which averages performance across all tested subjects and grades, placed it in the top quartile among the districts in Baltimore city – a reminder that the comparison set here is a small one with widely varying results, so being at the top of this group still means the school is operating in a very challenging academic context. A parent should look into how the school approaches math instruction specifically, as that subject is a clear soft spot.

Because Empowerment Academy does not serve high school grades, there is no graduation rate to report, and there are no high-school-level programs such as Advanced Placement or career pathways. The program offerings data was not available, so nothing curriculum-specific beyond the tested subjects can be described. On the civil rights front, the school’s discipline data, course access data, and staffing data were all missing as well. A parent wanting to understand school climate or teacher qualifications will need to get that information directly from the school or from the district.

The housing context around the school is that of a deeply affordable city market. Home values in the 21216 ZIP code are well below both the Maryland and national medians, and rents are correspondingly low, though the national rent index has been climbing. A family moving to this part of Baltimore will find that housing costs are a small fraction of what they would be in much of the metro area or the state. The city’s broader economic anchors – Johns Hopkins Hospital and University, the port – are the main local drivers, but the west-side neighborhoods near the school have experienced disinvestment over decades. The city’s population has been declining slightly, and a major infrastructure project to replace the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge is underway, but that is concentrated on the port-access corridor far from the school’s immediate area.

The district itself has not reported any recent parent-relevant changes. Without a stated strategic priority or reform initiative from the district brief, it is not possible to say whether Empowerment Academy is part of any current district-level turnaround or improvement effort. A family should ask the school’s leadership about its relationship with the central office, its approach to curriculum and teacher support, and its plans for addressing the academic gaps the state tests reveal. For a parent who wants a small K-8 charter in a low-cost part of the city and is prepared to engage directly on the school’s academic challenges, this is worth a closer look. For a parent prioritizing strong math outcomes or wanting a full suite of program offerings, it would be hard to see the fit without the school providing a much fuller picture than the data here allows.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 326%

School 26% · district not reported

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 428%

School 28% · district not reported

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Grade 50%

School 0% · district not reported

▼ 21 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 60%

School 0% · district not reported

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 75%

School 5% · district not reported

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 88%

School 8% · district not reported

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 332%

School 32% · district not reported

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 434%

School 34% · district not reported

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Grade 532%

School 32% · district not reported

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Grade 636%

School 36% · district not reported

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

Grade 833%

School 33% · district not reported

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Science

Grade 50%

School 0% · district not reported

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 820%

School 20% · district not reported

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 813%

School 13% · District 17% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 18 pts below state median · even with county median

This schoolBaltimore City Public Schools, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 7Lower-income23%Higher-income31%8 pp gap